Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Raleigh, NC and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,643 in Raleigh, NC, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

126

Cost of Living Index in Raleigh, NC
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Raleigh, NC Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Raleigh, NC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,643

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,643 in Raleigh, NC versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Raleigh, NC $2,643
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,817 in Raleigh, NC versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Raleigh, NC $3,817
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,991 in Raleigh, NC versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Raleigh, NC $4,991
Phuket $3,154

Living in Raleigh, NC is roughly 107% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Raleigh, NC is 94% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.90 $21.90

$4.47 ฿151

389.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.4 $88.4

$32.41 ฿1,094

172.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.44 $11.44

$8.81 ฿297

29.85%

Cappuccino

$5.60 $5.60

$2.83 ฿95.5

97.88%

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

$2.83 $2.83

$0.87 ฿29.43

225.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.49 ฿16.67

340.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.12 $6.12

$2.56 ฿86.4

139.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.94 $6.94

$3.68 ฿124

88.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.88 $0.88

$1.66 ฿56.0

-46.99%

White Bread (500g)

$3.79 $3.79

$1.46 ฿49.35

159.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.17 $3.17

$1.50 ฿50.6

111.33%

Eggs

$4.78 $4.78

$2.09 ฿70.5

128.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.10 $15.10

$19.07 ฿644

-20.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.74 $9.74

$3.30 ฿111

195.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.81 $17.81

$10.91 ฿368

63.24%

Apples (1kg)

$6.61 $6.61

$2.93 ฿99.0

125.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 $1.26

$1.69 ฿57.1

-25.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.45 $4.45

$2.25 ฿75.8

97.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.75 $5.75

$2.08 ฿70.1

176.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.91 $2.91

$1.51 ฿51.0

92.72%

Onion (1kg)

$3.61 $3.61

$1.38 ฿46.56

161.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.16 $2.16

$1.07 ฿35.99

101.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.21 $2.21

$0.52 ฿17.52

325.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.64 $8.64

$4.20 ฿142

105.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.11 $15.11

$18.79 ฿634

-19.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.82 ฿61.5

23.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 $2.74

$2.84 ฿95.9

-3.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.45 ฿49.03

-15.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.38 $40.38

$56.7 ฿1,913

-28.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.92 $2.92

$3.02 ฿102

-3.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.92 $1.92

$1.02 ฿34.36

88.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.79 $17.79

$3.69 ฿125

382.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.47 ฿49.81

-31.29%

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

$30.8K $30.8K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

15.10%

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

$25.8K $25.8K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-3.21%

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

$185 $185

$96.4 ฿3,254

92.40%

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

$56.7 $56.7

$11.26 ฿380

403.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.5 $68.5

$16.85 ฿569

306.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.01 $33.01

$67.2 ฿2,270

-50.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.90 $5.90

$10.73 ฿362

-45.01%

Cinema Ticket

$14.74 $14.74

$7.50 ฿253

96.53%

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

$1,317 $1,317

$476 ฿16.1K

176.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.0K $24.0K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

112.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.5 $60.5

$62.4 ฿2,106

-3.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.7 $55.7

$28.41 ฿959

96.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 $102

$94.3 ฿3,184

8.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 $159

$85.8 ฿2,898

85.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,715 $1,715

$716 ฿24.2K

139.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,290 $1,290

$491 ฿16.6K

162.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 $2,825

$1,927 ฿65.1K

46.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 $1,915

$1,431 ฿48.3K

33.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,556 $4,556

$4,175 ฿141.0K

9.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,115 $2,115

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-30.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,605 $4,605

$502 ฿17.0K

816.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.61

5.57

18.67%

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

Last update for Raleigh, NC: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Raleigh, NC

$1.3K 48.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 62% $799

Groceries & Markets

Raleigh, NC

$411 15.6%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 35.2% $145

Eating Out

Raleigh, NC

$341 12.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 64.3% $219

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Raleigh, NC

$311 11.8%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 59.9% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Raleigh, NC

$170 6.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 28.1% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Raleigh, NC

$62 2.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 31.6% $20

Getting Around

Raleigh, NC

$58 2.2%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 22.2% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,715 in Raleigh, NC and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Raleigh, NC pays about 9.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $88 in Raleigh, NC vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $411 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Raleigh, NC

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

11:09 11:09 AM

22:09 10:09 PM

11 h ahead of Raleigh, NC

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

431,746

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Raleigh, NC Phuket 15,150 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Raleigh, NC
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

Raleigh, NC vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. The 107% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Raleigh, NC is about 9.2 times higher, 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: $1,715 in Raleigh, NC versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,317 in Raleigh, NC versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 54% higher in Raleigh, NC. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,643 in Raleigh, NC, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Raleigh, NC. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Raleigh, NC on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.