Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Tlaxcala

For one person, living is cheaper in Tlaxcala: $758 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Tlaxcala
Learn more

Tlaxcala Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Tlaxcala

🇲🇽 Mexico

$758

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Tlaxcala

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $758 in Tlaxcala.

Phuket $1,278
Tlaxcala $758

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,237 in Tlaxcala.

Phuket $2,216
Tlaxcala $1,237

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,717 in Tlaxcala.

Phuket $3,154
Tlaxcala $1,717

Living in Phuket is roughly 69% more expensive than in Tlaxcala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Tlaxcala 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.28 MX$98.8

-15.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$22.57 MX$422

43.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$6.41 MX$120

37.44%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.82 MX$52.7

0.35%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$1.34 MX$25.07

-35.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.99 MX$18.43

-50.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.86 MX$34.79

37.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.27 MX$42.36

62.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.62 MX$30.24

2.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.99 MX$37.22

-26.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.44 MX$26.84

4.17%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.26 MX$42.21

-7.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$6.98 MX$130

173.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$5.99 MX$112

-44.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$10.61 MX$198

2.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$2.19 MX$40.86

33.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.16 MX$21.63

45.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.70 MX$31.72

32.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.18 MX$22.12

76.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.90 MX$16.82

67.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.06 MX$19.79

30.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.82 MX$15.36

30.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.14 MX$21.22

-54.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$4.37 MX$81.7

-3.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$9.40 MX$176

99.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.44 MX$26.95

26.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.56 MX$29.06

82.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.44 MX$8.27

229.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.67 MX$49.85

13.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.77 MX$33.04

-42.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$5.55 MX$104

-33.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.42 MX$26.46

3.52%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$23.7K MX$442.1K

13.19%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$25.3K MX$473.7K

5.29%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$32.88 MX$614

193.04%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$19.21 MX$359

-41.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$33.93 MX$634

-50.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$32.44 MX$606

107.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$21.49 MX$402

-50.07%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$4.71 MX$88.1

59.24%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$242 MX$4,523

96.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$29.97 MX$560

108.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$49.21 MX$920

-42.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$115 MX$2,156

-18.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$90.3 MX$1,688

-5.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$253 MX$4,723

183.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$155 MX$2,900

216.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$492 MX$9,197

291.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$356 MX$6,646

302.23%

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

$648 MX$12.1K

-22.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.87

-48.76%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tlaxcala: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Tlaxcala

$155 20.5% 68.4% $336

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Tlaxcala

$215 28.4% 19.2% $51

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Tlaxcala

$86 11.4% 30.9% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Tlaxcala

$128 16.9% 5.2% $6.3

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Tlaxcala

$119 15.6% 2.6% $3.2

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Tlaxcala

$42 5.5% 49.1% $40

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Tlaxcala

$13 * 1.8% 81.2% $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 $253 in Tlaxcala. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tlaxcala pays 29% 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 $23 in Tlaxcala for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $215 per month, with Tlaxcala cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇽 Tlaxcala

🕒 Local time

18:57 6:57 PM

05:57 5:57 AM

13 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

13,555

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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 = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Tlaxcala 16,480 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Tlaxcala

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 Tlaxcala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tlaxcala is cheaper overall, especially in transport, groceries, and leisure. The 69% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 22% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $253 in Tlaxcala. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $242 in Tlaxcala. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Tlaxcala – a meal for two runs $23 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $758 in Tlaxcala versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Tlaxcala but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Tlaxcala 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 Tlaxcala are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.