Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Phuket and in Playa del Carmen: $1,208 and $1,204 a month, rent and utilities included.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Playa del Carmen

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 Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Phuket $1,208
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Phuket $2,027
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Phuket $2,845
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Monthly costs are close between Phuket and Playa del Carmen; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$10.86 MX$201

-59.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$44.21 MX$817

-27.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$11.76 MX$217

-25.51%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$3.68 MX$68.0

-23.10%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$1.34 MX$24.79

-32.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$0.82 MX$15.24

-42.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$3.06 MX$56.6

-16.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$4.94 MX$91.2

-22.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.47 MX$27.17

17.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$2.22 MX$40.95

-33.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$1.48 MX$27.32

2.03%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$2.49 MX$45.99

-12.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$7.52 MX$139

161.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$7.96 MX$147

-58.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$12.57 MX$232

-11.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$2.78 MX$51.3

2.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.43 MX$26.37

18.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$2.62 MX$48.37

-16.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$2.14 MX$39.49

-4.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$2.02 MX$37.38

-28.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$1.99 MX$36.74

-30.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$1.14 MX$21.01

-6.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$1.20 MX$22.18

-57.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$4.26 MX$78.7

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$10.02 MX$185

85.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.54 MX$28.41

15.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$2.66 MX$49.17

7.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$0.53 MX$9.73

326.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$27.51 MX$508

-19.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$4.90 MX$90.6

-38.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$3.43 MX$63.5

-69.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$5.38 MX$99.4

-28.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$1.45 MX$26.76

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

24.44%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

17.05%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$85.4 MX$1,577

12.91%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$23.46 MX$434

-52.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$28.43 MX$525

-39.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$62.2 MX$1,149

-16.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

$28.68 MX$530

-61.09%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$5.10 MX$94.3

53.14%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$201 MX$3,715

176.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

193.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$44.39 MX$820

44.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$41.35 MX$764

-30.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$72.7 MX$1,344

31.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$89.6 MX$1,656

-1.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$979 MX$18.1K

-24.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$373 MX$6,887

24.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$1,681 MX$31.1K

24.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$1,095 MX$20.2K

9.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-11.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-58.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$738 MX$13.6K

-32.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.45

-51.35%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 19.4% $90

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 3.8% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 10.2% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 10.2% $13

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 65.1% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 6.8% $4.6

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 31.1% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 47% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $258, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:47 8:47 PM

08:47 8:47 AM

12 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

149,923

💱 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 21, 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 21, 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 Playa del Carmen 16,790 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Playa del Carmen

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 Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

On paper, salaries run 47% lower in Playa del Carmen. 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: $737 in Phuket versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $201 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Phuket, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Playa del Carmen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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