Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santa Cruz Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santa Cruz

🙂 Solo nomad: Phuket is 42.1% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 34.7% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Phuket is 21.3% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 14.9% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.68 ฿151
-
-
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.4 ฿1,502
-
-
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.65 ฿280
-
-
Cappuccino
$3.09 ฿100
-
-
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 ฿23.53
-
-
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.37 ฿11.95
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.39 ฿77.4
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.62 ฿117
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.24 ฿72.5
$2.15 AWG 3.86
4.19%
White Bread (500g)
$1.8 ฿58.2
$2.74 AWG 4.91
-34.31%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.24 ฿72.3
$4.34 AWG 7.76
-48.39%
Eggs
$2.23 ฿72.1
$4.72 AWG 8.44
-52.75%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.31 ฿625
$7.98 AWG 14.28
141.98%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.77 ฿122
$7.29 AWG 13.06
-48.29%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.05 ฿422
$6.52 AWG 11.67
100.15%
Apples (1kg)
$3.28 ฿106
$4.36 AWG 7.8
-24.77%
Banana (1kg)
$1.63 ฿52.6
$4.32 AWG 7.73
-62.27%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.4 ฿77.7
$8.53 AWG 15.27
-71.86%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.99 ฿64.3
$6.66 AWG 11.92
-70.12%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 ฿49.62
$6.92 AWG 12.38
-77.89%
Onion (1kg)
$1.49 ฿48.11
$1.9 AWG 3.4
-21.58%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.02 ฿32.87
$3.13 AWG 5.6
-67.41%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.48 ฿15.61
$4.55 AWG 8.14
-89.45%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.32 ฿140
$10.44 AWG 18.69
-58.62%
Wine (Bottle)
$21.68 ฿702
$19.58 AWG 35.05
10.73%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.77 ฿57.3
$2.45 AWG 4.38
-27.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.79 ฿90.4
$3.11 AWG 5.57
-10.29%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.35 ฿43.74
$1.98 AWG 3.54
-31.82%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.76 ฿380
$153 AWG 273
-92.30%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.15 ฿102
$19.73 AWG 35.32
-84.03%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1 ฿32.3
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$13.64 ฿442
$19.7 AWG 35.26
-30.76%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.3 ฿42.2
-
-
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.4K ฿885.2K
-
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.9K ฿1.1M
-
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$123 ฿3,970
$136 AWG 243
-9.76%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.93 ฿451
$72.2 AWG 129
-80.70%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.24 ฿590
$200 AWG 358
-90.89%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.8 ฿1,966
$69.7 AWG 125
-12.85%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.11 ฿554
$47.1 AWG 84.3
-63.67%
Cinema Ticket
$9.07 ฿294
$8.39 AWG 15.02
8.10%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$694 ฿22.5K
$139 AWG 249
399.22%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.9K ฿514.4K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.5 ฿1,861
$79.2 AWG 142
-27.38%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.51 ฿1,117
$112 AWG 201
-69.20%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$115 ฿3,727
$141 AWG 253
-18.38%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$84.8 ฿2,743
$137 AWG 244
-37.91%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$611 ฿19.8K
$1,289 AWG 2,308
-52.61%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$442 ฿14.3K
$556 AWG 995
-20.41%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,014 ฿65.2K
$1,569 AWG 2,810
28.36%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,460 ฿47.2K
$1,411 AWG 2,527
3.42%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,244 ฿137.3K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,886 ฿93.4K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$697 ฿22.5K
$3,669 AWG 6,569
-81.01%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.33
0
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Citycost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Phuket: October 29, 2025

Last update for Santa Cruz: October 29, 2025

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