Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Stockholm and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,574 in Stockholm, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Stockholm
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Stockholm Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Stockholm

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,574

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,574 in Stockholm versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Stockholm $2,574
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,871 in Stockholm versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Stockholm $3,871
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,167 in Stockholm versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Stockholm $5,167
Phuket $2,867

Living in Stockholm is roughly 113% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Stockholm is 91% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.12 SEK 180

$4.58 ฿153

295.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.6 SEK 986

$32.48 ฿1,086

206.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 SEK 117

$8.55 ฿286

37.54%

Cappuccino

$4.95 SEK 49.03

$2.72 ฿91.0

81.99%

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

$3.68 SEK 36.46

$0.94 ฿31.25

291.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 SEK 31.28

$0.49 ฿16.39

544.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 SEK 79.8

$2.59 ฿86.6

210.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.82 SEK 87.4

$3.83 ฿128

130.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 SEK 17.80

$1.74 ฿58.1

3.45%

White Bread (500g)

$3.88 SEK 38.43

$1.43 ฿47.82

171.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.83 SEK 37.99

$1.53 ฿51.0

150.33%

Eggs

$5.14 SEK 50.9

$2.17 ฿72.7

136.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.45 SEK 123

$19.15 ฿640

-34.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.63 SEK 125

$3.30 ฿110

282.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.90 SEK 217

$11.14 ฿372

96.59%

Apples (1kg)

$3.47 SEK 34.41

$2.95 ฿98.5

17.63%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 SEK 27.15

$1.68 ฿56.1

63.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 SEK 30.54

$2.30 ฿76.8

33.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.48 SEK 44.41

$2.13 ฿71.3

110.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 SEK 17.54

$1.53 ฿51.1

15.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.79 SEK 17.70

$1.36 ฿45.55

31.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.40 SEK 23.76

$1.12 ฿37.44

114.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.37 SEK 23.50

$0.55 ฿18.24

330.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.72 SEK 86.4

$4.26 ฿142

104.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.99 SEK 119

$18.19 ฿608

-34.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.11 SEK 20.90

$1.74 ฿58.2

21.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.56 SEK 25.34

$2.79 ฿93.3

-8.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.34 SEK 42.96

$2.22 ฿74.1

95.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 SEK 1,063

$22.06 ฿737

386.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.74 SEK 56.9

$2.91 ฿97.3

97.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 SEK 14.58

$1.01 ฿33.79

45.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.1 SEK 566

$3.83 ฿128

1391.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 SEK 17.86

$1.49 ฿49.85

20.81%

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

$32.4K SEK 321.2K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

21.49%

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

$33.6K SEK 332.8K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

25.74%

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

$249 SEK 2,469

$99.4 ฿3,321

150.74%

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

$21.60 SEK 214

$11.28 ฿377

91.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.18 SEK 398

$17.36 ฿580

131.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.98 SEK 466

$52.3 ฿1,747

-10.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$38.15 SEK 378

$10.85 ฿362

251.61%

Cinema Ticket

$19.09 SEK 189

$7.57 ฿253

152.18%

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

$158 SEK 1,569

$558 ฿18.7K

-71.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.4K SEK 162.0K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

42.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$111 SEK 1,104

$62.9 ฿2,102

77.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.0 SEK 584

$28.58 ฿955

106.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 SEK 1,364

$96.1 ฿3,213

43.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$186 SEK 1,847

$88.1 ฿2,943

111.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,658 SEK 16.4K

$729 ฿24.4K

127.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,079 SEK 10.7K

$460 ฿15.4K

134.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,982 SEK 29.5K

$2,096 ฿70.0K

42.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,746 SEK 17.3K

$1,222 ฿40.8K

42.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.3K SEK 111.8K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

226.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,332 SEK 62.7K

$2,489 ฿83.2K

154.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,583 SEK 35.5K

$493 ฿16.5K

626.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.37

5.57

-39.50%

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

Last update for Stockholm: October 13, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Stockholm

$1.1K 41.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 57.4% $619

Groceries & Markets

Stockholm

$414 16.1%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 35.4% $146

Eating Out

Stockholm

$325 12.6%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 62.7% $204

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Stockholm

$311 12.1%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 58.8% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Stockholm

$222 8.6%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 44.2% $98

Getting Around

Stockholm

$138 5.4%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 71.8% $99

Sport & Entertainment

Stockholm

$85 3.3%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 20.8% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,658 in Stockholm and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stockholm pays 627% 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: $100 in Stockholm vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $414 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Stockholm

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

23:36 11:36 PM

04:36 4:36 AM

5 h ahead of Stockholm

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

984,748 Capital

79,308

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Stockholm Phuket 8,710 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Stockholm
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

Stockholm vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 113% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 627% higher in Stockholm, 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: $1,658 in Stockholm versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $158 in Stockholm versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 55% higher in Stockholm. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,574 in Stockholm, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Stockholm. 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 Stockholm, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Stockholm 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 113% less than in Stockholm. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.