Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vaughan and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,554 in Vaughan, rent and utilities included – about $16,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Vaughan
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Vaughan Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Vaughan

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,554

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,554 in Vaughan versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Vaughan $2,554
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,726 in Vaughan versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Vaughan $3,726
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,898 in Vaughan versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Vaughan $4,898
Phuket $2,867

Living in Vaughan is roughly 112% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Vaughan is 89% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.73 CA$23.66

$4.58 ฿153

265.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 CA$95.4

$32.48 ฿1,086

107.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.99 CA$14.13

$8.55 ฿286

16.84%

Cappuccino

$3.64 CA$5.15

$2.72 ฿91.0

33.82%

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

$1.97 CA$2.78

$0.94 ฿31.25

109.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 CA$2.21

$0.49 ฿16.39

218.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.29 CA$8.89

$2.59 ฿86.6

142.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.07 CA$8.58

$3.83 ฿128

58.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 CA$2.74

$1.74 ฿58.1

11.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.26 CA$3.19

$1.43 ฿47.82

58.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.69 CA$3.80

$1.53 ฿51.0

75.82%

Eggs

$2.99 CA$4.22

$2.17 ฿72.7

37.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.22 CA$13.03

$19.15 ฿640

-51.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.10 CA$17.10

$3.30 ฿110

266.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.60 CA$19.22

$11.14 ฿372

22.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.41 CA$4.82

$2.95 ฿98.5

15.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 CA$1.78

$1.68 ฿56.1

-25.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 CA$4.95

$2.30 ฿76.8

52.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$2.13 ฿71.3

50.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.24

$1.53 ฿51.1

3.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$1.36 ฿45.55

16.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.21 CA$3.12

$1.12 ฿37.44

97.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 CA$1.66

$0.55 ฿18.24

112.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.50 CA$17.68

$4.26 ฿142

193.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.92 CA$16.85

$18.19 ฿608

-34.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 CA$2.78

$1.74 ฿58.2

12.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 CA$2.02

$2.79 ฿93.3

-48.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.74 CA$3.87

$2.22 ฿74.1

23.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$104 CA$147

$22.06 ฿737

372.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.06 CA$4.32

$2.91 ฿97.3

5.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.19 CA$1.69

$1.01 ฿33.79

17.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.75 CA$30.74

$3.83 ฿128

467.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.09 CA$1.54

$1.49 ฿49.85

-26.85%

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

$24.1K CA$34.0K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-9.77%

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

$18.8K CA$26.6K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

-29.52%

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

$110 CA$156

$99.4 ฿3,321

11.03%

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

$29.17 CA$41.24

$11.28 ฿377

158.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.57 CA$70.1

$17.36 ฿580

185.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.67 CA$44.77

$52.3 ฿1,747

-39.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.84 CA$29.46

$10.85 ฿362

92.07%

Cinema Ticket

$9.76 CA$13.80

$7.57 ฿253

28.93%

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

$910 CA$1,286

$558 ฿18.7K

62.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K CA$24.0K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

47.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.04 CA$59.4

$62.9 ฿2,102

-33.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.75 CA$52.0

$28.58 ฿955

28.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 CA$150

$96.1 ฿3,213

10.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 CA$148

$88.1 ฿2,943

18.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,669 CA$2,359

$729 ฿24.4K

128.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,478 CA$2,090

$460 ฿15.4K

221.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,629 CA$3,716

$2,096 ฿70.0K

25.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,416 CA$3,415

$1,222 ฿40.8K

97.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,700 CA$12.3K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

151.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,171 CA$8,724

$2,489 ฿83.2K

147.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,905 CA$4,107

$493 ฿16.5K

489.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

5.57

-3.23%

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

Last update for Vaughan: October 10, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vaughan

$1.5K 57.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 68.9% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Vaughan

$316 12.4%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 15.2% $48

Eating Out

Vaughan

$265 10.4%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 54.3% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vaughan

$189 7.4%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 32.3% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Vaughan

$130 5.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 4.7% $6.2

Getting Around

Vaughan

$124 4.9%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 68.7% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Vaughan

$51 2%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 31.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,669 in Vaughan and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vaughan pays 489% 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: $67.0 in Vaughan vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Vaughan

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:52 2:52 PM

01:52 1:52 AM

11 h ahead of Vaughan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

323,103

79,308

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 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 CAD in detail →

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Between locations

Vaughan Phuket 14,260 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

Vaughan vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 112% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 489% higher in Vaughan, 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: $1,669 in Vaughan versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $910 in Vaughan 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 18% higher in Vaughan. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,554 in Vaughan, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Vaughan. 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 Vaughan, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Vaughan 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 112% less than in Vaughan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.