Cost of Living Comparison Between Rotorua and Phuket Cost of Living Comparison Between Rotorua and Phuket

😐 Solo nomad: Rotorua is 22.3% more expensive than Phuket without rent, and 15.3% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Rotorua is 0.3% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 9.2% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.07 NZ$20.28
$4.65 ฿146
159.57%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$60.3 NZ$101
$46.11 ฿1,450
30.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.66 NZ$16.23
$8.74 ฿275
10.53%
Cappuccino
$2.79 NZ$4.69
$3.04 ฿95.5
-8.22%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.31 NZ$3.89
$0.72 ฿22.65
220.83%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.24 NZ$3.76
$0.39 ฿12.30
474.36%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.47 NZ$9.19
$2.44 ฿76.7
124.18%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.31 NZ$8.92
$3.79 ฿119
40.11%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.74 NZ$2.93
$2.14 ฿67.4
-18.69%
White Bread (500g)
$2.12 NZ$3.56
$1.86 ฿58.5
13.98%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.28 NZ$2.15
$2.19 ฿68.8
-41.55%
Eggs
$5.45 NZ$9.15
$2.25 ฿70.6
142.22%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.07 NZ$13.56
$19.73 ฿620
-59.10%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.50 NZ$14.28
$3.79 ฿119
124.27%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.75 NZ$18.06
$13.55 ฿426
-20.66%
Apples (1kg)
$1.79 NZ$3.01
$3.25 ฿102
-44.92%
Banana (1kg)
$2.26 NZ$3.80
$1.67 ฿52.6
35.33%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.37 NZ$5.66
$2.39 ฿75.2
41.00%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.24 NZ$2.08
$2.09 ฿65.8
-40.67%
Potato (1kg)
$1.77 NZ$2.97
$1.53 ฿48.07
15.69%
Onion (1kg)
$1.71 NZ$2.87
$1.51 ฿47.47
13.25%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.98 NZ$3.32
$0.99 ฿31.09
100.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.22 NZ$2.06
$0.51 ฿16.19
139.22%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$22.92 NZ$38.51
$4.27 ฿134
436.77%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.79 NZ$14.77
$20.31 ฿638
-56.72%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.41 NZ$2.37
$1.79 ฿56.3
-21.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.85 NZ$4.79
$2.77 ฿87.0
2.89%
🚌 Getting Around
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.65 NZ$2.78
$1.40 ฿44.15
17.86%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$63.5 NZ$107
$11.70 ฿368
442.74%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.79 NZ$3.00
$3.11 ฿97.8
-42.44%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.65 NZ$2.77
$0.99 ฿31.27
66.67%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$34.60 NZ$58.1
$13.73 ฿432
152.00%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.67 NZ$2.81
$1.32 ฿41.47
26.52%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.4K NZ$47.8K
$27.2K ฿856.3K
4.42%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.2K NZ$37.2K
$34.1K ฿1.1M
-35.02%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$144 NZ$242
$120 ฿3,785
19.75%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$30.62 NZ$51.4
$13.93 ฿438
119.81%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$45.91 NZ$77.1
$18.31 ฿576
150.74%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$35.40 NZ$59.5
$60.9 ฿1,916
-41.90%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.17 NZ$17.09
$17.23 ฿542
-40.98%
Cinema Ticket
$10.12 NZ$17.01
$8.71 ฿274
16.19%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$922 NZ$1,550
$698 ฿21.9K
32.16%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$13.7K NZ$23.1K
$15.7K ฿494.7K
-12.79%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$71.2 NZ$120
$57.6 ฿1,812
23.53%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.70 NZ$61.7
$34.24 ฿1,077
7.18%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$43.04 NZ$72.3
$113 ฿3,558
-61.97%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$54.6 NZ$91.8
$84.8 ฿2,666
-35.59%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$729 NZ$1,224
$604 ฿19.0K
20.70%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$537 NZ$903
$436 ฿13.7K
23.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,446 NZ$2,429
$2,057 ฿64.7K
-29.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$892 NZ$1,499
$1,498 ฿47.1K
-40.45%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,307 NZ$7,235
$4,252 ฿133.7K
1.27%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,519 NZ$5,913
$2,988 ฿93.9K
17.79%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Rotorua
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,912 NZ$6,572
$529 ฿16.6K
639.13%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.37
5.33
19.51%

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

Last update for Rotorua: March 1, 2026

Last update for Phuket: February 28, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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