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

🙂 Solo nomad: Phuket is 1.6% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 39.5% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Phuket is 6.5% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 62.8% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.68 ฿151
$7.72 JMD 1,228
-39.38%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.4 ฿1,502
$63 JMD 10K
-26.34%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.65 ฿280
$8.96 JMD 1,427
-3.46%
Cappuccino
$3.09 ฿100
$4.46 JMD 710
-30.72%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 ฿23.53
$1.32 JMD 210
-44.70%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.37 ฿11.95
$0.75 JMD 119
-50.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.39 ฿77.4
$2.49 JMD 396
-4.02%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.62 ฿117
$3.06 JMD 487
18.30%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.24 ฿72.5
$4.23 JMD 674
-47.04%
White Bread (500g)
$1.8 ฿58.2
$3.58 JMD 570
-49.72%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.24 ฿72.3
$1.61 JMD 256
39.13%
Eggs
$2.23 ฿72.1
$3.48 JMD 554
-35.92%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.31 ฿625
$11.08 JMD 1,764
74.28%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.77 ฿122
$6.46 JMD 1,028
-41.64%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.05 ฿422
$7.85 JMD 1,250
66.24%
Apples (1kg)
$3.28 ฿106
$5.83 JMD 929
-43.74%
Banana (1kg)
$1.63 ฿52.6
$3.12 JMD 496
-47.76%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.4 ฿77.7
$4.11 JMD 654
-41.61%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.99 ฿64.3
$3 JMD 478
-33.67%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 ฿49.62
$2.04 JMD 325
-25.00%
Onion (1kg)
$1.49 ฿48.11
$1.92 JMD 305
-22.40%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.02 ฿32.87
$3 JMD 477
-66.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.48 ฿15.61
$1.49 JMD 238
-67.79%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.32 ฿140
$8.88 JMD 1,413
-51.35%
Wine (Bottle)
$21.68 ฿702
$11.29 JMD 1,798
92.03%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.77 ฿57.3
$2.75 JMD 437
-35.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.79 ฿90.4
$3.06 JMD 488
-8.82%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.35 ฿43.74
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.76 ฿380
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.15 ฿102
$1.11 JMD 177
183.78%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1 ฿32.3
$3.11 JMD 494
-67.85%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$13.64 ฿442
$6.33 JMD 1,007
115.48%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.3 ฿42.2
$1.23 JMD 195
5.69%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.4K ฿885.2K
$43.5K JMD 6.9M
-37.08%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.9K ฿1.1M
$34K JMD 5.4M
-0.39%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$123 ฿3,970
$164 JMD 26.1K
-25.06%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.93 ฿451
$22.27 JMD 3,546
-37.45%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.24 ฿590
$50.6 JMD 8,062
-63.98%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.8 ฿1,966
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.11 ฿554
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.07 ฿294
$13.35 JMD 2,126
-32.06%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$694 ฿22.5K
$230 JMD 36.6K
202.24%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.9K ฿514.4K
$2,493 JMD 396.8K
537.64%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.5 ฿1,861
$25.93 JMD 4,128
121.79%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.51 ฿1,117
$25.56 JMD 4,068
35.02%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$115 ฿3,727
$72.1 JMD 11.5K
59.66%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$84.8 ฿2,743
$77.2 JMD 12.3K
9.81%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Santa Cruz
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$611 ฿19.8K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$442 ฿14.3K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,014 ฿65.2K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,460 ฿47.2K
-
-
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
$396 JMD 63K
76.05%
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: October 29, 2025

Last update for Santa Cruz: October 27, 2025

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