Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vasteras and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,818 in Vasteras, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Vasteras
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Vasteras Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Vasteras

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,818

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,818 in Vasteras versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Vasteras $1,818
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,764 in Vasteras versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Vasteras $2,764
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,710 in Vasteras versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Vasteras $3,710
Phuket $2,867

Living in Vasteras is roughly 51% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Vasteras is 35% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.70 SEK 136

$4.58 ฿153

199.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.6 SEK 640

$32.48 ฿1,086

98.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.91 SEK 98.2

$8.55 ฿286

15.91%

Cappuccino

$4.23 SEK 41.92

$2.72 ฿91.0

55.51%

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

$2.25 SEK 22.27

$0.94 ฿31.25

139.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 SEK 21.97

$0.49 ฿16.39

353.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.15 SEK 70.8

$2.59 ฿86.6

176.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.08 SEK 70.2

$3.83 ฿128

84.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 SEK 13.87

$1.74 ฿58.1

-19.54%

White Bread (500g)

$3.00 SEK 29.70

$1.43 ฿47.82

109.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.57 SEK 35.37

$1.53 ฿51.0

133.33%

Eggs

$3.89 SEK 38.55

$2.17 ฿72.7

79.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.11 SEK 120

$19.15 ฿640

-36.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.74 SEK 126

$3.30 ฿110

286.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.30 SEK 221

$11.14 ฿372

100.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.19 SEK 31.59

$2.95 ฿98.5

8.14%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 SEK 25.05

$1.68 ฿56.1

50.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.67 SEK 36.37

$2.30 ฿76.8

59.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.39 SEK 43.46

$2.13 ฿71.3

106.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 SEK 14.55

$1.53 ฿51.1

-3.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.70 SEK 16.80

$1.36 ฿45.55

25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 SEK 21.62

$1.12 ฿37.44

94.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 SEK 14.73

$0.55 ฿18.24

170.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.08 SEK 70.2

$4.26 ฿142

66.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 SEK 132

$18.19 ฿608

-26.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 SEK 13.10

$1.74 ฿58.2

-24.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 SEK 21.54

$2.79 ฿93.3

-22.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.32 SEK 32.88

$2.22 ฿74.1

49.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.7 SEK 700

$22.06 ฿737

220.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.51 SEK 34.78

$2.91 ฿97.3

20.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.50 SEK 24.78

$1.01 ฿33.79

147.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$81.0 SEK 802

$3.83 ฿128

2014.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.66 SEK 16.49

$1.49 ฿49.85

11.41%

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

$33.2K SEK 328.6K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

24.31%

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

$32.0K SEK 317.5K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

19.95%

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

$183 SEK 1,817

$99.4 ฿3,321

84.56%

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

$22.17 SEK 220

$11.28 ฿377

96.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.15 SEK 428

$17.36 ฿580

148.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.14 SEK 338

$52.3 ฿1,747

-34.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.65 SEK 195

$10.85 ฿362

81.11%

Cinema Ticket

$16.74 SEK 166

$7.57 ฿253

121.14%

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

$151 SEK 1,499

$558 ฿18.7K

-72.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,881 SEK 48.4K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-57.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 SEK 1,002

$62.9 ฿2,102

60.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.24 SEK 399

$28.58 ฿955

40.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.7 SEK 859

$96.1 ฿3,213

-9.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 SEK 1,323

$88.1 ฿2,943

51.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$750 SEK 7,429

$729 ฿24.4K

2.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$601 SEK 5,957

$460 ฿15.4K

30.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,366 SEK 13.5K

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-34.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$997 SEK 9,880

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-18.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,564 SEK 35.3K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

3.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,404 SEK 23.8K

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-3.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,996 SEK 29.7K

$493 ฿16.5K

507.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

5.57

-36.62%

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

Last update for Vasteras: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vasteras

$601 33.1%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 23.5% $141

Groceries & Markets

Vasteras

$380 20.9%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 29.7% $113

Eating Out

Vasteras

$258 14.2%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 52.9% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vasteras

$249 13.7%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 48.5% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Vasteras

$163 9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 23.8% $39

Getting Around

Vasteras

$100 5.5%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 61.1% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Vasteras

$68 3.7%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 0.3% $0.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $750 in Vasteras and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vasteras pays 508% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $65.0 in Vasteras vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $380 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Vasteras

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:01 12:01 AM

05:01 5:01 AM

5 h ahead of Vasteras

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

110,877

79,308

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Vasteras Phuket 8,790 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Vasteras
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

Vasteras vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 51% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 508% higher in Vasteras, 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: $750 in Vasteras versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $151 in Vasteras versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Vasteras. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,818 in Vasteras, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Vasteras. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Vasteras, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Vasteras 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.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Vasteras. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.