Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sibolga and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Sibolga: $632 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Sibolga
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Sibolga Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Sibolga

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$632

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $632 in Sibolga versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Sibolga $632
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,015 in Sibolga versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Sibolga $1,015
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,397 in Sibolga versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Sibolga $1,397
Phuket $3,154

Living in Sibolga costs roughly 51% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sibolga 54% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.43 Rp 26.0K

$4.47 ฿151

-68.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.92 Rp 216.7K

$32.41 ฿1,094

-63.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.41 Rp 62.0K

$8.81 ฿297

-61.29%

Cappuccino

$1.69 Rp 30.8K

$2.83 ฿95.5

-40.28%

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

$0.42 Rp 7,625

$0.87 ฿29.43

-51.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.21 Rp 3,807

$0.49 ฿16.67

-57.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.00 Rp 36.3K

$2.56 ฿86.4

-21.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 Rp 59.2K

$3.68 ฿124

-11.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 Rp 23.8K

$1.66 ฿56.0

-21.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.96 Rp 17.5K

$1.46 ฿49.35

-34.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.92 Rp 16.7K

$1.50 ฿50.6

-38.67%

Eggs

$1.56 Rp 28.3K

$2.09 ฿70.5

-25.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.92 Rp 143.9K

$19.07 ฿644

-58.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.52 Rp 45.8K

$3.30 ฿111

-23.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.57 Rp 155.8K

$10.91 ฿368

-21.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.46 Rp 44.7K

$2.93 ฿99.0

-16.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 Rp 26.0K

$1.69 ฿57.1

-15.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.48 Rp 26.8K

$2.25 ฿75.8

-34.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 Rp 20.6K

$2.08 ฿70.1

-45.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 Rp 22.1K

$1.51 ฿51.0

-19.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 Rp 32.4K

$1.38 ฿46.56

28.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 Rp 12.9K

$1.07 ฿35.99

-33.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,256

$0.52 ฿17.52

-23.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.02 Rp 55.0K

$4.20 ฿142

-28.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.27 Rp 386.6K

$18.79 ฿634

13.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 Rp 30.2K

$1.82 ฿61.5

-8.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 Rp 60.2K

$2.84 ฿95.9

16.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 Rp 5,004

$1.45 ฿49.03

-80.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.91 Rp 234.6K

$56.7 ฿1,913

-77.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.53 Rp 9,706

$3.02 ฿102

-82.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 Rp 6,806

$1.02 ฿34.36

-63.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 Rp 48.0K

$3.69 ฿125

-28.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 Rp 16.4K

$1.47 ฿49.81

-38.78%

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

$20.4K Rp 370.4M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-23.89%

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

$32.3K Rp 586.5M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

20.91%

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

$60.5 Rp 1.1M

$96.4 ฿3,254

-37.25%

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

$4.90 Rp 89.0K

$11.26 ฿380

-56.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.04 Rp 309.6K

$16.85 ฿569

1.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.72 Rp 322.1K

$67.2 ฿2,270

-73.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.98 Rp 145.0K

$10.73 ฿362

-25.63%

Cinema Ticket

$2.58 Rp 46.9K

$7.50 ฿253

-65.60%

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

$100 Rp 1.8M

$476 ฿16.1K

-78.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,753 Rp 159.1M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-22.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.65 Rp 684.3K

$62.4 ฿2,106

-39.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.73 Rp 449.5K

$28.41 ฿959

-12.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.5 Rp 1.5M

$94.3 ฿3,184

-10.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.5 Rp 1.4M

$85.8 ฿2,898

-13.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$200 Rp 3.6M

$716 ฿24.2K

-72.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$150 Rp 2.7M

$491 ฿16.6K

-69.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$514 Rp 9.3M

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-73.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 Rp 7.0M

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-72.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,209 Rp 22.0M

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-71.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$853 Rp 15.5M

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-71.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

5.57

69.84%

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

Last update for Sibolga: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sibolga

$199 31.6%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 33.5% $67

Accommodation & Living

Sibolga

$150 23.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 227% $341

Clothing & Footwear

Sibolga

$100 15.8%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 22.3% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sibolga

$82 13%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 51.1% $42

Eating Out

Sibolga

$61 9.7%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 99.4% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Sibolga

$23 3.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 259% $59

Getting Around

Sibolga

$16 2.6%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 330% $54

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $200 in Sibolga and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $12 in Sibolga vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $266 per month, with Sibolga cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Sibolga

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:58 2:58 AM

Same time as Sibolga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,471

79,308

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sibolga Phuket 690 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sibolga
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

Sibolga vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sibolga is about 51% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $948 in Sibolga and $1,917 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $200 in Sibolga versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $100 in Sibolga 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 33% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $632 in Sibolga versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sibolga but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Sibolga 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 Sibolga gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.