Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santo Domingo, Ecuador

Name: Santo Domingo
Address: Santo Domingo, EC

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $723 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
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Santo Domingo Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Santo Domingo

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$723

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Santo Domingo

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 Santo Domingo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $723 in Santo Domingo.

Phuket $1,278
Santo Domingo $723

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,190 in Santo Domingo.

Phuket $2,216
Santo Domingo $1,190

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,657 in Santo Domingo.

Phuket $3,154
Santo Domingo $1,657

Living in Phuket is roughly 77% more expensive than in Santo Domingo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Santo Domingo 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.96 $3.96

12.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$51.5 $51.5

-37.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$9.15 $9.15

-3.72%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$1.98 $1.98

42.93%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$0.88 $0.88

-1.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$0.73 $0.73

-32.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$1.98 $1.98

29.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.17 $4.17

-11.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.02 $1.02

62.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$1.93 $1.93

-24.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$1.31 $1.31

14.50%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$2.01 $2.01

3.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$4.34 $4.34

339.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$2.99 $2.99

10.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$3.54 $3.54

208.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$1.51 $1.51

94.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$0.98 $0.98

72.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.01 $1.01

122.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$0.92 $0.92

126.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$0.98 $0.98

54.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$0.92 $0.92

50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$0.82 $0.82

30.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$0.99 $0.99

-47.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$5.87 $5.87

-28.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$5.04 $5.04

272.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$1.50 $1.50

21.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$2.13 $2.13

33.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.33 $0.33

339.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.82 $2.82

7.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$1.80 $1.80

-43.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$12.11 $12.11

-69.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$0.90 $0.90

63.33%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$23.1K $23.1K

16.02%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$30.5K $30.5K

-12.51%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$34.76 $34.76

177.19%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$9.83 $9.83

14.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$23.21 $23.21

-27.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$32.57 $32.57

106.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

$17.80 $17.80

-39.72%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.55 $7.55

-0.66%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$379 $379

25.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$5,642 $5,642

99.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$19.97 $19.97

212.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$29.92 $29.92

-5.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$50.4 $50.4

87.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$49.26 $49.26

74.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$422 $422

69.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$274 $274

78.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$832 $832

131.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

$499 $499

186.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

$10.2K $10.2K

-70.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$401 $401

25.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.05

-44.58%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Santo Domingo: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Santo Domingo

$274 37.9% 44.1% $216

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Santo Domingo

$145 20.1% 45.4% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Santo Domingo

$68 9.4% 45.5% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santo Domingo

$67 9.3% 44.8% $55

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santo Domingo

$108 14.9% 11.6% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Santo Domingo

$48 6.6% 42% $35

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Santo Domingo

$13 * 1.8% 81.4% $57

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $422 in Santo Domingo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 25% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $51 in Santo Domingo. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $145, with Santo Domingo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇪🇨 Santo Domingo

🕒 Local time

12:13 12:13 PM

00:13 12:13 AM

12 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

270,875

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Santo Domingo 19,120 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Santo Domingo

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 Santo Domingo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santo Domingo is about 43% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 25% higher in Phuket, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $422 in Santo Domingo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $379 in Santo Domingo. 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 $51 in Santo Domingo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $723 in Santo Domingo versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Santo Domingo but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Santo Domingo 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 – Santo Domingo wins on affordability, Phuket on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.