Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surfers Paradise and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, rent and utilities included – about $19,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Surfers Paradise
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Surfers Paradise Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Surfers Paradise

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,824

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,824 in Surfers Paradise versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Surfers Paradise $2,824
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,398 in Surfers Paradise versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Surfers Paradise $4,398
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,973 in Surfers Paradise versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Surfers Paradise $5,973
Phuket $2,867

Living in Surfers Paradise is roughly 134% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Surfers Paradise is 109% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.36 A$24.99

$4.58 ฿153

279.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 A$151

$32.48 ฿1,086

223.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.85 A$15.62

$8.55 ฿286

26.90%

Cappuccino

$4.10 A$5.90

$2.72 ฿91.0

50.74%

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

$2.81 A$4.05

$0.94 ฿31.25

198.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 A$3.46

$0.49 ฿16.39

389.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.86 A$11.31

$2.59 ฿86.6

203.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.87 A$11.32

$3.83 ฿128

105.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.40

$1.74 ฿58.1

-4.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.70 A$3.89

$1.43 ฿47.82

88.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 A$3.46

$1.53 ฿51.0

57.52%

Eggs

$4.90 A$7.05

$2.17 ฿72.7

125.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.68 A$12.49

$19.15 ฿640

-54.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.09 A$13.07

$3.30 ฿110

175.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 A$20.83

$11.14 ฿372

29.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.65

$2.95 ฿98.5

32.88%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 A$4.43

$1.68 ฿56.1

83.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.37 A$4.85

$2.30 ฿76.8

46.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 A$6.97

$2.13 ฿71.3

127.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 A$4.06

$1.53 ฿51.1

84.31%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$1.36 ฿45.55

79.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 A$3.44

$1.12 ฿37.44

113.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 A$2.98

$0.55 ฿18.24

276.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$37.58 A$54.1

$4.26 ฿142

782.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.26 A$20.52

$18.19 ฿608

-21.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.97 A$8.59

$1.74 ฿58.2

243.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.12 A$7.36

$2.79 ฿93.3

83.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 A$0.49

$2.22 ฿74.1

-84.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 A$3.02

$2.91 ฿97.3

-27.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 A$2.33

$1.01 ฿33.79

60.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.24 A$50.7

$3.83 ฿128

820.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 A$1.86

$1.49 ฿49.85

-12.75%

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

$27.0K A$38.9K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

1.31%

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

$28.3K A$40.8K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

6.13%

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

$212 A$305

$99.4 ฿3,321

113.61%

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

$29.92 A$43.06

$11.28 ฿377

165.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 A$79.8

$17.36 ฿580

219.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.1 A$95.1

$52.3 ฿1,747

26.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.45 A$20.80

$10.85 ฿362

33.18%

Cinema Ticket

$17.42 A$25.06

$7.57 ฿253

130.12%

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

$1,944 A$2,798

$558 ฿18.7K

248.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K A$17.8K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

7.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.1 A$120

$62.9 ฿2,102

32.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 A$79.2

$28.58 ฿955

92.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$96.1 ฿3,213

15.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 A$175

$88.1 ฿2,943

37.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,912 A$2,752

$729 ฿24.4K

162.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,570 A$2,260

$460 ฿15.4K

241.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,770 A$5,425

$2,096 ฿70.0K

79.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,067 A$4,413

$1,222 ฿40.8K

150.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,895 A$8,483

$3,459 ฿115.6K

70.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,954 A$7,128

$2,489 ฿83.2K

99.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,288 A$4,731

$493 ฿16.5K

566.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.81

5.57

4.31%

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

Last update for Surfers Paradise: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Surfers Paradise

$1.6K 55.6%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 70.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Surfers Paradise

$380 13.5%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 29.6% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surfers Paradise

$298 10.5%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 57% $170

Eating Out

Surfers Paradise

$297 10.5%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 59.1% $175

Clothing & Footwear

Surfers Paradise

$167 5.9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 25.6% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Surfers Paradise

$101 3.6%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 33.2% $33

Getting Around

Surfers Paradise

$12 * 0.4%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 236% $27

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 $1,912 in Surfers Paradise and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Surfers Paradise pays 567% 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: $105 in Surfers Paradise vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $380 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Surfers Paradise

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

22:52 10:52 PM

19:52 7:52 PM

3 h behind Surfers Paradise

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,668

79,308

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Surfers Paradise Phuket 7,130 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Surfers Paradise
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

Surfers Paradise vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 134% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 567% higher in Surfers Paradise, 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: $1,912 in Surfers Paradise versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,944 in Surfers Paradise versus $558 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 $105 in Surfers Paradise. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Surfers Paradise. 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 Surfers Paradise, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Surfers Paradise 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 134% less than in Surfers Paradise. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.