Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Turku and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,877 in Turku, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

90

Cost of Living Index in Turku
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Turku Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Turku

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,877

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,877 in Turku versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Turku $1,877
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,981 in Turku versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Turku $2,981
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,085 in Turku versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Turku $4,085
Phuket $3,154

Living in Turku is roughly 47% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Turku is 38% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.29 €14.60

$4.47 ฿151

264.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 €90.5

$32.41 ฿1,094

211.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.34 €11.06

$8.81 ฿297

40.07%

Cappuccino

$4.68 €4.19

$2.83 ฿95.4

65.37%

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

$2.79 €2.50

$0.87 ฿29.42

220.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.49 ฿16.66

285.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.42 €8.44

$2.56 ฿86.3

267.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.60 €8.60

$3.68 ฿124

160.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 €1.40

$1.66 ฿56.0

-6.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.47 €2.21

$1.46 ฿49.32

69.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.68 €2.41

$1.50 ฿50.5

78.67%

Eggs

$3.70 €3.32

$2.09 ฿70.5

77.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 €6.97

$19.07 ฿643

-59.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.64 €13.12

$3.30 ฿111

343.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.82 €16.87

$10.91 ฿368

72.50%

Apples (1kg)

$2.79 €2.50

$2.93 ฿98.9

-4.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 €2.00

$1.69 ฿57.0

31.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.28 €2.04

$2.25 ฿75.8

1.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.35 €3.90

$2.08 ฿70.1

109.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.51 ฿51.0

-2.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.60 €1.43

$1.38 ฿46.54

15.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.07 ฿35.97

83.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.52 ฿17.51

250.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.15 €11.78

$4.20 ฿142

213.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.33 €13.74

$18.79 ฿634

-18.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.78 €3.39

$1.82 ฿61.5

107.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 €3.30

$2.84 ฿95.9

29.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.61 €3.23

$1.45 ฿49.00

148.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.9 €57.2

$56.7 ฿1,912

12.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.35 €7.49

$3.02 ฿102

176.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.02 ฿34.34

50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$65.7 €58.9

$3.69 ฿125

1680.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.37 €2.13

$1.47 ฿49.78

61.22%

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

$37.0K €33.1K

$26.8K ฿903.7K

38.06%

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

$37.9K €34.0K

$26.7K ฿900.8K

42.14%

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

$135 €121

$96.4 ฿3,252

39.81%

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

$29.01 €26.00

$11.26 ฿380

157.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.79 €19.53

$16.85 ฿569

29.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.29 €38.79

$67.2 ฿2,269

-35.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.99 €25.98

$10.73 ฿362

170.18%

Cinema Ticket

$20.86 €18.69

$7.50 ฿253

178.13%

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

$467 €418

$476 ฿16.1K

-1.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,398 €6,629

$11.3K ฿380.1K

-34.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.5 €85.6

$62.4 ฿2,105

53.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.99 €39.42

$28.41 ฿959

54.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.1

$94.3 ฿3,182

7.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 €99.6

$85.8 ฿2,896

29.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$857 €768

$716 ฿24.2K

19.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$674 €604

$491 ฿16.6K

37.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,477 €1,323

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-23.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 €1,046

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-18.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 €3,741

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-0.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,810 €2,518

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-7.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,667 €2,390

$502 ฿17.0K

430.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.94

5.57

-29.26%

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

Last update for Turku: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Turku

$674 35.9%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 27.2% $183

Groceries & Markets

Turku

$371 19.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 28.3% $105

Eating Out

Turku

$308 16.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 60.5% $187

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Turku

$186 9.9%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 32.9% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Turku

$159 8.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 23.1% $37

Getting Around

Turku

$94 5%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 25.1% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Turku

$85 4.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 3.3% $2.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $857 in Turku and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Turku pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $101 in Turku vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $371 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇮 Turku

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

09:02 9:02 AM

14:02 2:02 PM

5 h ahead of Turku

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

201,889

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Turku Phuket 8,490 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Turku
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

Turku vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 32% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Turku is about 5.3 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: $857 in Turku versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $467 in Turku 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 39% higher in Turku. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,877 in Turku, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Turku. 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, Turku 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 32% less than in Turku. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.