Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varese and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,113 in Varese, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Varese
Learn more

Varese Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Varese

🇮🇹 Italy

$2,113

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,113 in Varese versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Varese $2,113
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,466 in Varese versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Varese $3,466
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,818 in Varese versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Varese $4,818
Phuket $3,154

Living in Varese is roughly 65% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Varese is 55% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.68 €20.31

$4.47 ฿151

407.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 €91.7

$32.41 ฿1,093

215.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.26 €11.88

$8.81 ฿297

50.51%

Cappuccino

$2.25 €2.02

$2.83 ฿95.4

-20.49%

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

$3.54 €3.17

$0.87 ฿29.41

306.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 €1.46

$0.49 ฿16.65

232.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.61 €5.92

$2.56 ฿86.3

158.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 €5.85

$3.68 ฿124

77.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 €1.53

$1.66 ฿55.9

3.01%

White Bread (500g)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.46 ฿49.31

77.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.55 €3.18

$1.50 ฿50.5

136.67%

Eggs

$5.01 €4.48

$2.09 ฿70.5

139.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$31.22 €27.96

$19.07 ฿643

63.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.97 €11.62

$3.30 ฿111

293.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$27.61 €24.73

$10.91 ฿368

153.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 €2.66

$2.93 ฿98.9

1.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.95 €2.65

$1.69 ฿57.0

74.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.11 €2.78

$2.25 ฿75.8

38.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.32 €2.98

$2.08 ฿70.0

59.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.51 €2.25

$1.51 ฿51.0

66.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.93

$1.38 ฿46.52

55.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.22 €1.99

$1.07 ฿35.96

107.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.52 ฿17.51

23.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.79 €6.98

$4.20 ฿142

85.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.03 €8.09

$18.79 ฿634

-51.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 €1.57

$1.82 ฿61.5

-3.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$2.84 ฿95.8

-40.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 €2.38

$1.45 ฿48.98

83.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.50 €44.33

$56.7 ฿1,912

-12.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.55 €4.97

$3.02 ฿102

83.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.26 €2.02

$1.02 ฿34.33

121.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.89 €35.73

$3.69 ฿125

981.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.92

$1.47 ฿49.76

46.26%

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

$36.9K €33.1K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

37.96%

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

$34.7K €31.1K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

30.11%

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

$219 €197

$96.4 ฿3,251

127.73%

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

$12.64 €11.32

$11.26 ฿380

12.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.52

$16.85 ฿568

95.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.4 €48.73

$67.2 ฿2,268

-19.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.78 €22.19

$10.73 ฿362

130.94%

Cinema Ticket

$11.85 €10.62

$7.50 ฿253

58.00%

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

$726 €650

$476 ฿16.1K

52.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,098 €6,357

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-36.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$110 €98.1

$62.4 ฿2,104

75.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 €50.2

$28.41 ฿958

97.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 €99.3

$94.3 ฿3,181

17.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$161 €144

$85.8 ฿2,895

87.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$917 €821

$716 ฿24.2K

28.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$742 €665

$491 ฿16.6K

51.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,682 €1,506

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-12.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,569 €1,406

$1,431 ฿48.3K

9.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,516 €2,254

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-39.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,712 €1,533

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-43.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,420 €2,167

$502 ฿16.9K

381.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.73

5.57

-33.03%

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

Last update for Varese: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Varese

$742 35.1%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 33.8% $251

Groceries & Markets

Varese

$439 20.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 39.3% $173

Eating Out

Varese

$315 14.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 61.4% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varese

$265 12.5%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 53% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Varese

$197 9.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 38.1% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Varese

$78 3.7%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 5.3% $4.1

Getting Around

Varese

$77 3.6%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 8.3% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $917 in Varese and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varese pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $102 in Varese vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $439 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Varese

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:54 12:54 PM

18:54 6:54 PM

6 h ahead of Varese

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,511

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Varese Phuket 9,350 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Varese
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

Varese vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 40% 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 Varese is about 4.8 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: $917 in Varese versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $726 in Varese 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 65% higher in Varese. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,113 in Varese, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Varese. 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, Varese and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Varese on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.