Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tarxien and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,952 in Tarxien, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

100

Cost of Living Index in Tarxien
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Tarxien Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Tarxien

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,952

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,952 in Tarxien versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Tarxien $1,952
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,102 in Tarxien versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Tarxien $3,102
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,253 in Tarxien versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Tarxien $4,253
Phuket $3,154

Living in Tarxien 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: Tarxien is 43% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.69 €20.38

$4.47 ฿151

407.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.9 €80.7

$32.41 ฿1,094

177.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.30 €11.94

$8.81 ฿297

50.96%

Cappuccino

$3.26 €2.93

$2.83 ฿95.5

15.19%

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

$2.36 €2.12

$0.87 ฿29.43

171.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 €1.72

$0.49 ฿16.67

291.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.53 €4.96

$2.56 ฿86.4

116.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.54 €5.87

$3.68 ฿124

77.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.17

$1.66 ฿56.0

-21.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.27

$1.46 ฿49.35

-3.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.44 €3.09

$1.50 ฿50.6

129.33%

Eggs

$4.42 €3.97

$2.09 ฿70.5

111.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.21 €9.17

$19.07 ฿644

-46.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.95 €10.73

$3.30 ฿111

262.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.07 €16.23

$10.91 ฿368

65.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.73 €3.35

$2.93 ฿99.0

27.30%

Banana (1kg)

$2.67 €2.39

$1.69 ฿57.1

57.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.98 €3.58

$2.25 ฿75.8

76.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.83 €3.44

$2.08 ฿70.1

84.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.51 ฿51.0

26.49%

Onion (1kg)

$3.28 €2.95

$1.38 ฿46.56

137.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.23 €2.00

$1.07 ฿35.99

108.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.35

$0.52 ฿17.52

188.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.29 €5.65

$4.20 ฿142

49.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.10 €5.48

$18.79 ฿634

-67.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 €2.22

$1.82 ฿61.5

36.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 €2.04

$2.84 ฿95.9

-20.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.11 €1.89

$1.45 ฿49.03

45.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.87 €3.48

$3.02 ฿102

28.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 €1.59

$1.02 ฿34.36

73.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.80 €29.46

$3.69 ฿125

788.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.47 ฿49.81

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

$28.3K €25.4K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

5.77%

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

$39.4K €35.4K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

47.71%

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

$155 €139

$96.4 ฿3,254

60.56%

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

$30.62 €27.51

$11.26 ฿380

171.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.10 €26.14

$16.85 ฿569

72.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.3 €58.7

$67.2 ฿2,270

-2.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$11.38 €10.22

$7.50 ฿253

51.73%

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

$273 €245

$476 ฿16.1K

-42.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K €10.8K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

7.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.2 €51.4

$62.4 ฿2,106

-8.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$67.5 €60.7

$28.41 ฿959

137.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 €102

$94.3 ฿3,184

20.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €115

$85.8 ฿2,898

48.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,136 €1,020

$716 ฿24.2K

58.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$804 €722

$491 ฿16.6K

63.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,707 €1,534

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-11.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 €1,362

$1,431 ฿48.3K

5.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,169 €3,745

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-0.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,223 €2,896

$3,045 ฿102.8K

5.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

5.57

-27.29%

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

Last update for Tarxien: 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

Tarxien

$804 41.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 38.9% $313

Groceries & Markets

Tarxien

$341 17.5%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 22% $75

Eating Out

Tarxien

$318 16.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 61.8% $197

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tarxien

$214 11%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 42% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Tarxien

$165 8.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 26.1% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Tarxien

$88 4.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 6.6% $5.8

Getting Around

Tarxien

$21 * 1.1%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 234% $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 $1,136 in Tarxien and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $90 in Tarxien vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $341 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Tarxien

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

23:26 11:26 PM

05:26 5:26 AM

6 h ahead of Tarxien

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,600

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

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Between locations

Tarxien Phuket 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tarxien
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

Tarxien vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 35% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,928 in Tarxien 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: $1,136 in Tarxien versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $273 in Tarxien 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 $90 in Tarxien. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,952 in Tarxien, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Tarxien. 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, Tarxien and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.