Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rueil-Malmaison and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,778 in Rueil-Malmaison, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Rueil-Malmaison
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Rueil-Malmaison Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Rueil-Malmaison

🇫🇷 France

$1,778

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,778 in Rueil-Malmaison versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Rueil-Malmaison $1,778
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,710 in Rueil-Malmaison versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Rueil-Malmaison $2,710
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,641 in Rueil-Malmaison versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Rueil-Malmaison $3,641
Phuket $2,845

Living in Rueil-Malmaison is roughly 47% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rueil-Malmaison is 31% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.01 €15.13

$4.40 ฿147

286.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.25 €40.25

$32.26 ฿1,078

40.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.77 €6.91

$8.76 ฿293

-11.30%

Cappuccino

$1.68 €1.50

$2.83 ฿94.5

-40.64%

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

$3.05 €2.71

$0.90 ฿30.14

238.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.47 ฿15.56

338.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.46 €7.53

$2.55 ฿85.2

231.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 €2.89

$3.83 ฿128

-15.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.14

$1.73 ฿57.7

-25.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.47 ฿49.11

19.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.46 €2.19

$1.51 ฿50.6

62.91%

Eggs

$3.91 €3.48

$2.17 ฿72.7

80.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.11 €8.99

$19.70 ฿658

-48.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.77 €10.47

$3.34 ฿112

252.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.79 €14.05

$11.16 ฿373

41.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.00 €2.67

$2.85 ฿95.1

5.26%

Banana (1kg)

$3.07 €2.73

$1.70 ฿56.9

80.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 €1.34

$2.19 ฿73.3

-31.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.21 €3.74

$2.05 ฿68.4

105.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.45 ฿48.57

28.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.38 ฿46.16

52.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.07 ฿35.69

53.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.14 €0.12

$0.51 ฿16.91

-72.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.69 €11.29

$4.26 ฿142

197.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.73 €5.10

$18.58 ฿621

-69.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.78 ฿59.7

-20.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 €1.43

$2.85 ฿95.2

-43.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.91 €1.70

$2.26 ฿75.6

-15.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.0 €87.2

$22.10 ฿738

343.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.23 €1.99

$3.01 ฿101

-25.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.06 ฿35.34

5.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.32 €28.75

$3.86 ฿129

737.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.45 ฿48.45

48.28%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

31.36%

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

$30.2K €26.9K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

12.08%

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

$206 €183

$96.4 ฿3,221

113.26%

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

$32.00 €28.46

$11.04 ฿369

189.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.80 €28.28

$17.14 ฿573

85.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.12 €31.24

$52.2 ฿1,744

-32.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 €20.22

$11.16 ฿373

103.76%

Cinema Ticket

$15.92 €14.16

$7.81 ฿261

103.84%

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

$894 €795

$556 ฿18.6K

60.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.1K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-2.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$127 €113

$64.2 ฿2,146

98.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.99 €40.91

$28.69 ฿959

60.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.8 €87.9

$95.4 ฿3,187

3.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 €142

$88.0 ฿2,940

80.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 €935

$737 ฿24.6K

42.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$592 €527

$462 ฿15.5K

28.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,405 €1,250

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-32.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,097 €976

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-8.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,654 €5,919

$3,488 ฿116.6K

90.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,025 €2,691

$2,523 ฿84.3K

19.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,226 €2,869

$501 ฿16.7K

544.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.9

5.57

-29.98%

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

Last update for Rueil-Malmaison: October 19, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rueil-Malmaison

$592 33.3%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 22% $130

Groceries & Markets

Rueil-Malmaison

$293 16.5%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 8.3% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rueil-Malmaison

$269 15.2%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 53.8% $145

Eating Out

Rueil-Malmaison

$249 14%

Phuket

$121 10% 51.3% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Rueil-Malmaison

$194 10.9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 35.9% $70

Getting Around

Rueil-Malmaison

$114 6.4%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 65.3% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Rueil-Malmaison

$67 3.8%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 1.2% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,051 in Rueil-Malmaison and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rueil-Malmaison pays 544% 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: $45.00 in Rueil-Malmaison vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Rueil-Malmaison

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

11:32 11:32 AM

16:32 4:32 PM

5 h ahead of Rueil-Malmaison

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,186

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

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Between locations

Rueil-Malmaison Phuket 9,800 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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Rueil-Malmaison
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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

Rueil-Malmaison vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 47% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 544% higher in Rueil-Malmaison, 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: $1,051 in Rueil-Malmaison versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $894 in Rueil-Malmaison versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Rueil-Malmaison. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,778 in Rueil-Malmaison, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Rueil-Malmaison. 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 Rueil-Malmaison, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Rueil-Malmaison 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 47% less than in Rueil-Malmaison. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.