Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mazatlan and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,190 a month against $1,436 in Mazatlan, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

70

Cost of Living Index in Mazatlan
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Mazatlan Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Mazatlan

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,436

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,436 per month in Mazatlan vs $1,190 in Phuket, rent included.

Mazatlan $1,436
Phuket $1,190

A couple spends around $2,041 per month in Mazatlan vs $2,006 in Phuket, rent included.

Mazatlan $2,041
Phuket $2,006

A family of three spends $2,645 per month in Mazatlan vs $2,822 in Phuket, rent included.

Mazatlan $2,645
Phuket $2,822

Mazatlan costs about 21% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Mazatlan sits 7% above the global median, while Phuket is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.96 MX$201

$4.35 ฿146

151.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.29 MX$850

$32.45 ฿1,087

42.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.37 MX$154

$8.42 ฿282

-0.59%

Cappuccino

$3.40 MX$62.4

$2.81 ฿94.0

21.00%

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

$1.45 MX$26.53

$0.87 ฿29.29

66.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 MX$20.12

$0.46 ฿15.39

139.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.13 MX$39.04

$2.59 ฿86.6

-17.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 MX$52.0

$3.64 ฿122

-22.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 MX$30.14

$1.71 ฿57.2

-4.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.59 MX$47.48

$1.45 ฿48.42

78.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 MX$24.44

$1.56 ฿52.3

-14.74%

Eggs

$2.74 MX$50.4

$2.10 ฿70.3

30.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.06 MX$148

$19.53 ฿654

-58.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.94 MX$127

$3.40 ฿114

104.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.67 MX$141

$11.14 ฿373

-31.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 MX$49.89

$2.83 ฿94.8

-3.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 MX$31.17

$1.62 ฿54.3

4.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 MX$29.79

$2.22 ฿74.5

-27.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.52 MX$9.52

$2.15 ฿71.9

-75.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 MX$29.99

$1.49 ฿49.95

9.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.12

$1.33 ฿44.40

3.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.60 MX$29.44

$1.07 ฿35.72

49.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.01

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 MX$77.1

$4.38 ฿147

-4.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.98 MX$293

$18.77 ฿629

-14.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.03 MX$37.24

$1.74 ฿58.3

16.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 MX$56.8

$2.78 ฿92.9

11.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.72

$2.17 ฿72.6

-68.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.84 MX$768

$22.28 ฿746

87.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 MX$68.0

$3.02 ฿101

22.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.45 MX$45.00

$1.06 ฿35.43

131.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.17

$1.43 ฿47.88

6.99%

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

$21.4K MX$393.0K

$26.3K ฿882.1K

-18.76%

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

$24.8K MX$455.0K

$26.2K ฿877.3K

-5.42%

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

$59.0 MX$1,084

$96.7 ฿3,236

-38.92%

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

$46.93 MX$862

$11.41 ฿382

311.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.53 MX$799

$17.11 ฿573

154.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.05 MX$827

$52.8 ฿1,768

-14.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

Cinema Ticket

$4.39 MX$80.7

$7.65 ฿256

-42.61%

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

$88.4 MX$1,624

$555 ฿18.6K

-84.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,007 MX$36.9K

$11.3K ฿377.7K

-82.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.9 MX$1,173

$63.4 ฿2,123

0.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.58 MX$506

$28.61 ฿958

-3.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 MX$2,055

$96.7 ฿3,238

15.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.1 MX$1,545

$88.6 ฿2,967

-5.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 MX$14.5K

$735 ฿24.6K

7.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 MX$11.4K

$458 ฿15.3K

35.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,241 MX$22.8K

$2,102 ฿70.4K

-40.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$840 MX$15.4K

$1,187 ฿39.7K

-29.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,579 MX$29.0K

$3,493 ฿116.9K

-54.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,051 MX$19.3K

$2,491 ฿83.4K

-57.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$533 MX$9,785

$501 ฿16.8K

6.39%

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 Mazatlan: October 5, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mazatlan

$619 43.4%

Phuket

$458 38.1% 26% $161

Groceries & Markets

Mazatlan

$236 * 16.5%

Phuket

$268 22.3% 13.7% $32

Eating Out

Mazatlan

$180 12.6%

Phuket

$119 9.9% 33.7% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mazatlan

$150 10.5%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 16.3% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Mazatlan

$129 9.1%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 3.5% $4.6

Getting Around

Mazatlan

$61 4.2%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 35.2% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Mazatlan

$54 3.8%

Phuket

$68 5.7% 26.5% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $788 in Mazatlan versus $735 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 6% higher in Mazatlan, 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 $46.00 in Mazatlan versus $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries tell a different story – $236 in Mazatlan vs $268 in Phuket – so Mazatlan wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mazatlan

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

03:06 3:06 AM

17:06 5:06 PM

14 h ahead of Mazatlan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

441,975

79,308

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.67 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mazatlan Phuket 15,630 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Mazatlan
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

Mazatlan vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,436 in Mazatlan, $1,190 in Phuket – roughly 21% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,155 per month in Mazatlan and $1,785 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 88% less in Phuket. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $88.4 per month in Mazatlan and $555 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 $1,190, than in Mazatlan at $1,436. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mazatlan 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 $1,190 in Phuket to $1,436 in Mazatlan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Mazatlan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.