Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between York and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,187 in York, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in York
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York Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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York

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,187

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,187 in York versus $1,207 in Phuket.

York $2,187
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,476 in York versus $2,037 in Phuket.

York $3,476
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,765 in York versus $2,867 in Phuket.

York $4,765
Phuket $2,867

Living in York is roughly 81% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: York is 62% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.73 £20.05

$4.58 ฿153

483.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.3 £66.2

$32.48 ฿1,086

171.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 £7.91

$8.55 ฿286

23.27%

Cappuccino

$4.97 £3.73

$2.72 ฿91.0

82.72%

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

$2.67 £2.01

$0.94 ฿31.25

184.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 £1.36

$0.49 ฿16.39

269.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.49 £4.87

$2.59 ฿86.6

150.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.52 £4.89

$3.83 ฿128

70.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.74 ฿58.1

-5.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.43 ฿47.82

6.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.53 ฿51.0

28.10%

Eggs

$3.69 £2.77

$2.17 ฿72.7

70.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 £6.60

$19.15 ฿640

-54.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.16 £6.12

$3.30 ฿110

147.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 £7.43

$11.14 ฿372

-11.04%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 £2.49

$2.95 ฿98.5

12.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 £1.46

$1.68 ฿56.1

16.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.35 £1.76

$2.30 ฿76.8

2.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.69 £3.52

$2.13 ฿71.3

120.19%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 £2.28

$1.53 ฿51.1

98.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 £1.23

$1.36 ฿45.55

19.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.12 ฿37.44

32.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 £1.06

$0.55 ฿18.24

156.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.35 £17.52

$4.26 ฿142

448.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.96 £8.97

$18.19 ฿608

-34.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.05 £3.04

$1.74 ฿58.2

132.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.73 £3.55

$2.79 ฿93.3

69.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.91 £2.93

$2.22 ฿74.1

76.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$114 £85.7

$22.06 ฿737

417.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.38 £3.29

$2.91 ฿97.3

50.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.67 £2.00

$1.01 ฿33.79

164.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.02 £14.27

$3.83 ฿128

396.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 £1.51

$1.49 ฿49.85

34.90%

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

$37.6K £28.2K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

41.07%

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

$39.8K £29.9K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

49.08%

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

$200 £150

$99.4 ฿3,321

101.52%

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

$16.63 £12.48

$11.28 ฿377

47.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.71 £35.79

$17.36 ฿580

174.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.89 £36.68

$52.3 ฿1,747

-6.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.91 £17.94

$10.85 ฿362

120.37%

Cinema Ticket

$13.03 £9.78

$7.57 ฿253

72.13%

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

$1,627 £1,220

$558 ฿18.7K

191.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K £12.1K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

39.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.8 £45.64

$62.9 ฿2,102

-3.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.10 £27.83

$28.58 ฿955

29.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.9 £57.7

$96.1 ฿3,213

-20.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.5 £58.9

$88.1 ฿2,943

-10.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,226 £920

$729 ฿24.4K

68.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$917 £688

$460 ฿15.4K

99.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,502 £1,877

$2,096 ฿70.0K

19.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,875 £1,407

$1,222 ฿40.8K

53.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,897 £3,674

$3,459 ฿115.6K

41.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,877 £2,908

$2,489 ฿83.2K

55.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,465 £2,600

$493 ฿16.5K

602.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.61

5.57

0.72%

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

Last update for York: October 11, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

York

$917 41.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 49.8% $457

Eating Out

York

$369 16.9%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 67.1% $247

Groceries & Markets

York

$301 13.8%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 11.1% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

York

$265 12.1%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 51.6% $137

Getting Around

York

$148 6.8%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 73.6% $109

Clothing & Footwear

York

$114 5.2%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 8.8% $10

Sport & Entertainment

York

$75 3.4%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 10.1% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,226 in York and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

York pays 603% 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: $88.0 in York vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $301 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 York

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

18:12 6:12 PM

00:12 12:12 AM

6 h ahead of York

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

137,000

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

York Phuket 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

York
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

York vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. The 81% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 603% higher in York, 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: $1,226 in York versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,627 in York 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 13% higher in York. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,187 in York, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in York. 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 York, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, York 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 81% less than in York. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.