Thailand
CambodiaBangkok makes sense if
- You want the easier housing and budget equation in this comparison.
- A calmer day-to-day safety profile matters most to you.
- Access to stronger healthcare matters most to you.
Bangkok vs Phnom Penh
Bangkok is a regional metropolis with deep healthcare, shopping and transport infrastructure, and a broad international work scene. Phnom Penh is smaller and less built out, with a growing business community and a more informal pace; access to top-tier services and reliable transport is less even.
The grey shape is all 283 cities; each row says whether lower or higher is better. Ratings out of 10 are our reviewed estimates; the rest is published data. How we measure
The choice in one minute
Phnom Penh makes sense if
- Phnom Penh can work for those with a clear local reason to be there and comfort with a less developed urban infrastructure, but it asks for more planning around healthcare and transport.
What matters to you
Set how much each area counts. The ranking updates as you go. Climate and values are left out because there is no better or worse there, only your taste.
Money
Nature & outdoors
City life
Safety & health
Work & family
Moving & settling in
- 1Bangkok55
Leads on nature & outdoors, city life, safety & health, work & family and moving & settling in; stands out for english-speaking care and easier health insurance.
- 2Phnom Penh46
Closest to the top on money, 1 point behind Bangkok; stands out for political stability and safer roads.
Scores out of 100, averaged from the areas you weighted. For a ranking built around your own situation, take the quiz.
Side by side
Money
Rent on a new lease, everyday prices and tax.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok77Phnom Penh76
One-bedroom rent
Per month, new lease, citywide
$135/mo$2,444/mo
- $433/mo
- $228/mo, leads
Rent as share of local pay
One-bedroom rent vs. typical net local pay
21%120%
- ~67%, leads
- ~80%
Everyday prices
Excluding rent · United States = 100
25131
- 39
- 41
Income tax + social contributions
Range: average-wage rate to top marginal rate; the dot marks its midpoint
0%46%
- 5–35%
- 2–20%, leads
Climate
The year month by month. Whether it suits you is yours to judge.
Solid line: average daytime high. Dashed: night-time low. Point at the chart for any month; point at a city name to shade its range.
Bright days
Under 80% cloud and under 1 mm rain
30 days347 days
- 147 days, leads
- 119 days
Muggy days
Days that feel sticky (dew point)
0 days365 days
- 357 days
- 361 days
Air pollution
Annual mean fine particles (PM2.5)
4.6 µg/m³84 µg/m³
- 24.9 µg/m³
- 26.5 µg/m³
Nature & outdoors
How easily you get to water, mountains and green space.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok32Phnom Penh25
Beach & sea
110
- 4/10, leads
- 2/10
Mountains
110
- 2/10, leads
- 1/10
City parks
110
- 4/10
- 4/10
Weekend escapes
110
- 7/10, leads
- 5/10
City life
Getting around on foot, food, culture and the feel of the streets.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok53Phnom Penh48
Walkability
110
- 4/10, leads
- 3/10
Public transport
110
- 6/10, leads
- 4/10
Restaurants
110
- 9/10, leads
- 7/10
Public spaces
110
- 4/10
- 5/10, leads
Safety & health
Crime, how safe people feel, and the care you would get.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok60Phnom Penh44
Homicide rate
Per 100,000 residents per year
0.247
- 3.2
- 1.8
Feels safe day to day
110
- 7/10, leads
- 5/10
Healthcare quality
110
- 8/10, leads
- 5/10
English-speaking care
110
- 8/10, leads
- 4/10
Work & family
Jobs, working culture, schools and raising kids.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok53Phnom Penh40
Job market
110
- 6/10, leads
- 4/10
Jobs in English
110
- 5/10
- 5/10
Work–life balance
110
- 5/10, leads
- 3/10
Schools
110
- 6/10, leads
- 4/10
Moving & settling in
Visas, language, paperwork and staying connected.
Section score out of 100
Bangkok53Phnom Penh45
Visa & residence difficulty
Typical case; your passport changes this
110
- 3/10
- 3/10
Language barrier
For an English speaker
110
- 7/10, leads
- 8/10
Openness to newcomers
110
- 7/10
- 7/10
Flight connections
110
- 9/10, leads
- 6/10
Society & values
Where each city sits. There is no right end of these scales.
Social attitudes
ConservativeLiberal
- 7/10
- 5/10
LGBTQ+ acceptance
LowHigh
- 8/10
- 5/10
Diversity
HomogeneousDiverse
- 6/10
- 6/10
Religion in public life
ReligiousSecular
- 4/10
- 4/10
Life in each city
Daily life
Bangkok
A vast, dense megacity that sprawls rather than rewards walking. Pavements are patchy, distances are long, and getting around on foot is rarely pleasant.
Phnom Penh
A compact, low-rise capital that feels small and unhurried compared with sprawling Bangkok or Manila. Pace is gentle, but the streets are built around motorbikes and cars rather than walking, so getting around on foot is awkward and neighbourhoods vary a lot in quality.
Safety
Bangkok
Violent crime is low and the homicide rate is among the reassuring numbers here, so day-to-day personal safety is solid. Petty theft and night-time wariness are about average.
Phnom Penh
Serious violent crime is rare, and the homicide picture is reassuringly low for the region. The everyday concerns are different: bag-snatching and opportunistic theft are common enough to stay alert about, and the traffic is genuinely dangerous, with road safety among the weaker points of living here.
Work and healthcare
Bangkok
Bangkok's local market has one clear strength: unemployment is very low. Private hospitals are well regarded and many cater to international patients in English, which is a real draw across the region.
Phnom Penh
Conventional local careers are difficult to build in Phnom Penh. Local healthcare is the real weak spot.
Culture and public life
Bangkok
Food is the headline. Bangkok is hot, humid and grimy, its sidewalks broken and its shared space surrendered to malls and traffic, with only riverside patches by the Chao Phraya offering respite.
Phnom Penh
The food and cafe culture punch above the city's size, with a strong local identity and a growing restaurant scene, even if it stays a step behind Bangkok. Phnom Penh is dusty and littered, its waste systems weak and traffic disorderly, with cared-for space largely confined to the riverside promenade by the Tonle Sap.
Summary
Bangkok suits newcomers who need established services, transit and professional choice. Phnom Penh can work for those with a clear local reason to be there and comfort with a less developed urban infrastructure, but it asks for more planning around healthcare and transport.
Read on
Which of these fits you?
These numbers treat everyone the same. The quiz weighs them by your budget, climate taste, family and work, and ranks all 283 cities for you.