Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Quilmes

For one person, living is cheaper in Quilmes: $957 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Quilmes
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Quilmes Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Quilmes

🇦🇷 Argentina

$957

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Quilmes

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $957 in Quilmes.

Phuket $1,278
Quilmes $957

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,615 in Quilmes.

Phuket $2,216
Quilmes $1,615

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,273 in Quilmes.

Phuket $3,154
Quilmes $2,273

Living in Phuket is roughly 33% more expensive than in Quilmes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Quilmes 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.55 ARS 8,543

-19.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$35.20 ARS 54.1K

-7.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.82 ARS 13.6K

-0.11%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.93 ARS 4,501

-3.41%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$1.71 ARS 2,634

-49.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.63 ARS 2,500

-69.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$3.90 ARS 5,993

-34.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.29 ARS 3,519

60.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$0.97 ARS 1,495

71.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.58 ARS 2,426

-7.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.58 ARS 2,425

-5.06%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.28 ARS 3,508

-8.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$13.31 ARS 20.5K

43.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.11 ARS 9,398

-45.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$9.80 ARS 15.1K

11.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$1.96 ARS 3,016

49.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.53 ARS 2,350

10.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.01 ARS 1,557

122.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$2.95 ARS 4,538

-29.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.92 ARS 1,412

64.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$0.64 ARS 990

115.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.72 ARS 1,111

48.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.69 ARS 1,060

-24.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$4.99 ARS 7,671

-15.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$4.29 ARS 6,603

338.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.23 ARS 1,896

47.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.89 ARS 2,904

50.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$1.02 ARS 1,574

42.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.49 ARS 2,285

102.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.02 ARS 1,576

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.14 ARS 1,756

28.95%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$50.3K ARS 77.4M

-46.81%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$38.0K ARS 58.4M

-29.67%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$60.2 ARS 92.6K

60.08%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$14.48 ARS 22.3K

-22.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$21.58 ARS 33.2K

-21.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$26.79 ARS 41.2K

150.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$18.31 ARS 28.2K

-41.40%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$10.13 ARS 15.6K

-25.96%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$240 ARS 369.2K

98.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$4,307 ARS 6.6M

161.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$95.2 ARS 146.4K

-34.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$34.45 ARS 53.0K

-17.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$62.9 ARS 96.8K

49.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$70.1 ARS 107.8K

22.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$518 ARS 796.8K

38.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$330 ARS 507.0K

48.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$1,058 ARS 1.6M

82.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$817 ARS 1.3M

75.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$2,378 ARS 3.7M

75.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$1,264 ARS 1.9M

140.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$1,102 ARS 1.7M

-54.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

100

-94.43%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Quilmes: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Quilmes

$330 34.4% 32.9% $161

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Quilmes

$212 22.2% 20.3% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Quilmes

$96 10.1% 22.7% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Quilmes

$118 12.3% 3.1% $3.7

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Quilmes

$143 15% 17.8% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Quilmes

$47 4.9% 42.8% $35

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Quilmes

$11 * 1.1% 84.8% $60

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 $716 in Phuket and $518 in Quilmes. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Quilmes pays about 2.2 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $35 in Quilmes. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $212, with Quilmes cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇷 Quilmes

🕒 Local time

04:14 4:14 AM

18:14 6:14 PM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

230,810

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, 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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,538 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,712 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Quilmes 16,200 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Quilmes

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 Quilmes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Quilmes is about 25% cheaper overall, especially in transport, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 54% 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 $518 in Quilmes. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $240 in Quilmes. 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 $35 in Quilmes. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Quilmes is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Quilmes are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.