Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sunderland and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,845 in Sunderland, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Sunderland
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Sunderland Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Sunderland

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,845

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,845 in Sunderland versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Sunderland $1,845
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,755 in Sunderland versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Sunderland $2,755
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,665 in Sunderland versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Sunderland $3,665
Phuket $2,845

Living in Sunderland is roughly 53% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sunderland is 36% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.54 £13.91

$4.40 ฿147

321.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.2 £52.7

$32.26 ฿1,078

117.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.87 £6.66

$8.76 ฿293

1.26%

Cappuccino

$5.02 £3.77

$2.83 ฿94.5

77.39%

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

$2.32 £1.74

$0.90 ฿30.14

157.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 £1.47

$0.47 ฿15.56

317.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.63 £3.48

$2.55 ฿85.2

81.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.30 £3.23

$3.83 ฿128

12.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.73 ฿57.7

-16.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 £1.03

$1.47 ฿49.11

-6.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 £1.80

$1.51 ฿50.6

58.94%

Eggs

$3.52 £2.64

$2.17 ฿72.7

62.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.72 £7.29

$19.70 ฿658

-50.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.99 £6.74

$3.34 ฿112

169.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.35 £10.76

$11.16 ฿373

28.58%

Apples (1kg)

$3.26 £2.44

$2.85 ฿95.1

14.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 £1.39

$1.70 ฿56.9

8.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 £2.19

$2.19 ฿73.3

33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.79 £2.84

$2.05 ฿68.4

84.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 £1.34

$1.45 ฿48.57

23.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.38 ฿46.16

7.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.07 ฿35.69

12.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 £1.13

$0.51 ฿16.91

194.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.99 £17.25

$4.26 ฿142

439.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 £7.65

$18.58 ฿621

-45.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.57 £2.68

$1.78 ฿59.7

100.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 £2.62

$2.85 ฿95.2

22.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.08 £1.56

$2.26 ฿75.6

-7.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$119 £89.6

$22.10 ฿738

440.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 £3.30

$3.01 ฿101

46.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.06 ฿35.34

46.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.14 £21.11

$3.86 ฿129

629.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.57

$1.45 ฿48.45

44.14%

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

$38.3K £28.8K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

45.62%

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

$40.5K £30.4K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

50.29%

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

$248 £186

$96.4 ฿3,221

157.27%

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

$16.93 £12.70

$11.04 ฿369

53.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 £31.74

$17.14 ฿573

146.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.70 £30.53

$52.2 ฿1,744

-22.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.01 £9.01

$11.16 ฿373

7.62%

Cinema Ticket

$10.66 £8.00

$7.81 ฿261

36.49%

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

$819 £614

$556 ฿18.6K

47.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K £13.2K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

51.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.1 £68.4

$64.2 ฿2,146

41.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.14 £35.37

$28.69 ฿959

64.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 £81.4

$95.4 ฿3,187

13.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.7 £71.1

$88.0 ฿2,940

7.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$792 £594

$737 ฿24.6K

7.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$595 £446

$462 ฿15.5K

28.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,356 £1,017

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-35.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$957 £718

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-20.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,663 £2,748

$501 ฿16.7K

631.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.15

5.57

-7.54%

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

Last update for Sunderland: October 20, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sunderland

$595 32.2%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 22.3% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sunderland

$307 16.7%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 59.5% $183

Groceries & Markets

Sunderland

$303 16.4%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 11.4% $35

Eating Out

Sunderland

$284 15.4%

Phuket

$121 10% 57.3% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Sunderland

$154 8.3%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 19.1% $29

Getting Around

Sunderland

$140 7.6%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 71.8% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Sunderland

$62 3.4%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 9.3% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $792 in Sunderland and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sunderland pays 632% 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: $70.0 in Sunderland vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $303 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Sunderland

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

05:35 5:35 AM

11:35 11:35 AM

6 h ahead of Sunderland

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

275,300

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sunderland Phuket 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Sunderland
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

Sunderland vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 53% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 632% higher in Sunderland, 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: $792 in Sunderland versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $819 in Sunderland 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 13% higher in Sunderland. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,845 in Sunderland, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Sunderland. 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 Sunderland, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Sunderland 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 53% less than in Sunderland. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.