Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tubingen and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,339 in Tubingen, rent and utilities included – about $12,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

112

Cost of Living Index in Tubingen
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Tubingen Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Tubingen

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,339

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,339 in Tubingen versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Tubingen $2,339
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,398 in Tubingen versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Tubingen $3,398
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,458 in Tubingen versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Tubingen $4,458
Phuket $3,154

Living in Tubingen is roughly 83% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Tubingen is 72% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.91 €15.11

$4.47 ฿151

278.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.2 €64.5

$32.41 ฿1,092

122.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.33 €11.91

$8.81 ฿297

51.31%

Cappuccino

$4.39 €3.92

$2.83 ฿95.3

55.12%

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

$3.65 €3.26

$0.87 ฿29.37

319.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.06

$0.49 ฿16.64

600.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.64 €5.04

$2.56 ฿86.2

120.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.87 €4.35

$3.68 ฿124

32.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 €1.10

$1.66 ฿55.9

-25.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.46 ฿49.25

45.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.86 €3.44

$1.50 ฿50.4

157.33%

Eggs

$3.41 €3.05

$2.09 ฿70.4

63.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.90 €13.31

$19.07 ฿642

-21.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.47 €10.25

$3.30 ฿111

247.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.49 €16.52

$10.91 ฿368

69.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.82

$2.93 ฿98.7

7.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 €1.79

$1.69 ฿56.9

18.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.43 €2.17

$2.25 ฿75.7

8.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.99 €4.46

$2.08 ฿70.0

139.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 €1.08

$1.51 ฿50.9

-19.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 €1.07

$1.38 ฿46.47

-13.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 €1.42

$1.07 ฿35.91

48.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.52 ฿17.49

46.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.89 €8.83

$4.20 ฿142

135.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.57 €5.87

$18.79 ฿633

-65.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.82 ฿61.4

-34.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 €1.35

$2.84 ฿95.7

-46.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.69 €3.30

$1.45 ฿48.93

154.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.6 €59.5

$56.7 ฿1,909

17.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.20 €4.65

$3.02 ฿102

72.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.00 €2.68

$1.02 ฿34.29

194.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.10 €38.50

$3.69 ฿124

1068.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.47 ฿49.70

37.41%

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

$30.0K €26.8K

$26.8K ฿902.4K

12.04%

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

$37.9K €33.9K

$26.7K ฿899.5K

42.04%

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

$387 €346

$96.4 ฿3,247

301.83%

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

$32.69 €29.20

$11.26 ฿380

190.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 €46.86

$16.85 ฿568

211.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.90 €32.07

$67.2 ฿2,266

-46.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.89 €27.59

$10.73 ฿361

187.88%

Cinema Ticket

$12.53 €11.19

$7.50 ฿253

67.07%

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

$472 €422

$476 ฿16.0K

-0.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.6K €12.1K

$11.3K ฿379.6K

20.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 €101

$62.4 ฿2,102

80.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.97 €33.02

$28.41 ฿957

30.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 €111

$94.3 ฿3,178

31.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$214 €191

$85.8 ฿2,892

149.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$997 €890

$716 ฿24.1K

39.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$864 €772

$491 ฿16.5K

75.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,835 €1,639

$1,927 ฿64.9K

-4.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,386 €1,238

$1,431 ฿48.2K

-3.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,247 €4,687

$4,175 ฿140.7K

25.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,906 €4,382

$3,045 ฿102.6K

61.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,426 €3,060

$502 ฿16.9K

582.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.95

5.57

-29.08%

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

Last update for Tubingen: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tubingen

$864 36.9%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 43.2% $373

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tubingen

$472 20.2%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 73.6% $348

Groceries & Markets

Tubingen

$326 14%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 18.4% $60

Eating Out

Tubingen

$294 12.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 58.6% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Tubingen

$220 9.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 44.5% $98

Getting Around

Tubingen

$102 4.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 30.5% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Tubingen

$61 2.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 34.9% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $997 in Tubingen and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tubingen pays about 6.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $72 in Tubingen vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $326 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Tubingen

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:27 2:27 AM

08:27 8:27 AM

6 h ahead of Tubingen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

89,447

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Tubingen Phuket 9,300 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tubingen
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

Tubingen vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 45% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Tubingen is about 6.8 times higher, 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: $997 in Tubingen versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $472 in Tubingen versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Tubingen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,339 in Tubingen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Tubingen. 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, Tubingen and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Tubingen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.