Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Moritz and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,626 in St. Moritz, rent and utilities included – about $28,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

St. Moritz, Switzerland
Phuket, Thailand
St. Moritz
🇨🇭 Switzerland
$3,626
/mo nomad
Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,278
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,626 in St. Moritz versus $1,278 in Phuket.

  • St. Moritz $3,626
  • Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $6,508 in St. Moritz versus $2,216 in Phuket.

  • St. Moritz $6,508
  • Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $9,390 in St. Moritz versus $3,154 in Phuket.

  • St. Moritz $9,390
  • Phuket $3,154

Living in St. Moritz is roughly 184% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: St. Moritz is 166% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$34.20 CHF 28.37
$4.47 ฿151
665.10%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$143 CHF 119
$32.41 ฿1,094
341.38%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$14.40 CHF 11.94
$8.81 ฿297
63.45%
Cappuccino
$5.90 CHF 4.90
$2.83 ฿95.5
108.48%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.54 CHF 4.60
$0.87 ฿29.43
536.78%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.60 CHF 3.82
$0.49 ฿16.67
838.78%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$9.90 CHF 8.21
$2.56 ฿86.4
286.72%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.03 CHF 5.00
$3.68 ฿124
63.86%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.81 CHF 1.50
$1.66 ฿56.0
9.04%
White Bread (500g)
$3.96 CHF 3.29
$1.46 ฿49.35
171.23%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.60 CHF 2.99
$1.50 ฿50.6
140.00%
Eggs
$7.67 CHF 6.36
$2.09 ฿70.5
266.99%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$27.09 CHF 22.47
$19.07 ฿644
42.06%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$28.89 CHF 23.97
$3.30 ฿111
775.45%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$60.5 CHF 50.2
$10.91 ฿368
454.63%
Apples (1kg)
$4.09 CHF 3.39
$2.93 ฿99.0
39.59%
Banana (1kg)
$2.75 CHF 2.28
$1.69 ฿57.1
62.72%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.60 CHF 2.99
$2.25 ฿75.8
60.00%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.59 CHF 3.81
$2.08 ฿70.1
120.67%
Potato (1kg)
$2.55 CHF 2.11
$1.51 ฿51.0
68.87%
Onion (1kg)
$2.34 CHF 1.94
$1.38 ฿46.56
69.57%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.49 CHF 2.06
$1.07 ฿35.99
132.71%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.25 CHF 1.03
$0.52 ฿17.52
140.38%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$10.77 CHF 8.94
$4.20 ฿142
156.43%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.92 CHF 11.54
$18.79 ฿634
-25.92%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.88 CHF 2.39
$1.82 ฿61.5
58.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.21 CHF 2.66
$2.84 ฿95.9
13.03%
🚌 Getting Around
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.92 CHF 3.26
$1.45 ฿49.03
170.34%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$92.6 CHF 76.8
$56.7 ฿1,913
63.36%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$8.08 CHF 6.70
$3.02 ฿102
167.55%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$4.54 CHF 3.77
$1.02 ฿34.36
345.10%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$87.8 CHF 72.8
$3.69 ฿125
2278.05%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.14 CHF 1.77
$1.47 ฿49.81
45.58%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.6K CHF 32.0K
$26.8K ฿904.3K
44.18%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$39.6K CHF 32.9K
$26.7K ฿901.3K
48.39%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$96.8 CHF 80.3
$96.4 ฿3,254
0.48%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$39.12 CHF 32.45
$11.26 ฿380
247.42%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$54.8 CHF 45.42
$16.85 ฿569
224.93%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$73.0 CHF 60.5
$67.2 ฿2,270
8.54%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$10.73 ฿362
-
Cinema Ticket
$18.96 CHF 15.73
$7.50 ฿253
152.80%
🧸 Childcare & Education
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$3,402 CHF 2,823
$476 ฿16.1K
614.88%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$41.2K CHF 34.2K
$11.3K ฿380.4K
266.16%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$140 CHF 116
$62.4 ฿2,106
124.36%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.1 CHF 45.69
$28.41 ฿959
93.88%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$161 CHF 133
$94.3 ฿3,184
70.42%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$249 CHF 206
$85.8 ฿2,898
189.87%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,794 CHF 1,488
$716 ฿24.2K
150.60%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,753 CHF 1,454
$491 ฿16.6K
257.09%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$5,403 CHF 4,482
$1,927 ฿65.1K
180.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$4,730 CHF 3,924
$1,431 ฿48.3K
230.63%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,175 ฿141.0K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$12.3K CHF 10.2K
$3,045 ฿102.8K
303.97%
💵 Salaries & Financials
St. Moritz
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,889 CHF 4,056
$502 ฿17.0K
873.33%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
1.8
5.57
-67.68%

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

Last update for St. Moritz: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
St. Moritz
$1.8K
Phuket
$491 72% $1.3K
Groceries & Markets
St. Moritz
$670
Phuket
$266 60.3% $404
Eating Out
St. Moritz
$490
Phuket
$122 75.1% $368
Clothing & Footwear
St. Moritz
$272
Phuket
$122 55.2% $150
Monthly Utilities & Internet
St. Moritz
$191
Phuket
$124 34.7% $66
Getting Around
St. Moritz
$139
Phuket
$71 49.2% $68
Sport & Entertainment
St. Moritz
$111
Phuket
$82 25.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,794 in St. Moritz and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St. Moritz pays about 9.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $143 in St. Moritz vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $670 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇨🇭 St. Moritz
🇹🇭 Phuket
🕒 Local time
16:43 4:43 PM
22:43 10:43 PM
6 h ahead of St. Moritz
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
5,000
79,308
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.923 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • St. Moritz Phuket 9,260 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • St. Moritz
  • 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
St. Moritz vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Phuket cheaper than St. Moritz?
Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 184% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: St. Moritz or Phuket?
Average pay in St. Moritz is about 9.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
What is the rent difference between St. Moritz and Phuket?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,794 in St. Moritz versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $3,402 in St. Moritz versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
How do food prices compare in St. Moritz and in Phuket?
Supermarket bills run roughly 152% higher in St. Moritz. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in St. Moritz or in Phuket?
At $1,278 in Phuket versus $3,626 in St. Moritz, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in St. Moritz. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is it better to live in St. Moritz or in Phuket?
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.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 65% less than in St. Moritz. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

St. Moritz vs other spots: cost of living compared

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