Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rabat and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,928 in Rabat, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Rabat
🇲🇹 Malta
$1,928
/mo nomad
Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,207
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Rabat 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 Rabat and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,928 in Rabat versus $1,207 in Phuket.

  • Rabat $1,928
  • Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,701 in Rabat versus $2,037 in Phuket.

  • Rabat $2,701
  • Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,474 in Rabat versus $2,867 in Phuket.

  • Rabat $3,474
  • Phuket $2,867

Living in Rabat is roughly 60% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rabat is 43% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.55 €14.72
$4.58 ฿153
261.35%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$50.4 €44.82
$32.48 ฿1,086
55.14%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.19 €9.96
$8.55 ฿286
30.88%
Cappuccino
$2.25 €2.00
$2.72 ฿91.0
-17.28%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 €2.20
$0.94 ฿31.25
163.83%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.69 €1.51
$0.49 ฿16.39
244.90%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.33 €2.97
$2.59 ฿86.6
28.57%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.43 €3.05
$3.83 ฿128
-10.44%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.11 €0.99
$1.74 ฿58.1
-36.21%
White Bread (500g)
$1.34 €1.19
$1.43 ฿47.82
-6.29%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.26 €2.01
$1.53 ฿51.0
47.71%
Eggs
$3.50 €3.11
$2.17 ฿72.7
61.29%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.97 €7.09
$19.15 ฿640
-58.38%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.87 €7.00
$3.30 ฿110
138.48%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.51 €11.13
$11.14 ฿372
12.30%
Apples (1kg)
$4.12 €3.67
$2.95 ฿98.5
39.66%
Banana (1kg)
$2.18 €1.94
$1.68 ฿56.1
29.76%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.55 €3.16
$2.30 ฿76.8
54.35%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.21 €1.97
$2.13 ฿71.3
3.76%
Potato (1kg)
$1.15 €1.02
$1.53 ฿51.1
-24.84%
Onion (1kg)
$1.14 €1.01
$1.36 ฿45.55
-16.18%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.09 €0.97
$1.12 ฿37.44
-2.68%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 €0.97
$0.55 ฿18.24
98.18%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.80 €6.05
$4.26 ฿142
59.62%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.23 €7.32
$18.19 ฿608
-54.76%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.76 €1.57
$1.74 ฿58.2
1.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.44 €2.17
$2.79 ฿93.3
-12.54%
🚌 Getting Around
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.71 €2.41
$2.22 ฿74.1
22.07%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$22.06 ฿737
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.73 €5.09
$2.91 ฿97.3
96.91%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.21 €1.96
$1.01 ฿33.79
118.81%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$26.77 €23.81
$3.83 ฿128
598.96%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.51 €1.34
$1.49 ฿49.85
1.34%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$37.7K €33.6K
$26.7K ฿891.6K
41.49%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.6K €34.3K
$26.7K ฿892.7K
44.56%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$101 €90.2
$99.4 ฿3,321
2.04%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.17 €10.82
$11.28 ฿377
7.89%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$42.85 €38.12
$17.36 ฿580
146.83%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.1 €55.3
$52.3 ฿1,747
18.78%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.18 €19.73
$10.85 ฿362
104.42%
Cinema Ticket
$10.09 €8.98
$7.57 ฿253
33.29%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$369 €328
$558 ฿18.7K
-33.92%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.3K €10.0K
$11.5K ฿383.9K
-1.75%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$86.2 €76.7
$62.9 ฿2,102
37.12%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$27.60 €24.55
$28.58 ฿955
-3.43%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$73.7 €65.6
$96.1 ฿3,213
-23.32%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$76.8 €68.3
$88.1 ฿2,943
-12.79%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,051 €934
$729 ฿24.4K
44.02%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,049 €933
$460 ฿15.4K
128.04%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,735 €1,543
$2,096 ฿70.0K
-17.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,460 €1,299
$1,222 ฿40.8K
19.45%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,396 €3,910
$3,459 ฿115.6K
27.08%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,149 €2,801
$2,489 ฿83.2K
26.52%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Rabat
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,318 €1,173
$493 ฿16.5K
167.37%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
2.9
5.57
-47.94%

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

Last update for Rabat: October 10, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Rabat
$1K
Phuket
$460 56.1% $589
Groceries & Markets
Rabat
$261
Phuket
$268 2.6% $6.9
Eating Out
Rabat
$233
Phuket
$121 48% $112
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rabat
$156
Phuket
$128 18.2% $28
Clothing & Footwear
Rabat
$119
Phuket
$124 4.3% $5.1
Sport & Entertainment
Rabat
$82
Phuket
$67 18.1% $15
Getting Around
Rabat
$28 *
Phuket
$39 41% $11

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Rabat and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rabat pays 167% 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: $50.0 in Rabat vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $261 vs $268, with Rabat cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇲🇹 Rabat
🇹🇭 Phuket
🕒 Local time
12:38 12:38 PM
17:38 5:38 PM
5 h ahead of Rabat
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
11,497
79,308
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Rabat Phuket 8,960 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Rabat
  • 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
Rabat vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Phuket cheaper than Rabat?
Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, leisure, and utilities. The 60% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Rabat or Phuket?
Average pay runs 167% higher in Rabat, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
What is the rent difference between Rabat and Phuket?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,051 in Rabat versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $369 in Rabat versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Is eating out cheaper in Rabat or in Phuket?
Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $50.0 in Rabat. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Rabat or in Phuket?
At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,928 in Rabat, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Rabat. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Rabat or Phuket more family-friendly?
For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Rabat, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Rabat or Phuket?
Safety-wise, Rabat 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.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Rabat. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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