Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St Thomas and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $4,391 in St Thomas, rent and utilities included – about $38,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

212

Cost of Living Index in St Thomas
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St Thomas Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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St Thomas

🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands

$4,391

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,391 in St Thomas versus $1,208 in Phuket.

St Thomas $4,391
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $7,217 in St Thomas versus $2,027 in Phuket.

St Thomas $7,217
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $10.0K in St Thomas versus $2,845 in Phuket.

St Thomas $10.0K
Phuket $2,845

Living in St Thomas is roughly 263% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: St Thomas is 224% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.90 $22.90

$4.40 ฿147

420.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$171 $171

$32.26 ฿1,078

431.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.62 $13.62

$8.76 ฿293

55.48%

Cappuccino

$5.98 $5.98

$2.83 ฿94.5

111.31%

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

$3.95 $3.95

$0.90 ฿30.14

338.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 $3.39

$0.47 ฿15.56

621.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.07 $5.07

$2.55 ฿85.2

98.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.92 $6.92

$3.83 ฿128

80.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.77 $2.77

$1.73 ฿57.7

60.12%

White Bread (500g)

$6.67 $6.67

$1.47 ฿49.11

353.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$18.43 $18.43

$1.51 ฿50.6

1120.53%

Eggs

$8.95 $8.95

$2.17 ฿72.7

312.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.19 $11.19

$19.70 ฿658

-43.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.68 $28.68

$3.34 ฿112

758.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.99 $39.99

$11.16 ฿373

258.33%

Apples (1kg)

$12.11 $12.11

$2.85 ฿95.1

324.91%

Banana (1kg)

$11.00 $11.00

$1.70 ฿56.9

547.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$12.23 $12.23

$2.19 ฿73.3

458.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$19.61 $19.61

$2.05 ฿68.4

856.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.45 ฿48.57

34.48%

Onion (1kg)

$9.04 $9.04

$1.38 ฿46.16

555.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$8.08 $8.08

$1.07 ฿35.69

655.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$5.40 $5.40

$0.51 ฿16.91

958.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

Wine (Bottle)

$25.24 $25.24

$18.58 ฿621

35.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.17 $6.17

$2.85 ฿95.2

116.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.96 $1.96

$2.26 ฿75.6

-13.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.0 $61.0

$22.10 ฿738

175.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$19.69 $19.69

$3.01 ฿101

554.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.18 $3.18

$1.06 ฿35.34

200.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 $1.42

$1.45 ฿48.45

-2.07%

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

$54.6K $54.6K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

107.31%

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

$48.6K $48.6K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

80.20%

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

$463 $463

$96.4 ฿3,221

380.42%

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

$102 $102

$11.04 ฿369

822.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$150 $150

$17.14 ฿573

772.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$162 $162

$52.2 ฿1,744

210.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$10.03 $10.03

$7.81 ฿261

28.43%

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

$1,477 $1,477

$556 ฿18.6K

165.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.4K $22.4K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

93.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 $113

$64.2 ฿2,146

75.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$147 $147

$28.69 ฿959

412.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$199 $199

$95.4 ฿3,187

108.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 $151

$88.0 ฿2,940

71.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,584 $1,584

$737 ฿24.6K

114.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,793 $1,793

$462 ฿15.5K

287.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,222 $3,222

$2,095 ฿70.0K

53.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,208 $4,208

$1,201 ฿40.1K

250.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,853 $4,853

$3,488 ฿116.6K

39.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$10.9K $10.9K

$2,523 ฿84.3K

330.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,792 $2,792

$501 ฿16.7K

457.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

5.57

69.66%

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

Last update for St Thomas: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St Thomas

$1.8K 40.8%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 74.2% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

St Thomas

$958 * 21.8%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 72% $690

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St Thomas

$714 16.3%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 82.6% $590

Eating Out

St Thomas

$364 8.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 66.7% $243

Clothing & Footwear

St Thomas

$274 6.3%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 54.7% $150

Sport & Entertainment

St Thomas

$182 4.2%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 62.8% $115

Getting Around

St Thomas

$104 2.4%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 62.2% $65

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 $1,584 in St Thomas and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St Thomas pays 458% 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: $171 in St Thomas vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $958 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇮 St Thomas

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

07:37 7:37 AM

18:37 6:37 PM

11 h ahead of St Thomas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,000

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 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 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St Thomas Phuket 16,570 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

St Thomas
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 Thomas vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 263% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 458% higher in St Thomas, 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: $1,584 in St Thomas versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,477 in St Thomas 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 257% higher in St Thomas. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $4,391 in St Thomas, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in St Thomas. 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 Thomas, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, St Thomas 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 263% less than in St Thomas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.