Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santa Cruz de Tenerife

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,048 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 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
99

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
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Santa Cruz de Tenerife Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Santa Cruz de Tenerife

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 Santa Cruz de Tenerife actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,048 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Phuket $1,278
Santa Cruz de Tenerife $2,048

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,946 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Phuket $2,216
Santa Cruz de Tenerife $2,946

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $3,845 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Phuket $3,154
Santa Cruz de Tenerife $3,845

Living in Phuket costs roughly 38% less than in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Santa Cruz de Tenerife is 50% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$20.33 €18.20

-78.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$60.8 €54.4

-46.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$11.00 €9.85

-19.91%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$1.99 €1.79

42.21%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$1.87 €1.67

-53.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$1.24 €1.11

-60.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.81 €2.52

-8.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.28 €2.94

12.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.38 €1.24

20.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$2.46 €2.20

-40.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.59 €1.42

-5.66%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$4.13 €3.70

-49.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$19.32 €17.30

-1.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$10.01 €8.97

-67.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$17.56 €15.73

-37.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.79 €2.50

5.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$2.32 €2.08

-27.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.17 €1.95

3.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$2.57 €2.31

-19.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.12 €1.90

-28.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$1.94 €1.73

-28.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$1.68 €1.51

-36.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.99 €0.88

-47.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$5.60 €5.02

-25.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$7.92 €7.09

137.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.61 €1.44

13.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.75 €1.57

62.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.37 €1.22

5.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$44.15 €39.54

28.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$4.20 €3.76

-28.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$1.65 €1.48

-38.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$17.09 €15.31

-78.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.63 €1.46

-9.82%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$35.7K €32.0K

-25.01%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$31.0K €27.8K

-13.95%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$126 €113

-23.54%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$22.43 €20.09

-49.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$35.25 €31.57

-52.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$51.5 €46.08

30.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$11.64 €10.42

-7.82%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$9.74 €8.72

-23.00%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$408 €365

16.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$4,972 €4,452

126.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$91.3 €81.7

-31.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$41.34 €37.03

-31.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$89.5 €80.1

5.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$114 €102

-24.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,166 €1,044

-38.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,000 €896

-50.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$1,833 €1,641

5.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,422 €1,274

0.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$3,984 €3,568

4.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$2,266 €2,029

34.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,852 €1,659

-72.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.56

56.46%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz de Tenerife: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$1,000 48.8% 104% $509

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$328 16% 23% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$184 9% 47.6% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$151 7.4% 24% $29

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$253 12.3% 108% $131

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$71 3.5% 13.7% $11

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$62 3% 12.1% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,166 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $61 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $328 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇪🇸 Santa Cruz de Tenerife

🕒 Local time

04:53 4:53 AM

21:53 9:53 PM

7 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

209,395

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Santa Cruz de Tenerife 11,930 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Santa Cruz de Tenerife

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 Santa Cruz de Tenerife: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

On paper, salaries run 73% 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 $1,166 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $408 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,048 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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.

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