Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the Canary Islands and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,650 in the Canary Islands, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in the Canary Islands
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Canary Islands Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Canary Islands

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,650

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,650 in the Canary Islands versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Canary Islands $1,650
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,373 in the Canary Islands versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Canary Islands $2,373
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,095 in the Canary Islands versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Canary Islands $3,095
Phuket $2,867

Living in the Canary Islands is roughly 37% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Canary Islands is 22% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.32 €18.07

$4.58 ฿153

343.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.1 €54.3

$32.48 ฿1,086

87.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.42 €8.38

$8.55 ฿286

10.18%

Cappuccino

$2.05 €1.83

$2.72 ฿91.0

-24.63%

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

$1.86 €1.65

$0.94 ฿31.25

97.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.98

$0.49 ฿16.39

124.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.85 €2.53

$2.59 ฿86.6

10.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 €3.04

$3.83 ฿128

-10.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.74 ฿58.1

-21.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.39 €2.13

$1.43 ฿47.82

67.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 €1.40

$1.53 ฿51.0

3.27%

Eggs

$2.18 €1.94

$2.17 ฿72.7

0.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.31 €17.18

$19.15 ฿640

0.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.93 €8.83

$3.30 ฿110

200.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.23 €15.33

$11.14 ฿372

54.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.95 ฿98.5

-7.46%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.68 ฿56.1

33.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$2.30 ฿76.8

-6.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$2.13 ฿71.3

17.84%

Potato (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.53 ฿51.1

39.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.36 ฿45.55

48.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.12 ฿37.44

51.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$0.55 ฿18.24

69.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.66 €4.14

$4.26 ฿142

9.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.86 €6.99

$18.19 ฿608

-56.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.74 ฿58.2

-2.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.79 ฿93.3

-37.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 €0.76

$2.22 ฿74.1

-61.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.24 €3.78

$2.91 ฿97.3

45.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.69 €1.50

$1.01 ฿33.79

67.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 €14.75

$3.83 ฿128

333.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.49 ฿49.85

14.09%

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

$24.9K €22.2K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-6.60%

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

$29.0K €25.8K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

8.45%

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

$126 €112

$99.4 ฿3,321

26.88%

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

$20.91 €18.60

$11.28 ฿377

85.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.49 €31.57

$17.36 ฿580

104.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.49 €42.25

$52.3 ฿1,747

-9.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.07 €21.41

$10.85 ฿362

121.84%

Cinema Ticket

$9.85 €8.76

$7.57 ฿253

30.12%

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

$400 €355

$558 ฿18.7K

-28.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,096 €4,533

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-55.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.3 €60.7

$62.9 ฿2,102

8.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.65 €34.38

$28.58 ฿955

35.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.6 €79.7

$96.1 ฿3,213

-6.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €101

$88.1 ฿2,943

29.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,111 €988

$729 ฿24.4K

52.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$680 €605

$460 ฿15.4K

47.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$825 €734

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-32.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,369 €1,218

$493 ฿16.5K

177.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.33

5.57

-40.22%

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

Last update for the Canary Islands: October 13, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Canary Islands

$680 41.2%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 32.4% $220

Groceries & Markets

Canary Islands

$316 19.2%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 15.4% $49

Eating Out

Canary Islands

$248 15.1%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 51.1% $127

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Canary Islands

$182 11.1%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 29.9% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Canary Islands

$140 8.5%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 11.2% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Canary Islands

$67 4.1%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Canary Islands

$16 * 1%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 141% $23

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,111 in the Canary Islands and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Canary Islands pays 178% 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: $61.0 in the Canary Islands vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Canary Islands

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:53 4:53 PM

22:53 10:53 PM

6 h ahead of the Canary Islands

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,050

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Canary Islands Phuket 11,990 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Canary Islands
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

Canary Islands vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in the Canary Islands. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 178% higher in the Canary Islands, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,111 in the Canary Islands versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in the Canary Islands. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,650 per month in the Canary Islands versus $1,207 in Phuket – a 37% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,650 in the Canary Islands, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in the Canary Islands. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Phuket delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,207 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Phuket hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Canary Islands and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in the Canary Islands. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.