Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monteria and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $1,358 in Monteria, rent and utilities included – about $770 less a year. The total is higher in Monteria despite lower rent and utilities.

65

Cost of Living Index in Monteria
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Monteria Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Monteria

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,358

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,358 in Monteria versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Monteria $1,358
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,064 in Monteria versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Monteria $2,064
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,770 in Monteria versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Monteria $2,770
Phuket $3,115

Living in Monteria is roughly 5% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.66 COP 18.3K

$4.39 ฿148

28.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.00 COP 151.7K

$32.31 ฿1,089

45.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.08 COP 32.5K

$8.70 ฿293

15.86%

Cappuccino

$2.66 COP 8,596

$2.72 ฿91.8

-2.21%

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

$2.56 COP 8,257

$0.93 ฿31.35

175.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 COP 7,533

$0.50 ฿16.83

366.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 COP 10.8K

$2.53 ฿85.3

32.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.11 COP 16.5K

$3.63 ฿122

40.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 COP 5,946

$1.74 ฿58.6

5.75%

White Bread (500g)

$2.90 COP 9,354

$1.45 ฿48.89

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 COP 4,780

$1.50 ฿50.6

-1.33%

Eggs

$4.85 COP 15.7K

$2.17 ฿73.2

123.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.11 COP 26.2K

$19.09 ฿643

-57.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.96 COP 32.2K

$3.40 ฿115

192.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.47 COP 40.3K

$10.90 ฿367

14.40%

Apples (1kg)

$3.78 COP 12.2K

$2.94 ฿99.1

28.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 COP 4,670

$1.69 ฿57.0

-14.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 COP 6,272

$2.19 ฿73.9

-11.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.02 COP 6,524

$2.12 ฿71.6

-4.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 COP 5,191

$1.46 ฿49.15

10.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 COP 4,758

$1.37 ฿46.10

7.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,635

$1.08 ฿36.26

4.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 COP 3,827

$0.55 ฿18.38

116.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.11 COP 13.3K

$4.43 ฿149

-7.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.43 COP 46.6K

$18.25 ฿615

-20.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 COP 4,490

$1.77 ฿59.7

-21.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,662

$2.88 ฿97.1

-17.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 COP 3,459

$1.45 ฿48.78

-26.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 COP 210.3K

$54.9 ฿1,850

18.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 COP 5,193

$1.51 ฿51.0

6.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.09 COP 6,734

$0.78 ฿26.14

167.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.19 COP 29.7K

$3.84 ฿129

139.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,140

$1.49 ฿50.1

-14.09%

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

$34.9K COP 112.6M

$26.9K ฿905.9K

29.80%

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

$34.9K COP 112.6M

$26.3K ฿887.8K

32.40%

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

$79.7 COP 257.2K

$97.8 ฿3,296

-18.53%

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

$13.46 COP 43.4K

$11.29 ฿381

19.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.98 COP 90.3K

$17.19 ฿579

62.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.09 COP 122.9K

$68.3 ฿2,303

-44.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿368

Cinema Ticket

$8.12 COP 26.2K

$7.43 ฿250

9.29%

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

$634 COP 2.0M

$530 ฿17.9K

19.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,860 COP 18.9M

$18.8K ฿632.9K

-68.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.8 COP 270.3K

$61.7 ฿2,078

35.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.0 COP 167.9K

$28.25 ฿952

84.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 441.7K

$96.0 ฿3,235

42.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.5 COP 321.0K

$86.8 ฿2,926

14.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$725 COP 2.3M

$721 ฿24.3K

0.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 COP 1.6M

$509 ฿17.1K

-5.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,394 COP 4.5M

$1,950 ฿65.7K

-28.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 COP 2.5M

$1,397 ฿47.1K

-44.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,193 COP 7.1M

$4,192 ฿141.3K

-47.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,787 COP 5.8M

$3,298 ฿111.2K

-45.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

169.30%

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

Last update for Monteria: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monteria

$482 35.6%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 5.5% $26

Groceries & Markets

Monteria

$297 21.9%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 10.1% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Monteria

$167 12.3%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 26.7% $45

Eating Out

Monteria

$154 11.3%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 22.4% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monteria

$121 8.9%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 4.3% $5.2

Getting Around

Monteria

$82 6%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 18.9% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Monteria

$54 4%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 53.1% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $725 in Monteria and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Monteria vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $267 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Monteria

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

13:55 1:55 PM

01:55 1:55 AM

12 h ahead of Monteria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

454,032

79,308

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,227 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,613 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.73 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Monteria Phuket 18,060 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Monteria
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

Monteria vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Monteria. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,037 in Monteria and $1,940 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: $725 in Monteria versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $634 in Monteria versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Monteria. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Phuket gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.