Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zanzibar and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Zanzibar: $579 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Zanzibar
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Zanzibar Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Zanzibar

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$579

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $579 in Zanzibar versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Zanzibar $579
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $864 in Zanzibar versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Zanzibar $864
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,148 in Zanzibar versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Zanzibar $1,148
Phuket $2,845

Living in Zanzibar costs roughly 52% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zanzibar 57% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.70 TZS 12.3K

$4.40 ฿147

6.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.08 TZS 57.8K

$32.26 ฿1,078

-31.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.59 TZS 14.6K

$8.76 ฿293

-36.19%

Cappuccino

$2.20 TZS 5,769

$2.83 ฿94.5

-22.26%

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

$0.58 TZS 1,520

$0.90 ฿30.14

-35.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 TZS 776

$0.47 ฿15.56

-36.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 TZS 4,879

$2.55 ฿85.2

-27.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 TZS 6,764

$3.83 ฿128

-32.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 TZS 5,521

$1.73 ฿57.7

21.97%

White Bread (500g)

$0.71 TZS 1,859

$1.47 ฿49.11

-51.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 TZS 2,058

$1.51 ฿50.6

-47.68%

Eggs

$2.71 TZS 7,092

$2.17 ฿72.7

24.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.58 TZS 19.9K

$19.70 ฿658

-61.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.21 TZS 5,776

$3.34 ฿112

-33.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.87 TZS 15.4K

$11.16 ฿373

-47.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 TZS 7,271

$2.85 ฿95.1

-2.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 TZS 3,001

$1.70 ฿56.9

-32.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.78 TZS 2,050

$2.19 ฿73.3

-64.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.55 TZS 1,428

$2.05 ฿68.4

-73.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.90 TZS 2,351

$1.45 ฿48.57

-37.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 TZS 4,063

$1.38 ฿46.16

12.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 TZS 2,003

$1.07 ฿35.69

-28.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 TZS 1,274

$0.51 ฿16.91

-3.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.08 TZS 5,445

$4.26 ฿142

-51.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.55 TZS 25.0K

$18.58 ฿621

-48.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 TZS 3,921

$1.78 ฿59.7

-15.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 TZS 3,536

$2.85 ฿95.2

-52.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 TZS 825

$2.26 ฿75.6

-86.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 TZS 9,672

$3.01 ฿101

22.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.73 TZS 1,920

$1.06 ฿35.34

-31.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 TZS 6,964

$3.86 ฿129

-31.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 TZS 3,180

$1.45 ฿48.45

-16.55%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

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

$48.9K TZS 128.1M

$26.9K ฿900.4K

81.57%

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

$74.3 TZS 194.6K

$96.4 ฿3,221

-22.90%

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

$11.29 TZS 29.6K

$11.04 ฿369

2.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.43 TZS 126.8K

$17.14 ฿573

182.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.77 TZS 75.3K

$52.2 ฿1,744

-44.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$9.26 TZS 24.3K

$7.81 ฿261

18.57%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.12 TZS 34.3K

$64.2 ฿2,146

-79.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.88 TZS 44.2K

$28.69 ฿959

-41.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$15.05 TZS 39.4K

$95.4 ฿3,187

-84.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$13.05 TZS 34.2K

$88.0 ฿2,940

-85.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$147 TZS 385.1K

$737 ฿24.6K

-80.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$100 TZS 262.1K

$462 ฿15.5K

-78.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$198 TZS 518.2K

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-90.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 TZS 388.8K

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-87.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$37.8K TZS 99.1M

$3,488 ฿116.6K

985.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.5K TZS 30.1M

$2,523 ฿84.3K

356.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$312 TZS 816.7K

$501 ฿16.7K

-37.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

79.53%

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

Last update for Zanzibar: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zanzibar

$164 28.3%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 63.7% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zanzibar

$134 23.2%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 7.1% $9.5

Accommodation & Living

Zanzibar

$100 17.3%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 362% $362

Eating Out

Zanzibar

$99 17.1%

Phuket

$121 10% 22.8% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Zanzibar

$47 8.2%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 43.3% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Zanzibar

$26 4.5%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 375% $98

Getting Around

Zanzibar

$8.6 * 1.5%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 358% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $147 in Zanzibar and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 61% 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: $22.00 in Zanzibar vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $164 vs $269 per month, with Zanzibar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇿 Zanzibar

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

15:34 3:34 PM

19:34 7:34 PM

4 h ahead of Zanzibar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

709,809

79,308

💱 Currency

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇿 Tanzanian Shilling (Sh)

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2,619 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD). 1 EUR = 2,944 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to TZS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zanzibar Phuket 6,750 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Zanzibar
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

Zanzibar vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zanzibar is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 109% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 61% lower in Phuket. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $147 in Zanzibar versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 64% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Zanzibar – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $579 in Zanzibar versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Zanzibar but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Zanzibar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Zanzibar 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 Zanzibar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 109% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.