Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,611 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur
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Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,611

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur 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 Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,611 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $1,208 in Phuket, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $1,611
Phuket $1,208

A couple spends around $2,409 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $2,027 in Phuket, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $2,409
Phuket $2,027

A family of three spends $3,207 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs $2,845 in Phuket, rent included.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur $3,207
Phuket $2,845

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur costs about 33% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur sits 19% above the global median, while Phuket is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.35 MX$191

$4.40 ฿147

135.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.09 MX$889

$32.26 ฿1,078

49.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.88 MX$182

$8.76 ฿293

12.79%

Cappuccino

$3.37 MX$62.2

$2.83 ฿94.5

19.08%

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

$1.44 MX$26.54

$0.90 ฿30.14

60.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 MX$16.86

$0.47 ฿15.56

93.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.39 MX$44.20

$2.55 ฿85.2

-6.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 MX$81.5

$3.83 ฿128

15.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 MX$32.84

$1.73 ฿57.7

2.89%

White Bread (500g)

$3.03 MX$55.9

$1.47 ฿49.11

106.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.38 MX$43.92

$1.51 ฿50.6

57.62%

Eggs

$2.35 MX$43.47

$2.17 ฿72.7

8.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 MX$212

$19.70 ฿658

-41.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 MX$178

$3.34 ฿112

188.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.41 MX$248

$11.16 ฿373

20.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 MX$47.82

$2.85 ฿95.1

-9.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 MX$28.94

$1.70 ฿56.9

-7.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 MX$29.98

$2.19 ฿73.3

-26.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.71 MX$31.57

$2.05 ฿68.4

-16.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 MX$22.29

$1.45 ฿48.57

-16.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 MX$33.99

$1.38 ฿46.16

33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.77 MX$51.3

$1.07 ฿35.69

158.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.31

$0.51 ฿16.91

137.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.81 MX$88.9

$4.26 ฿142

12.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.87 MX$201

$18.58 ฿621

-41.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.53

$1.78 ฿59.7

-13.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 MX$64.3

$2.85 ฿95.2

22.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 MX$16.59

$2.26 ฿75.6

-60.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.4 MX$968

$22.10 ฿738

137.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 MX$80.8

$3.01 ฿101

45.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.97 MX$54.9

$1.06 ฿35.34

180.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.43 MX$193

$3.86 ฿129

170.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.14

$1.45 ฿48.45

-2.76%

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

$21.3K MX$394.1K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-19.01%

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

$23.9K MX$441.5K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-11.33%

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

$84.4 MX$1,560

$96.4 ฿3,221

-12.41%

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

$24.86 MX$459

$11.04 ฿369

125.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.45 MX$581

$17.14 ฿573

83.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.08 MX$833

$52.2 ฿1,744

-13.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.06 MX$556

$11.16 ฿373

169.35%

Cinema Ticket

$4.13 MX$76.3

$7.81 ฿261

-47.12%

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

$226 MX$4,180

$556 ฿18.6K

-59.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,280 MX$153.0K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-28.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.3 MX$1,317

$64.2 ฿2,146

11.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.5 MX$970

$28.69 ฿959

82.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.2 MX$1,759

$95.4 ฿3,187

-0.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.0 MX$1,257

$88.0 ฿2,940

-22.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 MX$22.0K

$737 ฿24.6K

61.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$733 MX$13.5K

$462 ฿15.5K

58.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,509 MX$46.4K

$2,095 ฿70.0K

19.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.8K

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-1.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,827 MX$70.7K

$3,488 ฿116.6K

9.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,210 MX$40.8K

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-12.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$750 MX$13.9K

$501 ฿16.7K

49.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.6

5.57

108.26%

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

Last update for Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur: October 19, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$733 45.5%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 36.9% $270

Groceries & Markets

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$297 18.4%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 9.4% $28

Eating Out

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$183 11.4%

Phuket

$121 10% 33.8% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$141 8.7%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 11.5% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$129 8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 3.8% $4.8

Getting Around

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$75 4.7%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 47.6% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

$53 3.3%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 27.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,190 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur versus $737 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 50% higher in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $297 vs $269 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:13 4:13 PM

06:13 6:13 AM

14 h ahead of Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

202,694

79,308

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur Phuket 15,410 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur
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

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,416 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and $1,813 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 137% less in Phuket. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $226 per month in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur and $556 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,208, than in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur at $1,611. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Phuket – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Phuket. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.