Cost of Living inPhnom Penh, Cambodia
Image credit: Mao Piseth
Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Cambodia: $7,009/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 63% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Income Category
Happiness
4.3 / 10
#117 globally
GDP per Capita
City Population
Monthly Costs
Rent
Food
Transport
Utilities
Education
Child Education
Public-school quality + expat access, alongside international and private school cost β the two paths a relocating family weighs.
Public schools
Public-schooling rules are set nationally for Cambodia; Phnom Penh-specific enrollment notes are still being verified.
Quality
Limited public-school fit for expats
Expat access
Not practical for most expat families
hardInstruction
Khmer
Language fit is more manageable.
PISA / outcomes
Qualitative only
Using curated quality notes for now.
Why this quality rating
Cambodia's public school system faces significant resource and quality constraints. Instruction is in Khmer. International and private schools in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap serve most expat and worldschooling families.
Why the expat-access rating looks like this
Resident families can technically enroll in public schools, but language and quality barriers make it impractical for most international families. Private and international schools are the realistic choice.
β Homeschooling
Not regulatedCambodia has no specific homeschooling legislation. Education is compulsory in theory but enforcement is limited. Many expat families in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap homeschool without issue.
Homeschool legality in Cambodia β check current regulations before committing.
Source: User-curated family relocation research (initial seed) (2026-04-14)
International & private schools
Childcare & Domestic Help
Current nanny and household-help pricing snapshot for Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Full-time nanny (5 days)
$325-$475
monthly Β· confidence 0.65
Live-in / 24-7 nanny
$575-$825
monthly Β· confidence 0.65
Source: curated family relocation research
Getting Around
The concrete mobility picture for Phnom Penh: airport access, urban transit, and rideshare practicality.
Airport
International airport
Phnom Penh International gives Cambodiaβs capital practical regional coverage and enough international service for routine family travel.
Urban transit
Tuk-tuk and bus mix
City mobility is still informal and road-based, with buses present but tuk-tuks doing much of the practical everyday work.
Rideshare
Grab and PassApp available
App-hailed rides are a normal part of getting around Phnom Penh when the bus network is too thin or indirect.
Source: User-curated family relocation research (initial seed) (2026-04-14)
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Cambodia.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
LimitedCoverage looks thinner, doctor staffing is lighter, and hospital capacity looks tighter weigh on this rating.
Public care
LimitedA visible public hospital footprint help, but public coverage looks thinner and public funding looks lighter.
Private care
GoodA meaningful tracked hospital and clinic network and a clearly private facility base help, but self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse.
UHC coverage
62/100
2023
Physicians
0.21/1k
2019
Hospital beds
0.73/1k
2018
Out of pocket
61%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
70.8 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
137/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
9.5/1k
2024
International patient readiness
MixedA visible private hospital base and multiple facilities have websites help, but price transparency is still sparse.
Pricing transparency
LimitedMultiple facilities have crawlable websites help, but published self-pay prices are scarce.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Cambodia yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI Β· Updated 2026-06-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Administrative & Support Services | β |
| Agriculture & Farming | β |
| Arts, Entertainment & Recreation | β |
| Construction | β |
| Education | β |
| Finance & Insurance | β |
| Healthcare & Social Work | β |
| Hospitality & Food Service | β |
| Information & Technology | β |
| Manufacturing | β |
| Mining & Quarrying | β |
| Other Services | β |
| Professional & Scientific Services | β |
| Public Administration & Defence | β |
| Real Estate | β |
| Retail & Wholesale Trade | β |
| Transport & Logistics | β |
| Utilities | β |
2023 annual wages in Phnom Penh, Cambodia Β· Source: ILO ILOSTAT (national)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival.
Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page β no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Phnom Penh compared with the US?
Your money goes about 3.0x further in Phnom Penh than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate.
Is Phnom Penh cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Phnom Penh is cheaper overall than New York City β overall living costs are about 63% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Phnom Penh.
How does rent in Phnom Penh compare with New York City?
Rent in Phnom Penh is about 87% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City).
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Phnom Penh?
Groceries in Phnom Penh are about 56% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 69% cheaper than the same benchmark.
About Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is Cambodia's capital and economic core, a Mekong-and-Tonle Sap riverfront city of about 1.57 million that handles most of the country's banking, government, and import-export activity. For relocators it sits at the affordable end of Southeast Asia: rents in expat-friendly districts like BKK1 and Toul Tom Poung remain a fraction of Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City, and the country offers comparatively flexible long-stay business and retirement visas. The tradeoff is hot, humid weather year-round with a punishing May-October rainy season, dollarized pricing that erodes some PPP advantage, and infrastructure (power, traffic, air quality) that lags the regional leaders. English works in expat enclaves; Khmer helps everywhere else.
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