Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney, NS and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,614 in Sydney, NS, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sydney, NS
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Sydney, NS Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Sydney, NS

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,614

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Sydney, NS versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Sydney, NS $1,614
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,535 in Sydney, NS versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Sydney, NS $2,535
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,456 in Sydney, NS versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Sydney, NS $3,456
Phuket $2,845

Living in Sydney, NS is roughly 34% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney, NS is 19% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.13 CA$15.74

$4.40 ฿147

152.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 CA$88.0

$32.26 ฿1,078

93.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.16 CA$10.12

$8.76 ฿293

-18.26%

Cappuccino

$2.87 CA$4.06

$2.83 ฿94.5

1.41%

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

$2.33 CA$3.30

$0.90 ฿30.14

158.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 CA$2.92

$0.47 ฿15.56

340.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 CA$3.04

$1.73 ฿57.7

24.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 CA$3.61

$1.47 ฿49.11

74.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 CA$3.41

$1.51 ฿50.6

59.60%

Eggs

$3.32 CA$4.69

$2.17 ฿72.7

53.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.27 CA$8.87

$19.70 ฿658

-68.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.23 CA$11.63

$3.34 ฿112

146.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.99 CA$18.36

$11.16 ฿373

16.40%

Apples (1kg)

$7.01 CA$9.91

$2.85 ฿95.1

145.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 CA$1.63

$1.70 ฿56.9

-31.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

Tomato (1kg)

$1.38 CA$1.95

$2.05 ฿68.4

-32.68%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 CA$1.18

$1.45 ฿48.57

-42.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.68

$1.38 ฿46.16

37.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$6.30 CA$8.90

$1.07 ฿35.69

488.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.78 CA$25.14

$4.26 ฿142

317.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 CA$5.92

$2.85 ฿95.2

46.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 CA$1.53

$2.26 ฿75.6

-52.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.48 CA$68.5

$22.10 ฿738

119.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.15 CA$5.87

$3.01 ฿101

37.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 CA$1.70

$1.45 ฿48.45

-17.24%

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

$25.7K CA$36.4K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-2.21%

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

$19.1K CA$27.1K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-28.93%

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

$86.3 CA$122

$96.4 ฿3,221

-10.47%

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

$36.04 CA$51.0

$11.04 ฿369

226.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.3 CA$104

$17.14 ฿573

327.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.94 CA$70.6

$52.2 ฿1,744

-4.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.45 CA$4.88

$11.16 ฿373

-69.09%

Cinema Ticket

$7.04 CA$9.96

$7.81 ฿261

-9.86%

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

$721 CA$1,020

$556 ฿18.6K

29.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.1 CA$96.3

$64.2 ฿2,146

6.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$67.2 CA$95.1

$28.69 ฿959

134.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 CA$141

$95.4 ฿3,187

4.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 CA$148

$88.0 ฿2,940

19.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 CA$1,262

$737 ฿24.6K

21.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 CA$1,024

$462 ฿15.5K

56.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,753 CA$2,479

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-16.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,374 CA$1,943

$1,201 ฿40.1K

14.46%

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)

$2,527 CA$3,573

$501 ฿16.7K

404.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.8

5.57

4.13%

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

Last update for Sydney, NS: October 17, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney, NS

$724 44.9%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 36.2% $262

Groceries & Markets

Sydney, NS

$258 * 16%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 4.3% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney, NS

$196 12.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 36.3% $71

Eating Out

Sydney, NS

$163 * 10.1%

Phuket

$121 10% 25.4% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney, NS

$153 9.5%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 18.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney, NS

$64 4%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 5.9% $3.8

Getting Around

Sydney, NS

$57 * 3.5%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 30.7% $18

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 $893 in Sydney, NS and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney, NS pays 405% 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: $62.0 in Sydney, NS vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $258 vs $269, with Sydney, NS cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Sydney, NS

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:13 1:13 AM

11:13 11:13 AM

10 h ahead of Sydney, NS

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,960

79,308

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney, NS Phuket 13,640 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney, NS
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

Sydney, NS vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 34% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 405% higher in Sydney, NS, 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: $893 in Sydney, NS versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $721 in Sydney, NS versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Sydney, NS pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,614 in Sydney, NS, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Sydney, NS. 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 Sydney, NS, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Sydney, NS 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 34% less than in Sydney, NS. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.