Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Swords and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,598 in Swords, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Swords
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Swords Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Swords

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,598

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,598 in Swords versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Swords $2,598
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,804 in Swords versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Swords $3,804
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,010 in Swords versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Swords $5,010
Phuket $3,154

Living in Swords is roughly 103% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Swords is 91% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.16 €19.91

$4.47 ฿151

395.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.6 €88.6

$32.41 ฿1,094

204.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 €11.86

$8.81 ฿297

49.83%

Cappuccino

$4.93 €4.43

$2.83 ฿95.5

74.20%

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

$2.98 €2.68

$0.87 ฿29.43

242.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 €1.94

$0.49 ฿16.67

340.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.03 €7.21

$2.56 ฿86.4

213.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.74 €6.05

$3.68 ฿124

83.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 €1.42

$1.66 ฿56.0

-4.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.35 €2.11

$1.46 ฿49.35

60.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 €1.83

$1.50 ฿50.6

35.33%

Eggs

$4.24 €3.81

$2.09 ฿70.5

102.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.89 €8.89

$19.07 ฿644

-48.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.86 €9.76

$3.30 ฿111

229.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.29 €11.94

$10.91 ฿368

21.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 €2.47

$2.93 ฿99.0

-6.14%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 €2.04

$1.69 ฿57.1

34.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.79 €2.50

$2.25 ฿75.8

24.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 €3.75

$2.08 ฿70.1

100.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 €1.68

$1.51 ฿51.0

23.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.38 ฿46.56

6.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.07 ฿35.99

21.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.70

$0.52 ฿17.52

265.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.52 €18.44

$4.20 ฿142

388.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.39 €12.03

$18.79 ฿634

-28.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.35 €3.01

$1.82 ฿61.5

84.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 €3.10

$2.84 ฿95.9

21.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 €2.03

$1.45 ฿49.03

55.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 €4.49

$3.02 ฿102

65.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.02 ฿34.36

44.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.35 €33.55

$3.69 ฿125

912.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 €1.94

$1.47 ฿49.81

46.94%

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

$38.6K €34.7K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

44.08%

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

$38.0K €34.1K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

42.35%

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

$246 €221

$96.4 ฿3,254

155.64%

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

$18.68 €16.78

$11.26 ฿380

65.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.2 €45.96

$16.85 ฿569

203.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.58 €36.45

$67.2 ฿2,270

-39.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$13.43 €12.06

$7.50 ฿253

79.07%

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

$1,010 €907

$476 ฿16.1K

112.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,183 €4,655

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-53.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 €90.0

$62.4 ฿2,106

60.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.06 €43.17

$28.41 ฿959

69.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €97.1

$94.3 ฿3,184

14.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$85.8 ฿2,898

31.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,556 €1,397

$716 ฿24.2K

117.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 €1,205

$491 ฿16.6K

173.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,584 €2,322

$1,927 ฿65.1K

34.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,165 €1,945

$1,431 ฿48.3K

51.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,721 €4,241

$4,175 ฿141.0K

13.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,447 €3,096

$3,045 ฿102.8K

13.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.68

5.57

-33.93%

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

Last update for Swords: 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

Swords

$1.3K 51.7%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 63.4% $851

Eating Out

Swords

$350 13.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 65.3% $229

Groceries & Markets

Swords

$335 12.9%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 20.4% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Swords

$316 12.2%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 60.6% $192

Clothing & Footwear

Swords

$166 6.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 26.6% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Swords

$67 2.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 21.9% $15

Getting Around

Swords

$21 * 0.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 230% $49

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 $1,556 in Swords and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99 in Swords vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $335 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Swords

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:54 2:54 PM

21:54 9:54 PM

7 h ahead of Swords

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,776

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Swords Phuket 10,250 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Swords
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

Swords vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 103% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $3,897 in Swords and $1,917 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,556 in Swords versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,010 in Swords versus $476 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 versus $99 in Swords. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,598 in Swords, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Swords. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Swords 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.