Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pula and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,580 in Pula, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Pula
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Pula Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Pula

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,580

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Pula and in Phuket

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Pula and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,580 in Pula versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Pula $1,580
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,515 in Pula versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Pula $2,515
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,450 in Pula versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Pula $3,450
Phuket $2,845

Living in Pula is roughly 31% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Pula is 17% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.68 €13.06

$4.40 ฿147

233.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.6

$32.26 ฿1,078

111.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.92 €7.94

$8.76 ฿293

1.83%

Cappuccino

$2.55 €2.27

$2.83 ฿94.5

-9.89%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 €2.60

$0.90 ฿30.14

225.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 €1.86

$0.47 ฿15.56

344.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.05

$2.55 ฿85.2

34.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 €3.92

$3.83 ฿128

15.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 €1.10

$1.73 ฿57.7

-28.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.47 ฿49.11

26.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.18 €2.83

$1.51 ฿50.6

110.60%

Eggs

$3.78 €3.37

$2.17 ฿72.7

74.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.95 €9.74

$19.70 ฿658

-44.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.79 €9.59

$3.34 ฿112

223.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.80 €16.72

$11.16 ฿373

68.46%

Apples (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.85 ฿95.1

-30.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.70 ฿56.9

10.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.19 ฿73.3

-2.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.30

$2.05 ฿68.4

26.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.45 ฿48.57

-6.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.38 ฿46.16

-3.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 €1.15

$1.07 ฿35.69

21.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.08

$0.51 ฿16.91

139.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.59 €4.97

$4.26 ฿142

31.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.80 €6.94

$18.58 ฿621

-58.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.78 ฿59.7

3.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 €2.14

$2.85 ฿95.2

-15.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.26 ฿75.6

0.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.26 €29.58

$22.10 ฿738

50.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 €2.91

$3.01 ฿101

8.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 €1.98

$1.06 ฿35.34

109.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.18 €19.73

$3.86 ฿129

474.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.45 ฿48.45

26.21%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$26.0K €23.1K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-1.28%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$26.6K €23.7K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-1.23%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$156 €139

$96.4 ฿3,221

62.10%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$22.01 €19.58

$11.04 ฿369

99.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.37 €35.02

$17.14 ฿573

129.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.70 €44.21

$52.2 ฿1,744

-4.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.64 €33.48

$11.16 ฿373

237.28%

Cinema Ticket

$10.59 €9.42

$7.81 ฿261

35.60%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$240 €214

$556 ฿18.6K

-56.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,826 €2,514

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-75.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 €101

$64.2 ฿2,146

77.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.80 €32.74

$28.69 ฿959

28.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 €128

$95.4 ฿3,187

51.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €116

$88.0 ฿2,940

48.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$685 €609

$737 ฿24.6K

-7.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$522 €464

$462 ฿15.5K

12.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,315 €1,170

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-37.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$999 €889

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-16.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,363 €3,881

$3,488 ฿116.6K

25.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,650 €3,246

$2,523 ฿84.3K

44.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,517 €1,349

$501 ฿16.7K

202.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

5.57

-36.45%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Pula: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Pula

$522 33%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 11.3% $59

Groceries & Markets

Pula

$301 19%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 10.7% $32

Eating Out

Pula

$221 14%

Phuket

$121 10% 45.1% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pula

$218 13.8%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 42.8% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Pula

$192 12.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 35.1% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Pula

$71 4.5%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 4.4% $3.1

Getting Around

Pula

$57 3.6%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 30.5% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $685 in Pula and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Pula pays 203% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $68.0 in Pula vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $301 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Pula

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

18:04 6:04 PM

23:04 11:04 PM

5 h ahead of Pula

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

52,220

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Pula Phuket 8,960 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Pula
Phuket

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Pula vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 31% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 203% higher in Pula, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $685 in Pula versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $240 in Pula versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Pula. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,580 in Pula, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Pula. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Pula, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Pula and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Pula. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.