Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dasmarinas and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Dasmarinas: $496 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Dasmarinas
Learn more

Dasmarinas Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Dasmarinas

🇵🇭 Philippines

$496

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $496 in Dasmarinas versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Dasmarinas $496
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $738 in Dasmarinas versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Dasmarinas $738
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $980 in Dasmarinas versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Dasmarinas $980
Phuket $2,845

Living in Dasmarinas costs roughly 59% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dasmarinas 63% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.08 ₱257

$4.40 ฿147

-7.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.95 ₱1,067

$32.26 ฿1,078

-47.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.71 ₱171

$8.76 ฿293

-69.06%

Cappuccino

$1.75 ₱110

$2.83 ฿94.5

-38.16%

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

$0.57 ₱35.76

$0.90 ฿30.14

-36.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₱19.30

$0.47 ฿15.56

-34.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.96 ₱60.1

$2.55 ฿85.2

-62.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₱99.4

$3.83 ฿128

-58.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 ₱87.5

$1.73 ฿57.7

-19.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 ₱69.5

$1.47 ฿49.11

-25.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.66 ₱41.36

$1.51 ฿50.6

-56.29%

Eggs

$1.79 ₱113

$2.17 ฿72.7

-17.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.94 ₱311

$19.70 ฿658

-74.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.49 ₱219

$3.34 ฿112

4.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.72 ₱297

$11.16 ฿373

-57.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 ₱143

$2.85 ฿95.1

-20.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₱102

$1.70 ฿56.9

-5.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.38 ₱150

$2.19 ฿73.3

8.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ₱67.3

$2.05 ฿68.4

-47.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.45 ฿48.57

20.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 ₱108

$1.38 ฿46.16

24.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.61 ₱38.39

$1.07 ฿35.69

-42.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ₱32.54

$0.51 ฿16.91

1.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.88 ₱181

$4.26 ฿142

-32.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.59 ₱541

$18.58 ฿621

-53.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 ₱58.5

$1.78 ฿59.7

-47.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₱125

$2.85 ฿95.2

-30.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 ₱48.96

$3.01 ฿101

-74.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.76

$1.06 ฿35.34

-76.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 ₱117

$3.86 ฿129

-52.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₱70.1

$1.45 ฿48.45

-23.45%

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

$21.4K ₱1.3M

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-18.76%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-29.83%

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

$48.45 ₱3,050

$96.4 ฿3,221

-49.73%

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

$17.55 ₱1,105

$11.04 ฿369

58.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.72 ₱1,494

$17.14 ฿573

38.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.43 ₱2,105

$52.2 ฿1,744

-35.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$5.30 ₱334

$7.81 ฿261

-32.14%

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

$134 ₱8,415

$556 ฿18.6K

-75.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K ₱674.0K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-7.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.53 ₱1,796

$64.2 ฿2,146

-55.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.55 ₱1,231

$28.69 ฿959

-31.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.5 ₱4,561

$95.4 ฿3,187

-24.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$56.4 ₱3,552

$88.0 ฿2,940

-35.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$46.95 ₱2,956

$462 ฿15.5K

-89.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$353 ₱22.2K

$501 ฿16.7K

-29.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.4

5.57

14.90%

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

Last update for Dasmarinas: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dasmarinas

$160 32.3%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 67.7% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dasmarinas

$90 18.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 38.8% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Dasmarinas

$80 16.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 56.1% $45

Eating Out

Dasmarinas

$73 14.8%

Phuket

$121 10% 65.6% $48

Accommodation & Living

Dasmarinas

$47 9.5%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 885% $415

Sport & Entertainment

Dasmarinas

$44 8.9%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 54% $24

Getting Around

Dasmarinas

$2 * 0.4%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 1843% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

Phuket pays 42% 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: $17.00 in Dasmarinas vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $160 vs $269 per month, with Dasmarinas cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Dasmarinas

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

06:52 6:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

1 h behind Dasmarinas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

659,019

79,308

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 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 PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dasmarinas Phuket 2,560 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Dasmarinas
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

Dasmarinas vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dasmarinas and Phuket differ by about 144% in total monthly costs ($496 vs $1,208 including rent). Dasmarinas is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 42% lower in Phuket. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $134 in Dasmarinas versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dasmarinas – a meal for two runs $17.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $496 in Dasmarinas versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Dasmarinas but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Dasmarinas 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, Dasmarinas 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 Dasmarinas gentler on the wallet – expenses run 144% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.