Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riga and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,591 in Riga, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Riga
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Riga Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Riga

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,591

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,591 in Riga versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Riga $1,591
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,428 in Riga versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Riga $2,428
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,264 in Riga versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Riga $3,264
Phuket $2,867

Living in Riga is roughly 32% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Riga is 18% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.05 €15.17

$4.58 ฿153

272.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.9 €58.6

$32.48 ฿1,086

102.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 €7.96

$8.55 ฿286

4.56%

Cappuccino

$3.63 €3.23

$2.72 ฿91.0

33.46%

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

$1.62 €1.44

$0.94 ฿31.25

72.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$0.49 ฿16.39

144.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 €4.83

$2.59 ฿86.6

109.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 €4.41

$3.83 ฿128

29.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.74 ฿58.1

-31.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.43 ฿47.82

4.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$1.53 ฿51.0

63.40%

Eggs

$3.61 €3.21

$2.17 ฿72.7

66.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.61 €9.44

$19.15 ฿640

-44.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 €7.88

$3.30 ฿110

168.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.85 €12.32

$11.14 ฿372

24.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$2.95 ฿98.5

-27.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.68 ฿56.1

8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 €2.18

$2.30 ฿76.8

6.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.09 €2.75

$2.13 ฿71.3

45.07%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 €0.74

$1.53 ฿51.1

-45.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$1.36 ฿45.55

-30.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.12 ฿37.44

51.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.55 ฿18.24

78.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.75 €6.01

$4.26 ฿142

58.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.66 €6.81

$18.19 ฿608

-57.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.74 ฿58.2

12.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.79 ฿93.3

-25.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.69 €1.51

$2.22 ฿74.1

-23.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.13 €29.47

$22.06 ฿737

50.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.91 ฿97.3

16.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$1.01 ฿33.79

-1.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.89 €15.91

$3.83 ฿128

367.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.49 ฿49.85

34.90%

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

$27.0K €24.0K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

1.16%

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

$31.4K €28.0K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

17.64%

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

$369 €328

$99.4 ฿3,321

271.28%

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

$19.45 €17.30

$11.28 ฿377

72.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.83 €17.64

$17.36 ฿580

14.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 €45.28

$52.3 ฿1,747

-2.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.88 €31.91

$10.85 ฿362

230.69%

Cinema Ticket

$11.05 €9.83

$7.57 ฿253

45.97%

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

$690 €614

$558 ฿18.7K

23.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.7K €15.7K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

54.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.3 €61.6

$62.9 ฿2,102

10.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 €44.88

$28.58 ฿955

76.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.7 €76.3

$96.1 ฿3,213

-10.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 €124

$88.1 ฿2,943

58.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$560 €498

$729 ฿24.4K

-23.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$383 €341

$460 ฿15.4K

-16.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-45.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 €657

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-39.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,993 €2,662

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-13.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,050 €1,824

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-17.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,478 €1,315

$493 ฿16.5K

199.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.57

-14.36%

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

Last update for Riga: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riga

$408 25.7%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 68.6% $280

Accommodation & Living

Riga

$383 24.1%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 20% $77

Groceries & Markets

Riga

$268 16.8%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 0.2% $0.5

Eating Out

Riga

$255 16%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 52.5% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Riga

$155 9.8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 20.1% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Riga

$73 4.6%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 7.7% $5.6

Getting Around

Riga

$48 3%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 19.4% $9.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $560 in Riga and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riga pays 200% 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: $66.0 in Riga vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $268 vs $268, with Riga cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Riga

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

09:25 9:25 AM

13:25 1:25 PM

4 h ahead of Riga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

660,187 Capital

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

Riga Phuket 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Riga
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

Riga vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 32% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 200% higher in Riga, 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: $560 in Riga versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $690 in Riga versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 0% higher in Riga. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,591 in Riga, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Riga. 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 Riga, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Riga 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 32% less than in Riga. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.