Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Roma, TX and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,589 in Roma, TX, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Roma, TX
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Roma, TX Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Roma, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,589

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,589 in Roma, TX versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Roma, TX $2,589
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,801 in Roma, TX versus $2,224 in Phuket.

Roma, TX $3,801
Phuket $2,224

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,012 in Roma, TX versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Roma, TX $5,012
Phuket $3,154

Living in Roma, TX is roughly 100% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Roma, TX is 92% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.25 $20.25

$4.39 ฿148

361.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.6 $74.6

$32.31 ฿1,089

130.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.33 $11.33

$8.70 ฿293

30.23%

Cappuccino

$5.23 $5.23

$2.72 ฿91.8

92.28%

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

$2.75 $2.75

$0.93 ฿31.35

195.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 $2.05

$0.50 ฿16.83

310.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.02 $6.02

$2.53 ฿85.3

137.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 $7.12

$3.63 ฿122

96.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.74 ฿58.6

-41.95%

White Bread (500g)

$3.53 $3.53

$1.45 ฿48.89

143.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.26 $4.26

$1.50 ฿50.6

184.00%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$2.17 ฿73.2

90.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.56 $12.56

$19.09 ฿643

-34.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.68 $11.68

$3.40 ฿115

243.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.01 $17.01

$10.90 ฿367

56.06%

Apples (1kg)

$5.20 $5.20

$2.94 ฿99.1

76.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.69 ฿57.0

-6.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.21 $4.21

$2.19 ฿73.9

92.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.73 $4.73

$2.12 ฿71.6

123.11%

Potato (1kg)

$2.80 $2.80

$1.46 ฿49.15

91.78%

Onion (1kg)

$2.86 $2.86

$1.37 ฿46.10

108.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.08 ฿36.26

102.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.31 $2.31

$0.55 ฿18.38

320.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.18 $10.18

$4.43 ฿149

129.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.84 $14.84

$18.25 ฿615

-18.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 $1.92

$1.77 ฿59.7

8.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 $3.38

$2.88 ฿97.1

17.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.45 ฿48.78

35.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$59.9 $59.9

$54.9 ฿1,850

9.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 $3.36

$1.51 ฿51.0

122.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 $1.77

$0.78 ฿26.14

126.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.25 $26.25

$3.84 ฿129

583.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.49 ฿50.1

-31.54%

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

$27.7K $27.7K

$26.9K ฿905.9K

3.11%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$26.3K ฿887.8K

-1.34%

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

$202 $202

$97.8 ฿3,296

106.32%

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

$59.5 $59.5

$11.29 ฿381

426.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.2 $70.2

$17.19 ฿579

308.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.95 $39.95

$68.3 ฿2,303

-41.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.94 $19.94

$10.92 ฿368

82.60%

Cinema Ticket

$13.58 $13.58

$7.43 ฿250

82.77%

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

$1,371 $1,371

$530 ฿17.9K

158.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.4K $21.4K

$18.8K ฿632.9K

14.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 $54.0

$61.7 ฿2,078

-12.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.21 $41.21

$28.25 ฿952

45.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 $87.0

$96.0 ฿3,235

-9.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 $115

$86.8 ฿2,926

32.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,556 $1,556

$721 ฿24.3K

115.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,256 $1,256

$509 ฿17.1K

146.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,599 $2,599

$1,950 ฿65.7K

33.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,067 $2,067

$1,397 ฿47.1K

48.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,866 $2,866

$4,192 ฿141.3K

-31.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,372 $2,372

$3,298 ฿111.2K

-28.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,335 $1,335

$492 ฿16.6K

171.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.59

5.57

18.31%

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

Last update for Roma, TX: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Roma, TX

$1.3K 48.5%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 59.5% $747

Groceries & Markets

Roma, TX

$399 15.4%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 33.1% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Roma, TX

$331 12.8%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 61.9% $205

Eating Out

Roma, TX

$322 12.4%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 62.9% $203

Clothing & Footwear

Roma, TX

$134 5.2%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 8.2% $11

Getting Around

Roma, TX

$80 3.1%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 17.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Roma, TX

$67 2.6%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 23.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,556 in Roma, TX and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Roma, TX pays about 2.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $75 in Roma, TX vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $399 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Roma, TX

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

05:09 5:09 AM

18:09 6:09 PM

13 h ahead of Roma, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,561

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.893 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 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 November 3, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.893 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.73 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Roma, TX Phuket 15,760 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Roma, TX
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

Roma, TX vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 50% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Roma, TX is about 2.7 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: $1,556 in Roma, TX versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,371 in Roma, TX 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 50% higher in Roma, TX. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,589 in Roma, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Roma, TX. 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.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Roma, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.