Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zhangjiakou and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhangjiakou: $776 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Zhangjiakou
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Zhangjiakou Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Zhangjiakou

🇨🇳 China

$776

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $776 in Zhangjiakou versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Zhangjiakou $776
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,223 in Zhangjiakou versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Zhangjiakou $1,223
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,670 in Zhangjiakou versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Zhangjiakou $1,670
Phuket $2,845

Living in Zhangjiakou costs roughly 36% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zhangjiakou 43% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.21 ¥14.72

$4.40 ฿149

-49.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.26 ¥161

$32.26 ฿1,090

-24.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.91 ¥39.37

$8.76 ฿296

-32.53%

Cappuccino

$3.50 ¥23.30

$2.83 ฿95.5

23.67%

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

$0.50 ¥3.35

$0.90 ฿30.48

-44.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 ¥1.72

$0.47 ฿15.74

-44.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.92 ¥6.14

$2.55 ฿86.1

-63.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ¥11.27

$3.83 ฿129

-55.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 ¥9.86

$1.73 ฿58.3

-14.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.21 ¥14.73

$1.47 ฿49.65

50.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.06 ¥7.07

$1.51 ฿51.1

-29.80%

Eggs

$1.06 ¥7.03

$2.17 ฿73.5

-51.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.23 ¥101

$19.70 ฿666

-22.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.98 ¥19.80

$3.34 ฿113

-10.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.59 ¥63.8

$11.16 ฿377

-14.07%

Apples (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.02

$2.85 ฿96.1

-41.75%

Banana (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.16

$1.70 ฿57.6

-45.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 ¥11.70

$2.19 ฿74.1

-19.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.22 ¥8.10

$2.05 ฿69.1

-40.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 ¥5.37

$1.45 ฿49.10

-44.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.57 ¥3.80

$1.38 ฿46.67

-58.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.13

$1.07 ฿36.09

-42.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.93

$0.51 ฿17.10

45.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.63 ¥24.17

$4.26 ฿144

-14.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.60 ¥90.5

$18.58 ฿628

-26.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 ¥7.10

$1.78 ฿60.3

-39.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 ¥16.16

$2.85 ฿96.2

-14.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.90

$2.26 ฿76.5

-87.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.61 ¥117

$22.10 ฿747

-20.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.08 ¥7.19

$3.01 ฿102

-64.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ¥2.17

$1.06 ฿35.73

-68.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.21 ¥41.37

$3.86 ฿130

60.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 ¥7.83

$1.45 ฿48.99

-18.62%

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

$19.6K ¥130.6K

$26.3K ฿889.6K

-25.48%

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

$17.0K ¥113.3K

$26.9K ฿910.4K

-36.82%

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

$95.7 ¥637

$96.4 ฿3,257

-0.72%

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

$6.22 ¥41.40

$11.04 ฿373

-43.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.68 ¥51.1

$17.14 ฿579

-55.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.01 ¥280

$52.2 ฿1,763

-19.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.20 ¥101

$11.16 ฿377

36.20%

Cinema Ticket

$7.30 ¥48.57

$7.81 ฿264

-6.53%

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

$342 ¥2,275

$556 ฿18.8K

-38.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,321 ¥35.4K

$11.6K ฿391.3K

-54.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.73 ¥298

$64.2 ฿2,169

-30.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.35 ¥189

$28.69 ฿969

-1.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.5 ¥643

$95.4 ฿3,222

1.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.0 ¥399

$88.0 ฿2,973

-31.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$294 ¥1,954

$737 ฿24.9K

-60.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 ¥1,214

$462 ฿15.6K

-60.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$622 ¥4,142

$2,095 ฿70.8K

-70.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$379 ¥2,523

$1,201 ฿40.6K

-68.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,446 ¥22.9K

$3,488 ฿117.8K

-1.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,966 ¥13.1K

$2,523 ฿85.2K

-22.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$382 ¥2,544

$501 ฿16.9K

-23.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

5.57

-36.45%

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

Last update for Zhangjiakou: 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

Zhangjiakou

$214 27.6%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 25.5% $55

Accommodation & Living

Zhangjiakou

$182 23.5%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 154% $280

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zhangjiakou

$110 14.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 13.7% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Zhangjiakou

$103 13.3%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 20.3% $21

Eating Out

Zhangjiakou

$88 11.4%

Phuket

$121 10% 37% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Zhangjiakou

$57 7.3%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 19.8% $11

Getting Around

Zhangjiakou

$21 2.8%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 83.8% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $294 in Zhangjiakou and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 31% 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: $24 in Zhangjiakou vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $214 vs $269 per month, with Zhangjiakou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Zhangjiakou

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:31 2:31 AM

01:31 1:31 AM

1 h behind Zhangjiakou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,345,491

79,308

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 6.66 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.45 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.79 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.83 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Zhangjiakou Phuket 4,010 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Zhangjiakou
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

Zhangjiakou vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zhangjiakou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 56% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 24% lower in Zhangjiakou. 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: $294 in Zhangjiakou versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $342 in Zhangjiakou 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 26% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $776 in Zhangjiakou versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Zhangjiakou but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Zhangjiakou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Zhangjiakou 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.