Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upland, CA and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,406 in Upland, CA, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Upland, CA
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Upland, CA Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Upland, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,406

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,406 in Upland, CA versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Upland, CA $2,406
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,533 in Upland, CA versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Upland, CA $3,533
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,661 in Upland, CA versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Upland, CA $4,661
Phuket $3,115

Living in Upland, CA is roughly 86% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Upland, CA is 78% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.85 $14.85

$4.39 ฿147

238.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.1 $71.1

$32.31 ฿1,078

120.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.93 $11.93

$8.70 ฿290

37.13%

Cappuccino

$1.99 $1.99

$2.72 ฿90.9

-26.84%

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

$2.01 $2.01

$0.93 ฿31.06

116.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 $2.02

$0.50 ฿16.67

304.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.38 $7.38

$2.53 ฿84.5

191.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.58 $9.58

$3.63 ฿121

163.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 $1.08

$1.74 ฿58.1

-37.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.45 ฿48.42

53.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.50 ฿50.1

48.00%

Eggs

$4.67 $4.67

$2.17 ฿72.5

115.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.96 $8.96

$19.09 ฿637

-53.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.75 $6.75

$3.40 ฿113

98.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.21 $15.21

$10.90 ฿364

39.54%

Apples (1kg)

$4.43 $4.43

$2.94 ฿98.2

50.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.69 ฿56.5

1.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.24 $3.24

$2.19 ฿73.2

47.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.93 $5.93

$2.12 ฿70.9

179.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.46 ฿48.68

52.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.37 ฿45.66

61.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.08 ฿35.91

82.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 $1.83

$0.55 ฿18.21

232.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.90 $11.90

$4.43 ฿148

168.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.01 $12.01

$18.25 ฿609

-34.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 $1.91

$1.77 ฿59.2

7.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 $1.28

$2.88 ฿96.2

-55.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.82 $1.82

$1.45 ฿48.32

25.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.3 $60.3

$54.9 ฿1,832

9.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 $3.16

$1.51 ฿50.5

109.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 $1.84

$0.78 ฿25.90

135.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.62 $35.62

$3.84 ฿128

827.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 $1.41

$1.49 ฿49.65

-5.37%

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

$29.3K $29.3K

$26.9K ฿897.3K

8.89%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$26.3K ฿879.4K

4.40%

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

$167 $167

$97.8 ฿3,265

70.41%

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

$67.8 $67.8

$11.29 ฿377

500.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.3 $59.3

$17.19 ฿574

245.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.63 $44.63

$68.3 ฿2,281

-34.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿365

Cinema Ticket

$15.36 $15.36

$7.43 ฿248

106.73%

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

$1,879 $1,879

$530 ฿17.7K

254.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.1K $18.1K

$18.8K ฿626.9K

-3.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.0 $58.0

$61.7 ฿2,059

-5.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 $39.32

$28.25 ฿943

39.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.7 $74.7

$96.0 ฿3,204

-22.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$86.8 ฿2,898

38.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,562 $1,562

$721 ฿24.1K

116.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,255 $1,255

$509 ฿17.0K

146.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,599 $2,599

$1,950 ฿65.1K

33.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 $2,102

$1,397 ฿46.6K

50.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,531 $2,531

$4,192 ฿139.9K

-39.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,671 $2,671

$3,298 ฿110.1K

-19.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,200 $5,200

$492 ฿16.4K

957.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.31

5.57

13.29%

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

Last update for Upland, CA: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upland, CA

$1.3K 52.2%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 59.5% $747

Groceries & Markets

Upland, CA

$319 13.3%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 16.3% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upland, CA

$294 12.2%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 57% $168

Eating Out

Upland, CA

$251 10.4%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 52.3% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Upland, CA

$131 5.5%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 6.6% $8.7

Getting Around

Upland, CA

$80 3.3%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 17.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Upland, CA

$75 3.1%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 10.4% $7.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,562 in Upland, CA and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Upland, CA pays about 11 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $71 in Upland, CA vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $319 vs $267 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Upland, CA

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

19:03 7:03 PM

10:03 10:03 AM

15 h ahead of Upland, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

73,379

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

100 THB = 3 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 33.38 THB (100 THB = 3 USD). 1 EUR = 37.47 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Upland, CA Phuket 14,000 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

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Upland, CA
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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

Upland, CA vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Upland, CA is about 11 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: $1,562 in Upland, CA versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,879 in Upland, CA versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Upland, CA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,406 in Upland, CA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Upland, CA. 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.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Upland, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.