Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Calama

For one person, living is cheaper in Calama: $595 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
29

Cost of Living Index in Calama
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Calama Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Calama

🇨🇱 Chile

$595

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Calama

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 Calama actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $595 in Calama.

Phuket $1,207
Calama $595

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $1,203 in Calama.

Phuket $2,037
Calama $1,203

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $1,812 in Calama.

Phuket $2,867
Calama $1,812

Living in Phuket is roughly 103% more expensive than in Calama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Calama 56% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$6.95 CLP 6,841

-34.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$31.49 CLP 31.0K

3.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$2.05 CLP 2,018

32.68%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$0.93 CLP 916

1.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.94 CLP 929

-47.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$3.12 CLP 3,074

-16.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$5.23 CLP 5,149

-26.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.10 CLP 1,087

58.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$0.84 CLP 825

70.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$2.62 CLP 2,575

-41.60%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$4.95 CLP 4,876

-56.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$9.36 CLP 9,217

104.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$6.22 CLP 6,119

-46.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$7.53 CLP 7,413

47.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$1.26 CLP 1,242

134.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.05 CLP 1,029

60.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$1.55 CLP 1,523

48.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$1.10 CLP 1,081

93.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$0.90 CLP 884

70.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$0.93 CLP 916

46.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$5.25 CLP 5,170

-18.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$4.19 CLP 4,128

334.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.01 CLP 990

72.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$1.25 CLP 1,235

123.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$0.95 CLP 931

133.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$1.43 CLP 1,412

-29.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.44 CLP 1,415

3.47%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$40.05 CLP 39.4K

148.11%

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

$11.28 ฿377

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$13.28 CLP 13.1K

30.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

1.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$20.74 CLP 20.4K

-47.69%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$4.69 CLP 4,617

61.41%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$306 CLP 301.6K

82.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$36.08 CLP 35.5K

74.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$28.38 CLP 27.9K

0.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$45.82 CLP 45.1K

109.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$61.8 CLP 60.9K

42.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$327 CLP 322.3K

122.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$102 CLP 100.6K

350.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$807 CLP 794.0K

159.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$608 CLP 599.0K

100.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$1,403 CLP 1.4M

146.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$1,229 CLP 1.2M

102.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$1,110 CLP 1.1M

-55.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.40%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Calama: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Calama

$102 17.2% 77.8% $358

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Calama

$176 * 29.6% 34.1% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Calama

$53 * 9% 58.3% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Calama

$77 13% 37.6% $47

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Calama

$114 * 19.1% 6.2% $7.5

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Calama

$61 10.3% 9.4% $6.3

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Calama

$11 * 1.8% 71.8% $28

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $327 in Calama. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Calama pays 125% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $31.00 in Calama for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $176 per month, with Calama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇱 Calama

🕒 Local time

09:04 9:04 AM

23:04 11:04 PM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

157,575

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Calama 17,900 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Calama

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 Calama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Calama wins on cost – living expenses run 103% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Calama the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 125% lower in Calama. 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: $729 in Phuket versus $327 in Calama. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 52% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,207 per month in Phuket versus $595 in Calama – a 103% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $595 in Calama versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Calama but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Calama the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Calama delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $595 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Calama hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Calama 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 Calama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 103% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.