Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Utsunomiya and Phuket

For one person, living costs are similar in Utsunomiya and in Phuket: $1,316 and $1,278 a month, rent and utilities included.

61

Cost of Living Index in Utsunomiya
Learn more

Utsunomiya Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Utsunomiya

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,316

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,316 in Utsunomiya versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Utsunomiya $1,316
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,971 in Utsunomiya versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Utsunomiya $1,971
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,625 in Utsunomiya versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Utsunomiya $2,625
Phuket $3,154

Living in Utsunomiya is roughly 3% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Utsunomiya 3% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.07 ¥959

$4.47 ฿151

35.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.88 ¥2,667

$32.41 ฿1,094

-47.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.86 ¥768

$8.81 ฿297

-44.84%

Cappuccino

$3.52 ¥556

$2.83 ฿95.5

24.38%

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

$1.07 ¥169

$0.87 ฿29.43

22.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥133

$0.49 ฿16.67

71.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.11 ¥491

$2.56 ฿86.4

21.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ¥294

$3.68 ฿124

-49.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 ¥229

$1.66 ฿56.0

-12.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 ¥264

$1.46 ฿49.35

14.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.63 ¥889

$1.50 ฿50.6

275.33%

Eggs

$2.25 ¥356

$2.09 ฿70.5

7.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.56 ¥1,826

$19.07 ฿644

-39.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 ¥1,075

$3.30 ฿111

106.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.74 ¥2,645

$10.91 ฿368

53.44%

Apples (1kg)

$4.85 ¥767

$2.93 ฿99.0

65.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 ¥358

$1.69 ฿57.1

34.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.25 ¥672

$2.25 ฿75.8

88.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.27 ¥832

$2.08 ฿70.1

153.37%

Potato (1kg)

$3.40 ¥536

$1.51 ฿51.0

125.17%

Onion (1kg)

$3.01 ¥476

$1.38 ฿46.56

118.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ¥187

$1.07 ฿35.99

10.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ¥125

$0.52 ฿17.52

51.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 ¥626

$4.20 ฿142

-5.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.70 ¥1,532

$18.79 ฿634

-48.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 ¥265

$1.82 ฿61.5

-7.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 ¥434

$2.84 ฿95.9

-3.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.25 ¥198

$1.45 ฿49.03

-13.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.4 ¥10.2K

$56.7 ฿1,913

13.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 ¥486

$3.02 ฿102

1.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.13 ¥495

$1.02 ฿34.36

206.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.99 ¥3,000

$3.69 ฿125

414.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.47 ฿49.81

-27.89%

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

$22.8K ¥3.6M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-14.80%

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

$15.2K ¥2.4M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-42.92%

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

$150 ¥23.6K

$96.4 ฿3,254

55.17%

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

$23.41 ¥3,699

$11.26 ฿380

107.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.11 ¥4,758

$16.85 ฿569

78.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.5 ¥7,985

$67.2 ฿2,270

-24.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.49 ¥1,973

$10.73 ฿362

16.40%

Cinema Ticket

$13.12 ¥2,073

$7.50 ฿253

74.93%

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

$1,408 ¥222.5K

$476 ฿16.1K

195.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.2K ¥2.9M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

61.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 ¥8,699

$62.4 ฿2,106

-11.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.60 ¥5,151

$28.41 ฿959

14.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.8 ¥10.2K

$94.3 ฿3,184

-31.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.1 ¥11.4K

$85.8 ฿2,898

-15.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$609 ¥96.2K

$716 ฿24.2K

-14.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$388 ¥61.4K

$491 ฿16.6K

-20.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 ¥141.1K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-53.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$721 ¥113.9K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-49.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,783 ¥597.6K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-9.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,111 ¥333.5K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-30.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.25

5.57

-59.61%

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

Last update for Utsunomiya: 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

Utsunomiya

$388 29.5%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 26.4% $103

Groceries & Markets

Utsunomiya

$327 24.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 18.5% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Utsunomiya

$203 15.4%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 38.7% $79

Eating Out

Utsunomiya

$132 10.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 8% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Utsunomiya

$101 7.7%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 20.6% $21

Getting Around

Utsunomiya

$88 6.7%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 19.9% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Utsunomiya

$77 5.8%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 7.1% $5.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $609 in Utsunomiya and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $17 in Utsunomiya vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $327 vs $266, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Utsunomiya

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:51 1:51 AM

23:51 11:51 PM

2 h behind Utsunomiya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

519,217

79,308

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Utsunomiya Phuket 5,260 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Utsunomiya
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

Utsunomiya vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, utilities, and transport. The 3% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,974 in Utsunomiya 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: $609 in Utsunomiya versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,408 in Utsunomiya 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 Utsunomiya. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Phuket gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Utsunomiya and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.