Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varanasi and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Varanasi: $290 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

14

Cost of Living Index in Varanasi
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Varanasi Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Varanasi

🇮🇳 India

$290

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $290 in Varanasi versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Varanasi $290
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $475 in Varanasi versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Varanasi $475
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $661 in Varanasi versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Varanasi $661
Phuket $3,154

Living in Varanasi costs roughly 77% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Varanasi 79% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.83 ₹174

$4.47 ฿151

-59.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$7.76 ₹739

$32.41 ฿1,094

-76.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.19 ₹303

$8.81 ฿297

-63.79%

Cappuccino

$1.59 ₹151

$2.83 ฿95.5

-43.82%

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

$0.42 ₹39.71

$0.87 ฿29.43

-51.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 ₹9.99

$0.49 ฿16.67

-79.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.54 ₹147

$2.56 ฿86.4

-39.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ₹196

$3.68 ฿124

-44.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.61 ₹58.3

$1.66 ฿56.0

-63.25%

White Bread (500g)

$0.31 ₹29.62

$1.46 ฿49.35

-78.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.53 ₹50.7

$1.50 ฿50.6

-64.67%

Eggs

$0.84 ₹80.2

$2.09 ฿70.5

-59.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.14 ₹299

$19.07 ฿644

-83.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.13 ₹203

$3.30 ฿111

-35.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

Apples (1kg)

$1.36 ₹130

$2.93 ฿99.0

-53.58%

Banana (1kg)

$0.66 ₹63.0

$1.69 ฿57.1

-60.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.96 ₹91.0

$2.25 ฿75.8

-57.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.32 ₹30.04

$2.08 ฿70.1

-84.62%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ₹22.67

$1.51 ฿51.0

-84.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.24 ₹22.77

$1.38 ฿46.56

-82.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.45 ₹43.03

$1.07 ฿35.99

-57.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ₹26.79

$0.52 ฿17.52

-46.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.20 ₹305

$4.20 ฿142

-23.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.73 ₹546

$18.79 ฿634

-69.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₹151

$1.82 ฿61.5

-13.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 ₹181

$2.84 ฿95.9

-33.10%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.12 ₹392

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.54 ₹51.9

$1.45 ฿49.03

-62.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.74 ₹927

$56.7 ฿1,913

-82.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.26 ₹24.91

$3.02 ฿102

-91.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.11 ₹10.03

$1.02 ฿34.36

-89.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.07 ₹102

$3.69 ฿125

-71.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₹106

$1.47 ฿49.81

-24.49%

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

$11.2K ₹1.1M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-58.00%

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

$21.8K ₹2.1M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-18.25%

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

$12.55 ₹1,195

$96.4 ฿3,254

-86.97%

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

$3.62 ₹344

$11.26 ฿380

-67.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.04 ₹670

$16.85 ฿569

-58.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$12.58 ₹1,197

$67.2 ฿2,270

-81.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$3.02 ₹288

$7.50 ฿253

-59.73%

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

$38.76 ₹3,691

$476 ฿16.1K

-91.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$990 ₹94.3K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-91.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.78 ₹2,169

$62.4 ฿2,106

-63.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.17 ₹2,397

$28.41 ฿959

-11.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$37.77 ₹3,597

$94.3 ฿3,184

-59.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$25.59 ₹2,437

$85.8 ฿2,898

-70.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$111 ₹10.6K

$716 ฿24.2K

-84.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$47.39 ₹4,513

$491 ฿16.6K

-90.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$194 ₹18.5K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-89.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$138 ₹13.1K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-90.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$571 ₹54.4K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-86.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$345 ₹32.8K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-88.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$571 ₹54.4K

$502 ฿17.0K

13.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.53

5.57

53.14%

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

Last update for Varanasi: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Varanasi

$81 27.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 231% $186

Eating Out

Varanasi

$57 19.7%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 113% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Varanasi

$50 17.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 143% $72

Accommodation & Living

Varanasi

$47 16.4%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 936% $444

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varanasi

$23 8%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 436% $101

Sport & Entertainment

Varanasi

$19 6.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 342% $64

Getting Around

Varanasi

$13 4.4%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 456% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $111 in Varanasi and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varanasi pays 14% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $8 in Varanasi vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $81 vs $266 per month, with Varanasi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Varanasi

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:42 2:42 AM

04:12 4:12 AM

1 h 30 min ahead of Varanasi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,100,000

79,308

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.5 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 95.22 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Varanasi Phuket 2,530 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Varanasi
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

Varanasi vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Varanasi is about 77% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 14% higher in Varanasi, 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: $111 in Varanasi versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $39 in Varanasi 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 230% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $290 in Varanasi versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Varanasi but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Varanasi 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 Varanasi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 77% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.