Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zărnești and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Zărnești: $889 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Zărnești
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Zărnești Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Zărnești

🇷🇴 Romania

$889

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $889 in Zărnești versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Zărnești $889
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,383 in Zărnești versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Zărnești $1,383
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,877 in Zărnești versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Zărnești $1,877
Phuket $2,845

Living in Zărnești costs roughly 26% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zărnești 34% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.00 RON 42.60

$4.40 ฿147

104.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.40 RON 201

$32.26 ฿1,078

31.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.36 RON 39.57

$8.76 ฿293

-4.57%

Cappuccino

$2.18 RON 10.34

$2.83 ฿94.5

-22.97%

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

$1.46 RON 6.90

$0.90 ฿30.14

62.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 RON 5.66

$0.47 ฿15.56

155.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.90 RON 9.00

$2.55 ฿85.2

-25.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 RON 10.79

$3.83 ฿128

-40.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 RON 6.02

$1.73 ฿57.7

-26.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 RON 5.06

$1.47 ฿49.11

-27.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 RON 6.81

$1.51 ฿50.6

-4.64%

Eggs

$2.79 RON 13.20

$2.17 ฿72.7

28.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.89 RON 37.33

$19.70 ฿658

-59.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.74 RON 22.42

$3.34 ฿112

41.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.40 RON 49.21

$11.16 ฿373

-6.81%

Apples (1kg)

$0.93 RON 4.41

$2.85 ฿95.1

-67.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 RON 6.30

$1.70 ฿56.9

-21.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.27 RON 6.02

$2.19 ฿73.3

-42.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 RON 6.06

$2.05 ฿68.4

-37.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.67

$1.45 ฿48.57

-46.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 RON 2.45

$1.38 ฿46.16

-62.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.80 RON 3.80

$1.07 ฿35.69

-25.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 RON 3.63

$0.51 ฿16.91

50.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.15 RON 24.37

$4.26 ฿142

20.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 RON 35.09

$18.58 ฿621

-60.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 RON 5.08

$1.78 ฿59.7

-39.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 RON 6.12

$2.85 ฿95.2

-54.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 RON 3.32

$2.26 ฿75.6

-69.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.32 RON 101

$22.10 ฿738

-3.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.88 RON 4.15

$3.01 ฿101

-70.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 RON 4.05

$1.06 ฿35.34

-18.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.45 RON 35.26

$3.86 ฿129

93.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 RON 7.16

$1.45 ฿48.45

4.14%

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

$28.5K RON 134.9K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

8.29%

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

$26.0K RON 122.9K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-3.59%

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

$99.0 RON 468

$96.4 ฿3,221

2.67%

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

$9.28 RON 43.89

$11.04 ฿369

-15.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.00 RON 37.86

$17.14 ฿573

-53.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.82 RON 179

$52.2 ฿1,744

-27.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 RON 91.9

$11.16 ฿373

73.92%

Cinema Ticket

$6.24 RON 29.55

$7.81 ฿261

-20.10%

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

$429 RON 2,031

$556 ฿18.6K

-22.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,733 RON 36.6K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-33.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.43 RON 210

$64.2 ฿2,146

-30.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.26 RON 129

$28.69 ฿959

-4.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 RON 326

$95.4 ฿3,187

-27.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$76.8 RON 363

$88.0 ฿2,940

-12.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$434 RON 2,054

$737 ฿24.6K

-41.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$266 RON 1,258

$462 ฿15.5K

-42.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$576 RON 2,727

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-72.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$424 RON 2,008

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-64.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,751 RON 8,283

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-49.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,329 RON 6,288

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-47.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$510 RON 2,415

$501 ฿16.7K

1.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.47

5.57

34.11%

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

Last update for Zărnești: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Zărnești

$266 29.9%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 73.9% $196

Groceries & Markets

Zărnești

$182 20.4%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 47.9% $87

Eating Out

Zărnești

$148 16.7%

Phuket

$121 10% 18.1% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zărnești

$116 13.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 7.2% $8.3

Clothing & Footwear

Zărnești

$98 11%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 27.1% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Zărnești

$50 5.7%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 34.7% $17

Getting Around

Zărnești

$29 3.3%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 34.7% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $434 in Zărnești and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Zărnești pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $42.00 in Zărnești vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $182 vs $269, with Zărnești cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Zărnești

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:24 2:24 AM

06:24 6:24 AM

4 h ahead of Zărnești

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,926

79,308

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Zărnești Phuket 8,070 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Zărnești
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

Zărnești vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zărnești is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 36% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Zărnești, 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: $434 in Zărnești versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $429 in Zărnești versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 48% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $889 in Zărnești versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Zărnești but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Zărnești the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Zărnești 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, Zărnești 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 Zărnești gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.