Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Santo Domingo Este

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo Este: $637 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo Este
Learn more

Santo Domingo Este Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Santo Domingo Este

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$637

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $637 in Santo Domingo Este.

Phuket $1,278
Santo Domingo Este $637

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,035 in Santo Domingo Este.

Phuket $2,216
Santo Domingo Este $1,035

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,434 in Santo Domingo Este.

Phuket $3,154
Santo Domingo Este $1,434

Living in Phuket is roughly 101% more expensive than in Santo Domingo Este, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Santo Domingo Este 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.04 DOP 309

-11.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$41.28 DOP 2,528

-21.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$6.50 DOP 398

35.54%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$1.01 DOP 61.6

180.20%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$1.01 DOP 61.9

-13.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.55 DOP 33.61

-10.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$2.46 DOP 151

4.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.16 DOP 193

16.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.35 DOP 82.7

22.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.53 DOP 94.0

-4.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.60 DOP 98.1

-6.25%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.26 DOP 139

-7.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$7.33 DOP 449

160.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$5.39 DOP 330

-38.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$6.63 DOP 406

64.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.23 DOP 198

-9.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$0.83 DOP 50.9

103.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.64 DOP 162

-14.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.85 DOP 113

12.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.01 DOP 123

-24.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$2.13 DOP 131

-35.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.03 DOP 62.8

3.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.92 DOP 56.6

-43.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$5.12 DOP 313

-17.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.23 DOP 626

83.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.53 DOP 155

-28.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.96 DOP 182

-4.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.25 DOP 199

-7.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$2.15 DOP 132

-52.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$5.70 DOP 349

-35.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.24 DOP 75.9

18.55%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$29.5K DOP 1.8M

-9.31%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$33.7K DOP 2.1M

-20.71%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$93.2 DOP 5,709

3.35%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$30.91 DOP 1,893

-63.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$35.35 DOP 2,165

-52.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.16 DOP 438

4.75%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$252 DOP 15.4K

89.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$7,312 DOP 447.8K

54.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$44.56 DOP 2,729

39.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$46.17 DOP 2,828

-38.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$84.7 DOP 5,189

11.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$122 DOP 7,501

-29.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$594 DOP 36.4K

-15.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

13.56

-58.92%

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 Este: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Santo Domingo Este

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Santo Domingo Este

$219 34.3% 17.9% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Santo Domingo Este

$159 25% 28.1% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santo Domingo Este

$134 21% 10% $12

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Santo Domingo Este

$97 15.2% 20.5% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Santo Domingo Este

$14 * 2.3% 82.6% $68

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Santo Domingo Este

$14 * 2.2% 80.2% $57

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

Cost Breakdown

Santo Domingo Este pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $41 in Santo Domingo Este. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $219, with Santo Domingo Este cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo Este

🕒 Local time

05:27 5:27 AM

18:27 6:27 PM

11 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,000,230

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 DOP = 1.63 USD

100 DOP = 1.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DOP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 61.24 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.17 DOP (100 DOP = 1.47 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Santo Domingo Este 16,810 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Santo Domingo Este

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 Este: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santo Domingo Este is about 50% cheaper overall, especially in leisure, transport, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 16% 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.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $252 in Santo Domingo Este. 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 $41 in Santo Domingo Este. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $637 in Santo Domingo Este versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $800 budget is realistic in Santo Domingo Este but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Santo Domingo Este 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.