Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Arrecife

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,549 in Arrecife, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Arrecife
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Arrecife Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Arrecife

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Arrecife

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Phuket and in Arrecife actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,549 in Arrecife.

Phuket $1,278
Arrecife $1,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,279 in Arrecife.

Phuket $2,216
Arrecife $2,279

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $3,009 in Arrecife.

Phuket $3,154
Arrecife $3,009

Living in Phuket costs roughly 17% less than in Arrecife, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Arrecife is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$11.07 €9.91

-59.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$45.64 €40.87

-28.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$9.23 €8.27

-4.55%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.51 €2.24

12.75%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$2.18 €1.95

-60.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$1.67 €1.50

-70.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$3.15 €2.82

-18.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.58 €3.20

2.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.10 €0.99

50.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.50 €1.34

-2.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.29 €1.15

16.28%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.57 €3.20

-41.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$12.28 €11.00

55.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$7.07 €6.34

-53.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$13.84 €12.40

-21.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.63 €2.35

11.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$2.52 €2.26

-32.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.28 €2.04

-1.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$2.58 €2.31

-19.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.83 €1.64

-17.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$2.41 €2.16

-42.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$1.79 €1.60

-40.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.83 €0.74

-37.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$4.39 €3.93

-4.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$6.68 €5.99

181.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.61 €1.45

13.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$2.70 €2.42

5.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.87 €1.68

-22.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$32.75 €29.33

73.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.40 €3.04

-11.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$2.31 €2.07

-55.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$22.58 €20.22

-83.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.59 €1.42

-7.55%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$30.3K €27.2K

-11.74%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$32.2K €28.8K

-17.05%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$114 €102

-15.51%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$19.30 €17.28

-41.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$28.47 €25.50

-40.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$44.63 €39.97

50.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$15.64 €14.01

-31.39%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$8.07 €7.22

-7.06%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$467 €418

1.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$6,521 €5,840

72.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$86.6 €77.6

-28.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$34.05 €30.50

-16.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$89.7 €80.3

5.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$124 €111

-30.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$846 €758

-15.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$673 €602

-27.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$1,407 €1,260

36.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,023 €916

39.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$3,328 €2,981

25.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$2,237 €2,003

36.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,683 €1,508

-70.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.15

76.83%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Arrecife: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Arrecife

$673 43.4% 37% $182

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Arrecife

$264 17% 1% $2.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Arrecife

$162 10.5% 30% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Arrecife

$150 9.7% 23.4% $28

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Arrecife

$185 11.9% 51.7% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Arrecife

$61 3.9% 26.1% $21

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Arrecife

$55 3.6% 21.8% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $846 in Arrecife. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arrecife pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $46 in Arrecife. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $264, with Arrecife cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇪🇸 Arrecife

🕒 Local time

07:11 7:11 AM

00:11 12:11 AM

7 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

64,826

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Arrecife 11,670 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Arrecife

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

Phuket vs Arrecife: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $1,549 in Arrecife, so Phuket is about 17% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 70% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $846 in Arrecife. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $467 in Arrecife. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $46 in Arrecife. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,549 in Arrecife, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Arrecife. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Arrecife on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.