Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varna and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,408 in Varna, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Varna
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Varna Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Varna

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,408

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,408 in Varna versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Varna $1,408
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,217 in Varna versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Varna $2,217
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,026 in Varna versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Varna $3,026
Phuket $3,154

Living in Varna is roughly 10% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Varna is 3% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.46 BGN 21.81

$4.47 ฿151

178.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.9 BGN 105

$32.41 ฿1,093

84.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.16 BGN 17.77

$8.81 ฿297

15.32%

Cappuccino

$2.87 BGN 5.02

$2.83 ฿95.4

1.41%

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

$1.89 BGN 3.31

$0.87 ฿29.41

117.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 BGN 2.83

$0.49 ฿16.65

230.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.81 BGN 4.91

$2.56 ฿86.3

9.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 BGN 6.12

$3.68 ฿124

-4.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 BGN 3.36

$1.66 ฿55.9

15.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 BGN 2.17

$1.46 ฿49.31

-15.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.58 BGN 4.52

$1.50 ฿50.5

72.00%

Eggs

$3.53 BGN 6.17

$2.09 ฿70.5

68.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.53 BGN 20.18

$19.07 ฿643

-39.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 BGN 16.25

$3.30 ฿111

181.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 BGN 24.46

$10.91 ฿368

28.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 BGN 3.33

$2.93 ฿98.9

-35.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 BGN 3.79

$1.69 ฿57.0

27.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 BGN 3.72

$2.25 ฿75.8

-5.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.00 BGN 5.25

$2.08 ฿70.0

44.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 BGN 2.28

$1.51 ฿51.0

-13.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$1.38 ฿46.52

-24.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 BGN 1.84

$1.07 ฿35.96

-1.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 BGN 1.36

$0.52 ฿17.51

50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.03 BGN 7.04

$4.20 ฿142

-4.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.90 BGN 15.57

$18.79 ฿634

-52.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 BGN 2.05

$1.82 ฿61.5

-35.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 BGN 3.15

$2.84 ฿95.8

-36.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.13 BGN 1.98

$1.45 ฿48.98

-22.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 49.19

$56.7 ฿1,912

-50.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 BGN 2.74

$3.02 ฿102

-48.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.88 BGN 1.55

$1.02 ฿34.33

-13.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.19 BGN 21.34

$3.69 ฿125

230.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.05

$1.47 ฿49.76

18.37%

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

$29.6K BGN 51.7K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

10.37%

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

$24.7K BGN 43.3K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

-7.29%

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

$176 BGN 308

$96.4 ฿3,251

82.72%

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

$20.41 BGN 35.71

$11.26 ฿380

81.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.68 BGN 27.43

$16.85 ฿568

-6.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 BGN 90.0

$67.2 ฿2,268

-23.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.47 BGN 34.07

$10.73 ฿362

81.45%

Cinema Ticket

$9.06 BGN 15.86

$7.50 ฿253

20.80%

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

$498 BGN 872

$476 ฿16.1K

4.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,292 BGN 11.0K

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-44.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.3 BGN 114

$62.4 ฿2,104

4.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.01 BGN 57.8

$28.41 ฿958

16.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 BGN 179

$94.3 ฿3,181

8.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.7 BGN 174

$85.8 ฿2,895

16.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$640 BGN 1,120

$716 ฿24.2K

-10.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 BGN 843

$491 ฿16.6K

-1.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,362 BGN 2,383

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-29.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$916 BGN 1,602

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-36.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,998 BGN 5,246

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-28.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,090 BGN 3,657

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-31.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,286 BGN 2,250

$502 ฿16.9K

156.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.82

5.57

-49.37%

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

Last update for Varna: 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

Varna

$482 34.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 1.9% $9.3

Groceries & Markets

Varna

$272 19.3%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 2% $5.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varna

$212 15.1%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 41.3% $88

Eating Out

Varna

$200 14.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 39% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Varna

$135 9.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 9.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Varna

$70 4.9%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 18.2% $13

Getting Around

Varna

$39 2.7%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 82.8% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $640 in Varna and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varna pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $60 in Varna vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Varna

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

10:40 10:40 AM

15:40 3:40 PM

5 h ahead of Varna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

348,058

79,308

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Varna Phuket 7,830 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Varna
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

Varna vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 9% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Varna is about 2.6 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: $640 in Varna versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $498 in Varna versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $60 in Varna. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Varna 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, Varna on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.