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

🙂 Solo nomad: Phuket is 18.5% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 40.1% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Phuket is 0.5% more expensive than Santa Cruz without rent, and 66.5% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.65 ฿147

$7.66 JMD 1,198

-39.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.11 ฿1,460

$62.9 JMD 9,834

-26.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.74 ฿277

$8.65 JMD 1,354

1.04%

Cappuccino

$3.04 ฿96.2

$4.33 JMD 677

-29.79%

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

$0.72 ฿22.80

$1.37 JMD 215

-47.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 ฿12.38

$0.70 JMD 109

-44.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 ฿77.2

$2.55 JMD 400

-4.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.79 ฿120

$3.17 JMD 496

19.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.14 ฿67.9

$4.41 JMD 689

-51.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 ฿58.9

$3.59 JMD 561

-48.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ฿69.2

$1.57 JMD 245

39.49%

Eggs

$2.25 ฿71.1

$3.53 JMD 552

-36.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.73 ฿625

$10.97 JMD 1,716

79.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.79 ฿120

$6.45 JMD 1,009

-41.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.55 ฿429

$7.85 JMD 1,228

72.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.25 ฿103

$6.11 JMD 956

-46.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 ฿52.9

$3.09 JMD 483

-45.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.39 ฿75.7

$4.25 JMD 665

-43.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 ฿66.2

$2.96 JMD 464

-29.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿48.39

$2.09 JMD 327

-26.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 ฿47.79

$2.01 JMD 315

-24.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 ฿31.30

$2.97 JMD 464

-66.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.30

$1.44 JMD 225

-64.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 ฿135

$8.54 JMD 1,336

-50.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.31 ฿643

$11.28 JMD 1,765

80.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 ฿56.7

$2.81 JMD 439

-36.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ฿87.6

$3.19 JMD 499

-13.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 ฿44.44

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.70 ฿370

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 ฿98.4

$1.07 JMD 167

190.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 ฿31.48

$3.24 JMD 507

-69.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.73 ฿435

$6.39 JMD 1,000

114.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ฿41.75

$1.28 JMD 201

3.13%

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

$27.2K ฿862.0K

$43.4K JMD 6.8M

-37.30%

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

$34.1K ฿1.1M

$32.9K JMD 5.2M

3.58%

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

$120 ฿3,811

$160 JMD 25.1K

-24.88%

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

$13.93 ฿441

$21.79 JMD 3,408

-36.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.31 ฿579

$50.4 JMD 7,889

-63.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.9 ฿1,928

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.23 ฿545

Cinema Ticket

$8.71 ฿276

$13.25 JMD 2,072

-34.26%

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

$698 ฿22.1K

$227 JMD 35.5K

207.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K ฿498.0K

$2,440 JMD 381.7K

544.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 ฿1,824

$26.36 JMD 4,122

118.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.24 ฿1,084

$25.86 JMD 4,045

32.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 ฿3,582

$71.3 JMD 11.1K

58.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.8 ฿2,684

$75.4 JMD 11.8K

12.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$604 ฿19.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$436 ฿13.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,057 ฿65.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,498 ฿47.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,252 ฿134.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,988 ฿94.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$529 ฿16.7K

$401 JMD 62.7K

32.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.33

9.15

-41.75%

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

Last update for Phuket: February 28, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

Kuta, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Cemagi, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Ankara

🇹🇷 Turkey

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China