Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Phuket Cost of Living Comparison Between Tawau and Phuket

🙂 Solo nomad: Tawau is 28.5% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 32.6% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Tawau is 18% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 47.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.6 MYR 15.19

$4.68 ฿151

-23.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.17 MYR 80.9

$46.4 ฿1,502

-58.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.02 MYR 16.96

$8.65 ฿280

-53.53%

Cappuccino

$2.31 MYR 9.75

$3.09 ฿100

-25.24%

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

$0.74 MYR 3.11

$0.73 ฿23.53

1.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.65

$0.37 ฿11.95

5.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MYR 10.16

$2.39 ฿77.4

0.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 MYR 14.17

$3.62 ฿117

-7.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 MYR 6.56

$2.24 ฿72.5

-30.36%

White Bread (500g)

$1.3 MYR 5.49

$1.8 ฿58.2

-27.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MYR 7.3

$2.24 ฿72.3

-22.77%

Eggs

$2.05 MYR 8.63

$2.23 ฿72.1

-8.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.13 MYR 63.8

$19.31 ฿625

-21.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.48 MYR 18.91

$3.77 ฿122

18.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 MYR 40.4

$13.05 ฿422

-26.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 MYR 12.06

$3.28 ฿106

-12.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 MYR 6.22

$1.63 ฿52.6

-9.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.6 MYR 10.98

$2.4 ฿77.7

8.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 MYR 6.05

$1.99 ฿64.3

-27.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 MYR 4.96

$1.53 ฿49.62

-22.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 MYR 5.6

$1.49 ฿48.11

-10.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 MYR 4.4

$1.02 ฿32.87

1.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.33

$0.48 ฿15.61

14.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.3 MYR 18.13

$4.32 ฿140

-0.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.44 MYR 60.9

$21.68 ฿702

-33.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.88 MYR 12.13

$1.77 ฿57.3

62.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 MYR 12.39

$2.79 ฿90.4

5.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MYR 2.85

$1.35 ฿43.74

-49.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.97 MYR 50.5

$11.76 ฿380

1.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 MYR 4.9

$3.15 ฿102

-63.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.15

$1 ฿32.3

-2.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 MYR 24.33

$13.64 ฿442

-57.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.49 MYR 2.09

$1.3 ฿42.2

-62.31%

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

$35.7K MYR 150.5K

$27.4K ฿885.2K

30.49%

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

$31K MYR 130.6K

$33.9K ฿1.1M

-8.68%

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

$43.49 MYR 183

$123 ฿3,970

-64.55%

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

$9.16 MYR 38.65

$13.93 ฿451

-34.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.84 MYR 122

$18.24 ฿590

58.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.56 MYR 158

$60.8 ฿1,966

-38.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.93 MYR 24.99

$17.11 ฿554

-65.34%

Cinema Ticket

$2.91 MYR 12.27

$9.07 ฿294

-67.92%

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

$191 MYR 804

$694 ฿22.5K

-72.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,045 MYR 29.7K

$15.9K ฿514.4K

-55.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 MYR 252

$57.5 ฿1,861

4.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.2 MYR 115

$34.51 ฿1,117

-21.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MYR 307

$115 ฿3,727

-36.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.5 MYR 213

$84.8 ฿2,743

-40.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$387 MYR 1,633

$611 ฿19.8K

-36.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$266 MYR 1,123

$442 ฿14.3K

-39.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$646 MYR 2,724

$2,014 ฿65.2K

-67.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$478 MYR 2,015

$1,460 ฿47.2K

-67.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,845 MYR 7,781

$4,244 ฿137.3K

-56.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,106 MYR 4,664

$2,886 ฿93.4K

-61.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$697 ฿22.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.07

5.33

-23.64%

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

Last update for Tawau: October 26, 2025

Last update for Phuket: October 29, 2025

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