Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Cloud, MN and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,190 a month against $1,929 in St. Cloud, MN, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

94

Cost of Living Index in St. Cloud, MN
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St. Cloud, MN Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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St. Cloud, MN

🇺🇸 United States

$1,929

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,929 in St. Cloud, MN versus $1,190 in Phuket.

St. Cloud, MN $1,929
Phuket $1,190

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,044 in St. Cloud, MN versus $2,006 in Phuket.

St. Cloud, MN $3,044
Phuket $2,006

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,158 in St. Cloud, MN versus $2,822 in Phuket.

St. Cloud, MN $4,158
Phuket $2,822

Living in St. Cloud, MN is roughly 62% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: St. Cloud, MN is 44% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.17 $20.17

$4.35 ฿146

363.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.1 $74.1

$32.45 ฿1,087

128.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.08 $11.08

$8.42 ฿282

31.59%

Cappuccino

$5.87 $5.87

$2.81 ฿94.0

108.90%

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

$2.81 $2.81

$0.87 ฿29.31

222.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 $2.46

$0.46 ฿15.40

434.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.86 $6.86

$2.59 ฿86.6

164.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.08 $8.08

$3.64 ฿122

121.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.76 $0.76

$1.71 ฿57.2

-55.56%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 $2.79

$1.45 ฿48.45

92.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.28 $3.28

$1.56 ฿52.3

110.26%

Eggs

$2.31 $2.31

$2.10 ฿70.3

10.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.83 $4.83

$19.53 ฿654

-75.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 $9.61

$3.40 ฿114

182.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.95 $17.95

$11.14 ฿373

61.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.80 $3.80

$2.83 ฿94.9

34.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 $1.29

$1.62 ฿54.4

-20.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.39 $3.39

$2.22 ฿74.5

52.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 $2.16

$2.15 ฿71.9

0.47%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 $0.79

$1.49 ฿49.98

-46.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 $1.67

$1.33 ฿44.43

25.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.07 ฿35.74

89.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 $1.83

$0.51 ฿17.02

258.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.97 $9.97

$4.38 ฿147

127.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.87 $11.87

$18.77 ฿629

-36.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.74 ฿58.3

2.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 $3.27

$2.78 ฿93.0

17.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.07 $2.07

$2.17 ฿72.6

-4.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 $3.01

$3.02 ฿101

-0.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 $1.93

$1.06 ฿35.45

82.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.78 $32.78

$3.71 ฿124

783.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 $0.88

$1.43 ฿47.91

-38.46%

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

$32.4K $32.4K

$26.3K ฿882.6K

23.14%

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

$22.5K $22.5K

$26.2K ฿877.8K

-13.99%

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

$168 $168

$96.7 ฿3,238

74.11%

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

$45.83 $45.83

$11.41 ฿382

301.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.18 $44.18

$17.11 ฿573

158.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.54 $41.54

$52.8 ฿1,769

-21.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

Cinema Ticket

$14.03 $14.03

$7.65 ฿256

83.40%

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

$1,697 $1,697

$555 ฿18.6K

205.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.3K $24.3K

$11.3K ฿377.9K

115.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.6 $62.6

$63.4 ฿2,124

-1.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.2 $62.2

$28.61 ฿958

117.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 $73.9

$96.7 ฿3,240

-23.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.4 $85.4

$88.6 ฿2,968

-3.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$992 $992

$735 ฿24.6K

35.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$819 $819

$458 ฿15.3K

78.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 $1,892

$2,102 ฿70.4K

-9.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,626 $1,626

$1,187 ฿39.8K

36.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,638 $2,638

$3,493 ฿117.0K

-24.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,594 $2,594

$2,491 ฿83.5K

4.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,096 $6,096

$501 ฿16.8K

1116.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.61

5.57

18.67%

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

Last update for St. Cloud, MN: October 5, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. Cloud, MN

$819 42.4%

Phuket

$458 38.1% 44.1% $361

Eating Out

St. Cloud, MN

$337 17.4%

Phuket

$119 9.9% 64.6% $217

Groceries & Markets

St. Cloud, MN

$300 15.5%

Phuket

$268 22.3% 10.8% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Cloud, MN

$258 13.4%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 51.5% $133

Clothing & Footwear

St. Cloud, MN

$128 6.6%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 2.3% $3

Sport & Entertainment

St. Cloud, MN

$70 3.6%

Phuket

$68 5.7% 2.2% $1.5

Getting Around

St. Cloud, MN

$21 * 1.1%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 87.4% $18

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $992 in St. Cloud, MN and $735 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St. Cloud, MN pays 1117% 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: $74.0 in St. Cloud, MN vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $300 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 St. Cloud, MN

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:59 1:59 AM

13:59 1:59 PM

12 h ahead of St. Cloud, MN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

65,842

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 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 October 12, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 33.5 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.54 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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St. Cloud, MN Phuket 13,940 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

St. Cloud, MN vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 62% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 1117% higher in St. Cloud, MN, 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: $992 in St. Cloud, MN versus $735 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,697 in St. Cloud, MN versus $555 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $74.0 in St. Cloud, MN. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,190 in Phuket versus $1,929 in St. Cloud, MN, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in St. Cloud, MN. 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 St. Cloud, MN, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, St. Cloud, MN 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 62% less than in St. Cloud, MN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.