Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Zihuatanejo

For one person, living is cheaper in Zihuatanejo: $1,131 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $920 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Zihuatanejo
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Zihuatanejo Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Zihuatanejo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Zihuatanejo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,131 in Zihuatanejo.

Phuket $1,208
Zihuatanejo $1,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,824 in Zihuatanejo.

Phuket $2,027
Zihuatanejo $1,824

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $2,517 in Zihuatanejo.

Phuket $2,845
Zihuatanejo $2,517

Living in Phuket is roughly 7% more expensive than in Zihuatanejo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Zihuatanejo 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿148

$10.86 MX$203

-59.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,088

$44.16 MX$827

-26.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿296

$8.74 MX$164

0.23%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$3.48 MX$65.2

-18.68%

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

$0.90 ฿30.42

$1.36 MX$25.45

-33.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.71

$1.02 MX$19.08

-53.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿86.0

$2.45 MX$45.89

4.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿129

$3.98 MX$74.4

-3.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿58.2

$1.66 MX$31.05

4.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.56

$2.55 MX$47.69

-42.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.65 MX$30.90

-8.48%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$2.44 MX$45.61

-11.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿664

$8.11 MX$152

142.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿113

$8.52 MX$159

-60.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿376

$11.56 MX$216

-3.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿96.0

$2.72 MX$51.0

4.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿57.5

$1.56 MX$29.27

8.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.9

$1.94 MX$36.39

12.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿69.0

$1.77 MX$33.10

15.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿49.02

$1.94 MX$36.24

-25.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.59

$1.88 MX$35.15

-26.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿36.02

$1.43 MX$26.71

-25.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.07

$1.09 MX$20.47

-53.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿144

$4.28 MX$80.1

-0.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿627

$10.27 MX$192

80.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿60.2

$1.82 MX$34.04

-2.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿96.0

$3.06 MX$57.3

-6.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿76.3

$0.68 MX$12.77

232.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿745

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿102

$2.61 MX$48.93

15.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.67

$2.02 MX$37.88

-47.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿130

$11.18 MX$209

-65.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.44 MX$26.93

0.69%

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

$26.3K ฿888.1K

$21.3K MX$398.4K

23.69%

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

$26.9K ฿908.8K

$23.9K MX$447.0K

12.82%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$57.3 MX$1,072

68.32%

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

$11.04 ฿372

$23.00 MX$431

-52.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿578

$29.80 MX$558

-42.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,760

$34.76 MX$651

50.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿376

$20.02 MX$375

-44.26%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿263

$5.14 MX$96.2

51.95%

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

$556 ฿18.8K

$216 MX$4,041

157.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿390.6K

$4,526 MX$84.7K

155.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,166

$55.5 MX$1,038

15.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿968

$40.25 MX$753

-28.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,217

$98.5 MX$1,844

-3.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,968

$90.0 MX$1,684

-2.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.9K

$596 MX$11.1K

23.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.6K

$384 MX$7,182

20.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.7K

$1,053 MX$19.7K

98.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.5K

$759 MX$14.2K

58.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿117.6K

$1,915 MX$35.8K

82.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿85.1K

$1,149 MX$21.5K

119.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.3

-50.71%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Zihuatanejo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Zihuatanejo

$384 34% 17% $79

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Zihuatanejo

$264 23.3% 1.8% $4.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Zihuatanejo

$110 9.7% 11.6% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Zihuatanejo

$128 11.3% 2.9% $3.6

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Zihuatanejo

$185 16.3% 52.3% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Zihuatanejo

$45 4% 33.6% $23

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Zihuatanejo

$15 * 1.4% 60.8% $24

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 $737 in Phuket and $596 in Zihuatanejo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $44 in Zihuatanejo. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $264, with Zihuatanejo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇽 Zihuatanejo

🕒 Local time

17:06 5:06 PM

04:06 4:06 AM

13 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

67,408

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 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 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.84 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.72 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Zihuatanejo 16,430 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Zihuatanejo

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 Zihuatanejo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zihuatanejo is cheaper overall, especially in transport and leisure. The 7% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,813 in Phuket and $1,696 in Zihuatanejo 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $737 in Phuket versus $596 in Zihuatanejo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $44 in Zihuatanejo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $216 in Zihuatanejo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Zihuatanejo gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Zihuatanejo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.