Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Durango

For one person, living is cheaper in Durango: $1,051 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Durango
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Durango Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Durango

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,051

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Durango

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

A single person spends $1,207 per month in Phuket vs $1,051 in Durango, rent included.

Phuket $1,207
Durango $1,051

A couple spends around $2,037 per month in Phuket vs $1,656 in Durango, rent included.

Phuket $2,037
Durango $1,656

A family of three spends $2,867 per month in Phuket vs $2,261 in Durango, rent included.

Phuket $2,867
Durango $2,261

Phuket costs about 15% more than Durango, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Phuket and Durango are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 11% lower, Durango 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$7.30 MX$135

-37.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$30.58 MX$565

6.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$10.48 MX$194

-18.42%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$1.95 MX$35.98

39.49%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$1.15 MX$21.31

-18.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.76 MX$14.07

-35.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$1.39 MX$25.60

86.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.77 MX$51.1

38.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.29 MX$23.92

34.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$2.54 MX$46.94

-43.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$1.24 MX$22.95

23.39%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$2.27 MX$41.92

-4.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$8.07 MX$149

137.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$8.15 MX$151

-59.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$9.40 MX$174

18.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$2.54 MX$46.94

16.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.53 MX$28.32

9.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$1.76 MX$32.46

30.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$1.14 MX$21.10

86.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$1.20 MX$22.13

27.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$1.28 MX$23.69

6.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$0.79 MX$14.54

41.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$1.11 MX$20.51

-50.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.63 MX$67.1

17.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$13.72 MX$253

32.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.74 MX$32.14

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$2.80 MX$51.7

-0.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$0.69 MX$12.74

221.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$1.13 MX$20.91

157.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$1.86 MX$34.45

-45.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$10.90 MX$201

-64.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.42 MX$26.26

4.93%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$19.4K MX$358.9K

37.38%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$24.0K MX$443.3K

11.35%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$59.1 MX$1,092

68.14%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$21.25 MX$393

-46.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$27.51 MX$508

-36.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$22.49 MX$416

132.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$9.52 MX$176

13.97%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$3.91 MX$72.2

93.61%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$177 MX$3,277

214.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$2,325 MX$43.0K

394.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$55.6 MX$1,027

13.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$40.30 MX$745

-29.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$101 MX$1,870

-5.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$90.8 MX$1,677

-2.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$601 MX$11.1K

21.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$393 MX$7,255

17.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$1,057 MX$19.5K

98.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$777 MX$14.4K

57.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$1,951 MX$36.0K

77.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$1,076 MX$19.9K

131.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$531 MX$9,814

-7.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

12.3

-54.72%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Durango: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Durango

$393 37.3% 14.6% $67

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Durango

$245 23.3% 8.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Durango

$108 10.3% 15.7% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Durango

$130 12.3% 4.4% $5.5

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Durango

$133 12.7% 9.9% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Durango

$30 2.9% 55.1% $37

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Durango

$13 * 1.3% 66% $26

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $729 in Phuket versus $601 in Durango. 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 8% higher in Durango, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket versus $31.00 in Durango. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $268 vs $245 – making Durango the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇽 Durango

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

01:26 1:26 AM

13 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

518,709

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Durango 15,670 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Durango

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 Durango: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,207 in Phuket, $1,051 in Durango – roughly 15% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,811 per month in Phuket and $1,577 in Durango. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durango, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket and $31.00 in Durango. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 9% more in Phuket, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Durango, where all-in costs run around $1,051, than in Phuket at $1,207. In Durango 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 $1,051 in Durango to $1,207 in Phuket. 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 Durango. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.