Cost of living in Phuket

A single person lives on Phuket for THB 34,400 a month ($1,045) at the basic level, THB 81,200 ($2,470) comfortably, and THB 280,500 ($8,525) at the top. Those are September 2026 totals, rent included. Rent moves most, and the month you sign decides it for the year: sign between May and October.

Current at 9 September 2026. Dollars at THB 32.9 to US$1, the rate of 8 September 2026.

A September quote is not a January price

High season runs November to April, and the island prices short-term lets accordingly. Median asking rent tells a separate story. It rose from THB 30,000 in January and February 2026 to THB 40,000 by April, a structural rise of about 20%, not a seasonal one (FazWaz via thethaiger.com, 13 June 2026). The full-year median lands at THB 35,000 ($1,060) across 54,628 enquiries, 71% of them for rentals. Timing the search matters more than the unit when you are moving to Phuket.

Low season is May to October. Annual leases signed then reportedly go 20–40% below asking. CHECK That range is agent lore, not a published series.

Read every rent figure below as a twelve-month annual rate. A holiday "monthly" rate is a different product with the same name.

Three budgets, every line

Single person, all in, including rent. September 2026.

Line	Basic	Comfortable	Luxury
Rent	THB 13,000 ($395)	THB 35,000 ($1,064)	THB 150,000 ($4,559)
Food and groceries	THB 9,000 ($274)	THB 18,000 ($547)	THB 40,000 ($1,216)
Transport	THB 4,500 ($137)	THB 8,000 ($243)	THB 25,000 ($760)
Utilities	THB 1,500 ($46)	THB 4,000 ($122)	THB 12,000 ($365)
Phone and internet	THB 900 ($27)	THB 1,200 ($36)	THB 1,500 ($46)
Health insurance	THB 2,500 ($76)	THB 5,000 ($152)	THB 12,000 ($365)
Leisure	THB 3,000 ($91)	THB 10,000 ($304)	THB 40,000 ($1,216)
Total	THB 34,400 ($1,045)	THB 81,200 ($2,470)	THB 280,500 ($8,525)

The basic column buys a Kathu studio inland, a scooter and local food. The comfortable column buys a new one-bedroom in Bang Tao or Rawai. The luxury column buys a three-bedroom pool villa.

The health insurance lines are estimates, drawn from published age-banded Thailand ranges (thethaiger.com, 4 September 2026). Insurers quote individually, and none prices Phuket on its own.

Rent varies more by area than any other line. Where people live on Phuket puts the eight-area spread at THB 12,000–60,000 ($365–1,825) for a one-bedroom, September 2026 listings. The band table in Phuket, honestly names 25 buildings in three price bands, each with a 1BR rent, a 2BR rent and a price per square metre.

The grocery basket, item by item

Numbeo prices, last updated 11 July 2026 and read 10 September 2026. Expatistan's 8 September 2026 figure is in brackets where it differs.

Item	THB	USD	Source
Milk, 1 L	61	$1.85	Numbeo (Expatistan 62)
Eggs, 12	72	$2.19	Numbeo (Expatistan 79)
Chicken breast, 1 kg	113	$3.43	Numbeo (Expatistan 120)
Tomatoes, 1 kg	70	$2.13	Numbeo (Expatistan 64)
Bread, 500 g loaf	43	$1.31	Numbeo, 11 July 2026
Local beer, 0.5 L in a shop	60	$1.82	Numbeo (Expatistan 58)
Imported cheddar, 200 g	250–350	$7.60–10.60	Shelf range, no index
Ground coffee, 250 g	250–400	$7.60–12.20	Local roasters, no index
Water, 1.5 L	18.6	$0.57	Numbeo
Cappuccino	94	$2.86	Numbeo
Local lunch, food court or street	150	$4.56	Numbeo
Street plate	60–80	$1.80–2.45	Numbeo
Mid-range dinner for two	1,075	$32.70	Numbeo (Expatistan 802–1,420)
Cinema ticket	255	$7.75	Numbeo

Two lines are not index items. CHECK Imported cheddar and ground coffee have no tracked Phuket price, so those are shelf ranges.

What costs more here than you expect

Imported dairy. Numbeo prices local cheese at THB 653 a kilo ($19.85) — 11 July 2026 data, read 10 September 2026. Imported cheddar runs two to three times that.

Wine. A quality bottle is THB 693 ($21) (Expatistan, 8 September 2026).

West-coast restaurants. Dining on the Bang Tao strip is priced above Bangkok, not below it. It is the largest lifestyle choice on the island.

Electricity in a villa. A one-bedroom with air conditioning runs THB 1,500–4,000 a month ($46–122). A villa with a pool runs THB 6,000–15,000 ($182–456).

Cash withdrawals. A foreign card pays THB 220–250 ($6.70–7.60) per ATM withdrawal. Six a month is THB 1,500 ($46) gone. A Thai account ends it, and your visa decides whether you can open one — see opening a Thai bank account. Major banks decline DTV holders at the counter. CHECK

What costs less than almost anywhere

Street food. THB 60–80 a plate ($1.80–2.45). A sit-down local lunch is THB 150 ($4.56) (Numbeo, 10 September 2026).

Thai produce. Tomatoes THB 70 a kilo ($2.13), chicken breast THB 113 ($3.43), rice about THB 52 a kilo ($1.58).

Market seafood. At the Rawai market you pick the fish and a restaurant beside it cooks it.

Connectivity. Broadband is THB 577 a month ($17.50) and a mobile plan is THB 369 ($11.20) (Numbeo, 11 July 2026).

Supercheap. The Rassada discount chain is the cheapest grocery on the island.

The line people underbudget is transport

Transport is THB 4,500 ($137) even in the basic column. It is higher than in any mainland city in this series, because there is no train to take instead. Nothing is under construction, and a tram was promised for December 2031, then the plan was called flawed in January 2026. CHECK No agency has confirmed its status since.

A Honda Click rents for THB 4,000–5,000 a month ($120–150), and Gasohol 95 was THB 38.29 a litre ($1.16) on 2 September 2026 (phuket101.net and nationthailand.com, September 2026). The Smart Bus is THB 100 flat ($3.04) and runs one route. Nobody commutes on it.

The electricity cap expires in December

Thailand's regulator froze the average tariff at THB 3.95 per unit ($0.12) for September to December 2026 (nationthailand.com, 23 August 2026). Many buildings re-bill at a resort rate of THB 6–8 ($0.18–0.24). Ask which your meter is on before you sign.

Where Numbeo and Expatistan disagree with us

Numbeo, read on 10 September 2026, puts a single person at THB 21,553 a month ($655) before rent. That is 41 contributors and 471 prices, last updated 11 July 2026. A family of four is THB 78,216 ($2,377) before rent.

Numbeo's own one-bedroom runs THB 24,467 ($744) in the centre and THB 16,267 ($495) outside it. Add the centre rent and that single reaches THB 46,020 ($1,399). Ours is THB 81,200 ($2,470). The gap is rent, not an error. Numbeo averages the whole island. Ours is a new west-coast build.

Expatistan has a single person at THB 47,564 ($1,445) including rent and a family of four at THB 93,727 ($2,850), from fewer than five contributors (8 September 2026). It refused a re-read on 10 September 2026. CHECK Treat it as the weakest source here.

Bread moved. It read THB 43 in July and THB 47.57 ($1.45) on 10 September 2026, so we carry both and prefer the newer. CHECK

The two do agree on utilities. Numbeo has THB 3,400 a month for 85 sqm ($103) and Expatistan THB 3,285 ($100). That agreement is rare here.

At the comfortable budget you get a new one-bedroom on the west coast, real food, and an airport half an hour away. That is what THB 81,200 buys, and it earns its price if you want beach plus real infrastructure. Chiang Mai is cheaper, and Phuket knows it. The basic budget here, THB 34,400, buys an inland Kathu studio, not a sea view.

What this page does not cover

The 25 buildings behind the rent line, sorted into three price bands, each with a 1BR rent, a 2BR rent and a sale price per square metre
Which buildings bill electricity at the government THB 3.95 tariff and which re-bill at the THB 6–8 resort rate, and what the difference costs over a year
The same three budgets rebuilt area by area, showing what THB 81,200 buys in Bang Tao against Kathu, Rawai and Phuket Town
The shops, wet markets and delivery apps by name, with what each is cheapest for

All of it is in Phuket, honestly — 24 pages, $29. See what's inside

This budget assumes a lease. Renting an apartment in Phuket covers the deposit, the advance and the meter. Compare all ten cities on money before you pick one.