Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Punta Arenas and Phuket

For one person, living costs are similar in Punta Arenas and in Phuket: $1,280 and $1,278 a month, rent and utilities included.

62

Cost of Living Index in Punta Arenas
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Punta Arenas Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Punta Arenas

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,280

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Punta Arenas and in Phuket

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Punta Arenas and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,280 in Punta Arenas versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Punta Arenas $1,280
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,991 in Punta Arenas versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Punta Arenas $1,991
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,703 in Punta Arenas versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Punta Arenas $2,703
Phuket $3,154

Monthly costs are close between Punta Arenas and Phuket; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities sit below the global median: Punta Arenas 6% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.80 CLP 10.7K

$4.47 ฿151

141.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.59 CLP 49.3K

$32.41 ฿1,093

53.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.60 CLP 7,548

$8.81 ฿297

-13.73%

Cappuccino

$3.67 CLP 3,641

$2.83 ฿95.4

29.68%

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

$2.07 CLP 2,053

$0.87 ฿29.41

137.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 CLP 1,361

$0.49 ฿16.65

179.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.52 CLP 3,492

$2.56 ฿86.3

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.92 CLP 4,886

$3.68 ฿124

33.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 CLP 1,189

$1.66 ฿55.9

-27.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 CLP 1,438

$1.46 ฿49.31

-0.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 CLP 1,559

$1.50 ฿50.5

4.67%

Eggs

$4.01 CLP 3,981

$2.09 ฿70.5

91.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.01 CLP 13.9K

$19.07 ฿643

-26.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.66 CLP 8,600

$3.30 ฿111

162.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.73 CLP 12.6K

$10.91 ฿368

16.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.46 CLP 2,443

$2.93 ฿98.9

-16.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 CLP 2,224

$1.69 ฿57.0

32.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 CLP 2,183

$2.25 ฿75.8

-2.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.18 CLP 3,160

$2.08 ฿70.0

52.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 CLP 1,412

$1.51 ฿51.0

-5.96%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 CLP 2,222

$1.38 ฿46.52

62.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 CLP 1,606

$1.07 ฿35.96

51.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 CLP 1,721

$0.52 ฿17.51

232.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.29 CLP 5,257

$4.20 ฿142

25.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.12 CLP 10.0K

$18.79 ฿634

-46.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 CLP 1,992

$1.82 ฿61.5

10.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 CLP 2,764

$2.84 ฿95.8

-2.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 CLP 619

$1.45 ฿48.98

-57.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.85 CLP 19.7K

$56.7 ฿1,912

-64.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.49 CLP 484

$3.02 ฿102

-83.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 CLP 2,061

$1.02 ฿34.33

102.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.25 CLP 12.2K

$3.69 ฿125

231.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 CLP 1,389

$1.47 ฿49.76

-4.76%

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

$17.5K CLP 17.4M

$26.8K ฿903.4K

-34.64%

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

$23.1K CLP 23.0M

$26.7K ฿900.5K

-13.43%

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

$145 CLP 144.2K

$96.4 ฿3,251

50.70%

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

$10.02 CLP 9,958

$11.26 ฿380

-11.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.22 CLP 20.1K

$16.85 ฿568

20.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.15 CLP 44.9K

$67.2 ฿2,268

-32.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$44.85 CLP 44.6K

$10.73 ฿362

317.99%

Cinema Ticket

$6.36 CLP 6,315

$7.50 ฿253

-15.20%

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

$402 CLP 398.9K

$476 ฿16.1K

-15.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,174 CLP 6.1M

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-45.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.8 CLP 57.4K

$62.4 ฿2,104

-7.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.65 CLP 40.4K

$28.41 ฿958

43.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.2 CLP 93.6K

$94.3 ฿3,181

-0.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 CLP 124.4K

$85.8 ฿2,895

45.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$571 CLP 567.2K

$716 ฿24.2K

-20.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 CLP 378.7K

$491 ฿16.6K

-22.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$951 CLP 944.6K

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-50.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$653 CLP 649.0K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-54.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$376 CLP 373.8K

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-90.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$802 CLP 796.4K

$502 ฿16.9K

59.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

5.57

-38.96%

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

Last update for Punta Arenas: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Punta Arenas

$381 29.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 28.8% $110

Groceries & Markets

Punta Arenas

$294 23%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 9.6% $28

Eating Out

Punta Arenas

$194 15.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 37.4% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Punta Arenas

$175 13.7%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 29.1% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Punta Arenas

$143 11.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 14.8% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Punta Arenas

$58 4.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 42.1% $24

Getting Around

Punta Arenas

$33 2.6%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 113% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $571 in Punta Arenas and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Punta Arenas pays 60% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $50 in Punta Arenas vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $294 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Punta Arenas

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

11:56 11:56 AM

21:56 9:56 PM

10 h ahead of Punta Arenas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

123,403

79,308

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.07 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.02 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 993 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.01 USD). 1 EUR = 1,109 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.02 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Punta Arenas Phuket 14,890 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Punta Arenas
Phuket

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

Punta Arenas vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Average pay runs 60% higher in Punta Arenas, 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: $571 in Punta Arenas versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $402 in Punta Arenas versus $476 in Phuket. 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 $50 in Punta Arenas. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Phuket 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.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Punta Arenas on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.