Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Louis, MO and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,361 in Saint Louis, MO, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Saint Louis, MO
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Saint Louis, MO Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Saint Louis, MO

🇺🇸 United States

$2,361

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,361 in Saint Louis, MO versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Saint Louis, MO $2,361
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,555 in Saint Louis, MO versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Saint Louis, MO $3,555
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,749 in Saint Louis, MO versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Saint Louis, MO $4,749
Phuket $3,154

Living in Saint Louis, MO is roughly 85% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Saint Louis, MO is 73% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.81 $17.81

$4.47 ฿151

298.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.3 $76.3

$32.41 ฿1,094

135.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.83 $11.83

$8.81 ฿297

34.28%

Cappuccino

$5.04 $5.04

$2.83 ฿95.4

78.09%

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

$2.39 $2.39

$0.87 ฿29.42

174.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$0.49 ฿16.66

259.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.72 $5.72

$2.56 ฿86.3

123.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.96 $6.96

$3.68 ฿124

89.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 $1.28

$1.66 ฿56.0

-22.89%

White Bread (500g)

$3.93 $3.93

$1.46 ฿49.32

169.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.88 $5.88

$1.50 ฿50.5

292.00%

Eggs

$3.86 $3.86

$2.09 ฿70.5

84.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.26 $13.26

$19.07 ฿643

-30.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.67 $15.67

$3.30 ฿111

374.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.61 $20.61

$10.91 ฿368

88.91%

Apples (1kg)

$8.44 $8.44

$2.93 ฿98.9

188.05%

Banana (1kg)

$2.37 $2.37

$1.69 ฿57.0

40.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.77 $5.77

$2.25 ฿75.8

156.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.15 $5.15

$2.08 ฿70.1

147.60%

Potato (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.51 ฿51.0

190.07%

Onion (1kg)

$4.93 $4.93

$1.38 ฿46.54

257.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.91 $2.91

$1.07 ฿35.97

171.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.93 $2.93

$0.52 ฿17.51

463.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.16 $8.16

$4.20 ฿142

94.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.85 $14.85

$18.79 ฿634

-20.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 $2.79

$1.82 ฿61.5

53.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 $3.27

$2.84 ฿95.9

15.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.55 $2.55

$1.45 ฿49.00

75.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.3 $78.3

$56.7 ฿1,912

38.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.44 $3.44

$3.02 ฿102

13.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.02 ฿34.34

55.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.27 $39.27

$3.69 ฿125

964.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.47 ฿49.78

-31.97%

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

$29.0K $29.0K

$26.8K ฿903.7K

8.34%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$26.7K ฿900.8K

-0.50%

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

$246 $246

$96.4 ฿3,252

155.47%

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

$69.5 $69.5

$11.26 ฿380

517.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.7 $75.7

$16.85 ฿569

349.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.83 $28.83

$67.2 ฿2,269

-57.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.14 $20.14

$10.73 ฿362

87.70%

Cinema Ticket

$13.75 $13.75

$7.50 ฿253

83.33%

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

$1,404 $1,404

$476 ฿16.1K

194.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.6K $23.6K

$11.3K ฿380.1K

109.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 $58.9

$62.4 ฿2,105

-5.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.31 $39.31

$28.41 ฿959

38.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.3 $88.3

$94.3 ฿3,182

-6.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 $121

$85.8 ฿2,896

41.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,453 $1,453

$716 ฿24.2K

102.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$881 $881

$491 ฿16.6K

79.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,797 $1,797

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-6.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,519 $1,519

$1,431 ฿48.3K

6.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,631 $1,631

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-60.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,819 $1,819

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-40.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,178 $4,178

$502 ฿17.0K

731.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

5.57

20.65%

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

Last update for Saint Louis, MO: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint Louis, MO

$881 37.3%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 44.3% $391

Groceries & Markets

Saint Louis, MO

$496 21%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 46.3% $230

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint Louis, MO

$391 16.6%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 68.2% $267

Eating Out

Saint Louis, MO

$297 12.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 59.1% $176

Clothing & Footwear

Saint Louis, MO

$138 5.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 11.9% $16

Getting Around

Saint Louis, MO

$100 4.2%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 29.4% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Saint Louis, MO

$56 2.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 46% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,453 in Saint Louis, MO and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint Louis, MO pays about 8.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $76 in Saint Louis, MO vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $496 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Saint Louis, MO

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

04:07 4:07 AM

17:07 5:07 PM

13 h ahead of Saint Louis, MO

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

301,578

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 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 November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Saint Louis, MO Phuket 14,770 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Saint Louis, MO
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

Saint Louis, MO vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Saint Louis, MO is about 8.3 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: $1,453 in Saint Louis, MO versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,404 in Saint Louis, MO 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 86% higher in Saint Louis, MO. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,361 in Saint Louis, MO, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Saint Louis, MO. 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 46% less than in Saint Louis, MO. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.