Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and San Fernando, Philippines

Name: San Fernando
Address: San Fernando, PH

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando: $807 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando
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San Fernando Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

San Fernando

🇵🇭 Philippines

$807

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in San Fernando

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $807 in San Fernando.

Phuket $1,294
San Fernando $807

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,271 in San Fernando.

Phuket $2,204
San Fernando $1,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $1,735 in San Fernando.

Phuket $3,115
San Fernando $1,735

Living in Phuket is roughly 60% more expensive than in San Fernando, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, San Fernando 40% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$3.07 ₱195

43.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,086

$23.84 ₱1,516

35.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿293

$2.82 ₱179

208.51%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.6

$1.71 ₱109

59.06%

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

$0.93 ฿31.28

$0.64 ₱40.43

45.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.79

$0.38 ₱24.23

31.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.1

$1.09 ₱69.3

132.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$1.95 ₱124

86.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.5

$1.76 ₱112

-1.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.77

$0.87 ₱55.0

66.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.96 ₱61.1

56.25%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$1.90 ₱121

14.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿642

$4.60 ₱293

315.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$3.31 ₱210

2.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$7.04 ₱448

54.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.9

$2.58 ₱164

13.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$2.06 ₱131

-17.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.8

$2.75 ₱175

-20.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$0.92 ₱58.2

130.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.03

$1.38 ₱88.0

5.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.99

$1.32 ₱83.8

3.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.17

$0.65 ₱41.09

66.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.34

$0.35 ₱22.37

57.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$2.71 ₱172

63.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿614

$6.96 ₱442

162.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.6

$0.75 ₱47.73

136.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$2.95 ₱187

-2.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.66

$0.25 ₱15.80

480.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,845

$13.59 ₱864

303.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$1.00 ₱63.7

51.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.08

$0.20 ₱12.70

290.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$1.94 ₱123

97.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.0

$1.27 ₱80.7

17.32%

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

$26.9K ฿903.7K

$21.0K ₱1.3M

27.89%

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

$26.3K ฿885.7K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

38.24%

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

$97.8 ฿3,288

$96.3 ₱6,121

1.60%

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

$11.29 ฿380

$17.18 ₱1,092

-34.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿578

$30.29 ₱1,926

-43.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,297

$31.66 ₱2,013

115.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

$15.57 ₱990

-29.87%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$4.66 ₱296

59.44%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$267 ₱17.0K

98.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿631.4K

$13.5K ₱855.9K

39.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,073

$49.06 ₱3,119

25.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿950

$37.73 ₱2,399

-25.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,228

$71.4 ₱4,542

34.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,919

$78.4 ₱4,982

10.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

$402 ₱25.6K

79.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

$266 ₱16.9K

91.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.6K

$724 ₱46.0K

169.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.0K

$560 ₱35.6K

149.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.9K

$4,249 ₱270.2K

-1.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.9K

$2,385 ₱151.6K

38.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-20.43%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for San Fernando: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

San Fernando

$266 32.9% 47.8% $243

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

San Fernando

$167 20.7% 37.4% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

San Fernando

$144 17.8% 13.8% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

San Fernando

$106 13.2% 13.3% $16

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

San Fernando

$67 8.3% 43.9% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

San Fernando

$41 5.1% 50.7% $42

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

San Fernando

$17 2.1% 74.9% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Phuket and $402 in San Fernando. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $24 in San Fernando for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $167 per month, with San Fernando cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇵🇭 San Fernando

🕒 Local time

07:09 7:09 AM

08:09 8:09 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

354,666

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 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 November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 63.58 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.57 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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

From you

Phuket
San Fernando

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 San Fernando: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Fernando is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,940 in Phuket and $1,211 in San Fernando to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $721 in Phuket versus $402 in San Fernando. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $267 in San Fernando. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 60% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $807 in San Fernando versus $1,294 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in San Fernando but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes San Fernando the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find San Fernando gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.