Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between La Merced and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in La Merced: $558 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

27

Cost of Living Index in La Merced
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La Merced Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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La Merced

🇵🇪 Peru

$558

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $558 per month in La Merced vs $1,294 in Phuket, rent included.

La Merced $558
Phuket $1,294

A couple spends around $910 per month in La Merced vs $2,204 in Phuket, rent included.

La Merced $910
Phuket $2,204

A family of three spends $1,263 per month in La Merced vs $3,115 in Phuket, rent included.

La Merced $1,263
Phuket $3,115

La Merced is about 57% cheaper than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both La Merced and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – La Merced 59% lower, Phuket 4% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.38 PEN 15.10

$4.39 ฿148

-0.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.86 PEN 120

$32.31 ฿1,086

7.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.01 PEN 24.19

$8.70 ฿293

-19.43%

Cappuccino

$3.18 PEN 10.97

$2.72 ฿91.6

16.91%

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

$1.08 PEN 3.72

$0.93 ฿31.28

16.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 PEN 2.24

$0.50 ฿16.79

30.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.57 PEN 8.86

$2.53 ฿85.1

1.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.29 PEN 14.81

$3.63 ฿122

18.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 PEN 5.44

$1.74 ฿58.5

-9.20%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 PEN 7.15

$1.45 ฿48.77

42.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 PEN 4.43

$1.50 ฿50.5

-14.67%

Eggs

$2.35 PEN 8.11

$2.17 ฿73.0

8.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.33 PEN 25.29

$19.09 ฿642

-61.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.78 PEN 19.94

$3.40 ฿114

70.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.68 PEN 29.94

$10.90 ฿366

-20.37%

Apples (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.17

$2.94 ฿98.9

-68.71%

Banana (1kg)

$0.45 PEN 1.56

$1.69 ฿56.9

-73.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.30 PEN 1.04

$2.19 ฿73.8

-86.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.71 PEN 2.46

$2.12 ฿71.4

-66.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.28 PEN 0.96

$1.46 ฿49.03

-80.82%

Onion (1kg)

$0.45 PEN 1.55

$1.37 ฿45.99

-67.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 PEN 2.07

$1.08 ฿36.17

-44.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 PEN 3.01

$0.55 ฿18.34

58.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.63 PEN 19.42

$4.43 ฿149

27.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 PEN 25.30

$18.25 ฿614

-59.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 PEN 6.56

$1.77 ฿59.6

7.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 PEN 10.61

$2.88 ฿96.8

6.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.66

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,845

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 PEN 11.84

$1.51 ฿50.9

127.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 PEN 7.14

$0.78 ฿26.08

165.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.64 PEN 26.37

$3.84 ฿129

98.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 PEN 5.65

$1.49 ฿50.0

10.07%

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

$21.7K PEN 75.0K

$26.9K ฿903.7K

-19.09%

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

$28.9K PEN 99.8K

$26.3K ฿885.7K

9.85%

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

$66.7 PEN 230

$97.8 ฿3,288

-31.86%

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

$15.80 PEN 54.5

$11.29 ฿380

39.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.06 PEN 93.4

$17.19 ฿578

57.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,297

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

Cinema Ticket

$7.14 PEN 24.63

$7.43 ฿250

-3.90%

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

$318 PEN 1,096

$530 ฿17.8K

-40.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.7K PEN 43.6K

$18.8K ฿631.4K

-32.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 PEN 184

$61.7 ฿2,073

-13.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.12 PEN 121

$28.25 ฿950

24.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.7 PEN 289

$96.0 ฿3,228

-12.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.1 PEN 273

$86.8 ฿2,919

-8.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.78

5.57

57.63%

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

Last update for La Merced: October 31, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

La Merced

$185 33.1%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 44.3% $82

Eating Out

La Merced

$123 22%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 2.5% $3

Clothing & Footwear

La Merced

$113 20.3%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 8.6% $9.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

La Merced

$110 19.6%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 15.3% $17

Sport & Entertainment

La Merced

$14 * 2.6%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 483% $69

Getting Around

La Merced

$14 * 2.5%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 380% $52

Accommodation & Living

La Merced

- * 0%

Phuket

$509 39.3%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35 in La Merced versus $32 in Phuket. Groceries tell a different story – $185 in La Merced vs $267 in Phuket – so La Merced wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇪 La Merced

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

17:55 5:55 PM

05:55 5:55 AM

12 h ahead of La Merced

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000

79,308

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.29 USD

1 PEN = 0.258 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3.45 PEN (1 PEN = 0.29 USD). 1 EUR = 3.88 PEN (1 PEN = 0.258 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

La Merced Phuket 19,530 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight

From you

La Merced
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

La Merced vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 132% more than La Merced, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $837 per month in La Merced and $1,940 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $558 in La Merced and $1,294 in Phuket. That makes La Merced about 57% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $318 per month in La Merced and $530 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in La Merced, where all-in costs run around $558, than in Phuket at $1,294. In La Merced it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $558 in La Merced to $1,294 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.