Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ciudad del Carmen and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Ciudad del Carmen: $1,134 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $890 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

55

Cost of Living Index in Ciudad del Carmen
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Ciudad del Carmen Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Ciudad del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,134

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ciudad del Carmen 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 Ciudad del Carmen and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,134 in Ciudad del Carmen versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Ciudad del Carmen $1,134
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,830 in Ciudad del Carmen versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Ciudad del Carmen $1,830
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,526 in Ciudad del Carmen versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Ciudad del Carmen $2,526
Phuket $2,845

Living in Ciudad del Carmen costs roughly 6% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ciudad del Carmen 16% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.82 MX$200

$4.40 ฿147

145.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.74 MX$808

$32.26 ฿1,078

35.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.37 MX$155

$8.76 ฿293

-4.45%

Cappuccino

$3.59 MX$66.4

$2.83 ฿94.5

26.86%

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

$1.40 MX$25.90

$0.90 ฿30.14

55.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.06 MX$19.51

$0.47 ฿15.56

125.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.51 MX$46.35

$2.55 ฿85.2

-1.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.06 MX$75.0

$3.83 ฿128

6.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 MX$29.12

$1.73 ฿57.7

-8.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.60 MX$47.99

$1.47 ฿49.11

76.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 MX$31.72

$1.51 ฿50.6

13.91%

Eggs

$2.45 MX$45.37

$2.17 ฿72.7

12.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.29 MX$153

$19.70 ฿658

-57.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.50 MX$157

$3.34 ฿112

154.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.29 MX$209

$11.16 ฿373

1.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 MX$49.41

$2.85 ฿95.1

-6.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 MX$28.38

$1.70 ฿56.9

-9.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.04

$2.19 ฿73.3

-13.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 MX$32.18

$2.05 ฿68.4

-15.12%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.89

$1.45 ฿48.57

37.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.01

$1.38 ฿46.16

36.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 MX$26.20

$1.07 ฿35.69

32.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 MX$20.97

$0.51 ฿16.91

121.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.0

$4.26 ฿142

0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.49 MX$194

$18.58 ฿621

-43.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 MX$33.45

$1.78 ฿59.7

1.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 MX$59.2

$2.85 ฿95.2

12.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MX$11.68

$2.26 ฿75.6

-72.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.54 MX$47.02

$3.01 ฿101

-15.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 MX$35.58

$1.06 ฿35.34

82.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.17 MX$206

$3.86 ฿129

189.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 MX$26.40

$1.45 ฿48.45

-1.38%

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

$21.3K MX$393.4K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-19.14%

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

$24.0K MX$443.0K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-11.03%

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

$57.4 MX$1,060

$96.4 ฿3,221

-40.50%

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

$22.57 MX$417

$11.04 ฿369

104.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$17.14 ฿573

69.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.59 MX$639

$52.2 ฿1,744

-33.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.16 MX$372

$11.16 ฿373

80.65%

Cinema Ticket

$5.30 MX$97.9

$7.81 ฿261

-32.14%

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

$215 MX$3,973

$556 ฿18.6K

-61.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,691 MX$86.7K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-59.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 MX$1,010

$64.2 ฿2,146

-14.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.28 MX$744

$28.69 ฿959

40.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.7 MX$1,824

$95.4 ฿3,187

3.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 MX$1,636

$88.0 ฿2,940

0.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$603 MX$11.1K

$737 ฿24.6K

-18.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 MX$7,196

$462 ฿15.5K

-15.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,038 MX$19.2K

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-50.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 MX$14.3K

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-35.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,938 MX$35.8K

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-44.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,132 MX$20.9K

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-55.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.57

102.87%

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

Last update for Ciudad del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ciudad del Carmen

$389 34.3%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 18.7% $73

Groceries & Markets

Ciudad del Carmen

$264 23.3%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 1.8% $4.6

Eating Out

Ciudad del Carmen

$185 16.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 34.6% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Ciudad del Carmen

$127 11.2%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 2.1% $2.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ciudad del Carmen

$109 9.6%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 14.3% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Ciudad del Carmen

$45 4%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 50% $23

Getting Around

Ciudad del Carmen

$15 * 1.3%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 168% $25

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 $603 in Ciudad del Carmen and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $44.00 in Ciudad del Carmen vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $264 vs $269, with Ciudad del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Ciudad del Carmen

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

09:40 9:40 AM

22:40 10:40 PM

13 h ahead of Ciudad del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

191,238

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 22, 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 22, 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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Highest

Between locations

Ciudad del Carmen Phuket 16,860 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Ciudad del Carmen
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

Ciudad del Carmen vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ciudad del Carmen and Phuket differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($1,134 vs $1,208 including rent). Ciudad del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,702 in Ciudad del Carmen and $1,813 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $603 in Ciudad del Carmen versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,134 per month in Ciudad del Carmen versus $1,208 in Phuket – a 7% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,134 in Ciudad del Carmen versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Ciudad del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Ciudad del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Ciudad del Carmen 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 Ciudad del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.