Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas: $746 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$746

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

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 Lucía Milpas Altas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $746 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Phuket $1,294
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $746

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,243 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Phuket $2,204
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $1,243

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $1,740 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas.

Phuket $3,115
Santa Lucía Milpas Altas $1,740

Living in Phuket is roughly 73% more expensive than in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$6.96 Q 53.1

-36.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,090

$49.15 Q 375

-34.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿294

$7.74 Q 59.1

12.40%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.9

$3.27 Q 24.97

-16.82%

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

$0.93 ฿31.38

$1.15 Q 8.79

-19.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.85

$0.99 Q 7.60

-49.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.4

$3.33 Q 25.44

-24.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$4.73 Q 36.11

-23.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.7

$2.00 Q 15.24

-13.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$3.14 Q 23.99

-53.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$2.06 Q 15.70

-27.18%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$2.38 Q 18.17

-8.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿644

$6.25 Q 47.73

205.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿115

$9.29 Q 71.0

-63.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿368

$13.40 Q 102

-18.66%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿99.2

$3.83 Q 29.27

-23.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.66 Q 12.69

1.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.0

$2.87 Q 21.88

-23.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.6

$1.61 Q 12.28

31.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.19

$1.54 Q 11.76

-5.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿46.14

$2.19 Q 16.73

-37.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.29

$0.74 Q 5.68

45.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.40

$1.17 Q 8.90

-52.99%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$4.04 Q 30.85

9.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿616

$8.02 Q 61.3

127.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.8

$1.74 Q 13.32

1.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿97.2

$2.61 Q 19.95

10.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,851

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$5.31 Q 40.51

-71.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.17

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$10.43 Q 79.6

-63.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.2

$1.33 Q 10.15

12.03%

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

$26.9K ฿906.7K

$27.7K Q 211.9K

-3.13%

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

$26.3K ฿888.6K

$25.6K Q 195.5K

2.88%

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

$97.8 ฿3,299

$71.8 Q 548

36.19%

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

$11.29 ฿381

$28.67 Q 219

-60.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿580

$46.52 Q 355

-63.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,305

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿368

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿251

$6.66 Q 50.8

11.56%

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

$530 ฿17.9K

$337 Q 2,574

57.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿633.5K

$6,557 Q 50.1K

186.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,080

$48.91 Q 373

26.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿953

$46.72 Q 357

-39.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,238

$119 Q 910

-19.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,928

$115 Q 874

-24.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿141.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿111.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.62

-52.07%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Santa Lucía Milpas Altas: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

–

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $49 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $279 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇬🇹 Santa Lucía Milpas Altas

🕒 Local time

14:15 2:15 PM

01:15 1:15 AM

13 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

12,234

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GTQ, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.72 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.54 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

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Phuket Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 17,320 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

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Phuket
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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 Lucía Milpas Altas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santa Lucía Milpas Altas is about 42% cheaper overall, especially in leisure and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,940 in Phuket and $1,119 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 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.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $337 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $49 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $746 in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas versus $1,294 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Santa Lucía Milpas Altas but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Lucía Milpas Altas 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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Santa Lucía Milpas Altas are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.