Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varkaus and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,951 in Varkaus, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

92

Cost of Living Index in Varkaus
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Varkaus Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Varkaus

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,951

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,951 in Varkaus versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Varkaus $1,951
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,965 in Varkaus versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Varkaus $2,965
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,979 in Varkaus versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Varkaus $3,979
Phuket $3,154

Living in Varkaus is roughly 53% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Varkaus is 43% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.91 €14.29

$4.47 ฿151

255.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.4 €89.3

$32.41 ฿1,094

206.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.36 €11.10

$8.81 ฿297

40.30%

Cappuccino

$5.48 €4.92

$2.83 ฿95.5

93.64%

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

$3.52 €3.17

$0.87 ฿29.43

304.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 €2.54

$0.49 ฿16.67

477.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.10 €8.17

$2.56 ฿86.4

255.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.60 €7.73

$3.68 ฿124

133.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 €1.30

$1.66 ฿56.0

-13.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 €2.64

$1.46 ฿49.35

101.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.57 €3.20

$1.50 ฿50.6

138.00%

Eggs

$4.01 €3.60

$2.09 ฿70.5

91.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.61 €9.53

$19.07 ฿644

-44.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.56 €14.88

$3.30 ฿111

401.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.18 €18.13

$10.91 ฿368

84.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 €2.34

$2.93 ฿99.0

-10.92%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 €1.93

$1.69 ฿57.1

27.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.43 €3.08

$2.25 ฿75.8

52.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.01 €4.50

$2.08 ฿70.1

140.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 €1.09

$1.51 ฿51.0

-19.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.38 ฿46.56

31.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.28 €2.04

$1.07 ฿35.99

113.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 €1.63

$0.52 ฿17.52

248.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.36 €11.10

$4.20 ฿142

194.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.46 €12.09

$18.79 ฿634

-28.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.65 €3.27

$1.82 ฿61.5

100.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.90 €4.41

$2.84 ฿95.9

72.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.36 €3.02

$1.45 ฿49.03

131.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$61.5 €55.2

$56.7 ฿1,913

8.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.51 €8.54

$3.02 ฿102

214.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 €1.62

$1.02 ฿34.36

76.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$50.7 €45.57

$3.69 ฿125

1274.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.36 €2.12

$1.47 ฿49.81

60.54%

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

$36.9K €33.1K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

37.76%

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

$37.7K €33.9K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

41.39%

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

$107 €95.9

$96.4 ฿3,254

10.76%

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

$26.75 €24.03

$11.26 ฿380

137.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.89 €25.95

$16.85 ฿569

71.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.81 €34.86

$67.2 ฿2,270

-42.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.47 €21.98

$10.73 ฿362

128.05%

Cinema Ticket

$17.97 €16.14

$7.50 ฿253

139.60%

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

$727 €653

$476 ฿16.1K

52.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.7K €11.4K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

12.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$121 €109

$62.4 ฿2,106

93.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.5 €50.7

$28.41 ฿959

98.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.1 €81.8

$94.3 ฿3,184

-3.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$176 €158

$85.8 ฿2,898

105.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 €691

$716 ฿24.2K

7.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$695 €624

$491 ฿16.6K

41.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,206 €1,084

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-37.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$926 €832

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-35.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,234 €3,803

$4,175 ฿141.0K

1.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,886 €1,694

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-38.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.59

5.57

-35.55%

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

Last update for Varkaus: 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

Varkaus

$695 35.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 29.4% $204

Groceries & Markets

Varkaus

$407 20.9%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 34.6% $141

Eating Out

Varkaus

$318 16.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 61.8% $197

Clothing & Footwear

Varkaus

$200 10.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 39.1% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varkaus

$162 8.3%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 23.3% $38

Getting Around

Varkaus

$93 4.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 24.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Varkaus

$75 3.8%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 10% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $769 in Varkaus and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99 in Varkaus vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $407 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇮 Varkaus

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

22:22 10:22 PM

03:22 3:22 AM

5 h ahead of Varkaus

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,257

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Varkaus Phuket 8,230 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Varkaus
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

Varkaus vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 34% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,926 in Varkaus 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: $769 in Varkaus versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $727 in Varkaus 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 53% higher in Varkaus. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,951 in Varkaus, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Varkaus. 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, Varkaus 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 34% less than in Varkaus. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.