Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Dagupan

For one person, living is cheaper in Dagupan: $730 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Dagupan
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Dagupan Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Dagupan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$730

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Dagupan

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $730 in Dagupan, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Dagupan $730

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $1,083 in Dagupan, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Dagupan $1,083

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $1,435 in Dagupan, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Dagupan $1,435

Phuket costs about 75% more than Dagupan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Dagupan are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Dagupan 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$2.76 ₱176

61.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$11.82 ₱755

174.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.25 ₱271

107.29%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.39 ₱153

18.41%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$0.49 ₱31.45

77.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.22 ₱14.01

122.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.20 ₱76.6

113.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.67 ₱171

37.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.71 ₱109

-2.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.27 ₱80.9

14.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.93 ₱59.2

61.29%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.92 ₱122

8.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$5.68 ₱363

235.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$4.73 ₱302

-30.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$6.66 ₱426

63.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.91 ₱250

-25.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.91 ₱122

-11.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.76 ₱176

-18.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.12 ₱71.7

85.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.78 ₱178

-45.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$3.38 ₱216

-59.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.04 ₱66.7

2.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.53 ₱33.79

-1.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.30 ₱147

82.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$5.36 ₱342

250.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$0.82 ₱52.5

121.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.86 ₱119

52.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.20 ₱12.66

625.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.60 ₱38.49

403.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$0.23 ₱14.71

343.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$1.90 ₱122

94.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.10 ₱70.3

33.64%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$20.9K ₱1.3M

27.87%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$18.7K ₱1.2M

42.52%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$103 ₱6,570

-6.29%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$15.47 ₱988

-27.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$25.08 ₱1,602

-32.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$32.41 ₱2,071

107.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$5.03 ₱321

49.11%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$767 ₱49.0K

-37.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$7,158 ₱457.3K

57.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$59.9 ₱3,828

4.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$7.65 ₱489

271.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$78.4 ₱5,010

20.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$102 ₱6,541

-16.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$189 ₱12.1K

278.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$159 ₱10.2K

208.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$351 ₱22.4K

449.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$262 ₱16.8K

445.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$463 ₱29.6K

557.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$231 ₱14.8K

117.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.5

-25.73%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Dagupan: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Dagupan

$159 21.8% 67.6% $332

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Dagupan

$194 26.5% 27.3% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Dagupan

$143 19.6% 15.2% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Dagupan

$112 15.3% 8.3% $10

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Dagupan

$78 10.6% 36.2% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Dagupan

$42 5.8% 48.4% $40

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Dagupan

$2.6 * 0.4% 96.4% $68

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $189 in Dagupan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Phuket are about 2.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $12 in Dagupan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $194 – making Dagupan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇵🇭 Dagupan

🕒 Local time

04:34 4:34 AM

05:34 5:34 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

174,302

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Dagupan 2,550 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Dagupan

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 Dagupan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Phuket is pricier by about 75%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $1,096 in Dagupan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Dagupan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $189 there versus $716 in Phuket.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket and $12 in Dagupan. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 37% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Dagupan, where all-in costs run around $730, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Dagupan 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 $730 in Dagupan to $1,278 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Dagupan. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.