Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Punta Cana and Phuket

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

35

Cost of Living Index in Punta Cana
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Punta Cana Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Punta Cana

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$723

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Punta Cana 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 Cana and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

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

Punta Cana $723
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,654 in Punta Cana versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Punta Cana $1,654
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,586 in Punta Cana versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Punta Cana $2,586
Phuket $3,154

Living in Punta Cana costs roughly 43% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Punta Cana 47% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.19 DOP 495

$4.47 ฿151

83.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.42 DOP 2,442

$32.41 ฿1,093

24.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.76 DOP 408

$8.81 ฿297

-23.27%

Cappuccino

$1.81 DOP 109

$2.83 ฿95.4

-36.04%

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

$0.70 DOP 42.42

$0.87 ฿29.41

-19.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.41 DOP 24.65

$0.49 ฿16.65

-16.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 DOP 145

$2.56 ฿86.3

-5.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 DOP 231

$3.68 ฿124

4.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 DOP 68.6

$1.66 ฿55.9

-31.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 DOP 103

$1.46 ฿49.31

16.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 DOP 88.7

$1.50 ฿50.5

-2.00%

Eggs

$1.50 DOP 90.7

$2.09 ฿70.5

-28.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.39 DOP 386

$19.07 ฿643

-66.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.47 DOP 210

$3.30 ฿111

5.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.63 DOP 280

$10.91 ฿368

-57.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 DOP 178

$2.93 ฿98.9

0.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 DOP 86.5

$1.69 ฿57.0

-15.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.24 DOP 196

$2.25 ฿75.8

44.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 DOP 128

$2.08 ฿70.0

1.92%

Potato (1kg)

$3.46 DOP 209

$1.51 ฿51.0

129.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.91 DOP 176

$1.38 ฿46.52

110.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 DOP 52.3

$1.07 ฿35.96

-18.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 DOP 94.6

$0.52 ฿17.51

200.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.85 DOP 293

$4.20 ฿142

15.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.08 DOP 972

$18.79 ฿634

-14.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.95 DOP 178

$1.82 ฿61.5

62.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 DOP 206

$2.84 ฿95.8

19.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 DOP 81.8

$1.45 ฿48.98

-6.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.43 DOP 147

$3.02 ฿102

-19.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.20 DOP 193

$1.02 ฿34.33

213.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 DOP 84.9

$1.47 ฿49.76

-4.08%

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

$14.8K DOP 891.5K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

-44.90%

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

$25.9K DOP 1.6M

$26.7K ฿900.5K

-3.11%

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

$94.4 DOP 5,701

$96.4 ฿3,251

-2.07%

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

$26.18 DOP 1,582

$11.26 ฿380

132.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.71 DOP 2,279

$16.85 ฿568

123.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$81.2 DOP 4,908

$67.2 ฿2,268

20.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.51 DOP 998

$10.73 ฿362

53.87%

Cinema Ticket

$4.93 DOP 298

$7.50 ฿253

-34.27%

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

$147 DOP 8,862

$476 ฿16.1K

-69.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,333 DOP 322.2K

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-52.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.13 DOP 1,579

$62.4 ฿2,104

-58.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.55 DOP 2,752

$28.41 ฿958

60.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.7 DOP 3,546

$94.3 ฿3,181

-37.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.4 DOP 4,011

$85.8 ฿2,895

-22.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$926 DOP 56.0K

$716 ฿24.2K

29.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,599 DOP 157.0K

$1,927 ฿65.0K

34.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 DOP 59.6K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-31.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,960 DOP 178.8K

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-29.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,277 DOP 77.2K

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-58.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

97.49%

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

Last update for Punta Cana: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Punta Cana

$230 31.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 15.9% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Punta Cana

$158 21.9%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 21.3% $34

Eating Out

Punta Cana

$132 18.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 7.6% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Punta Cana

$91 12.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 9.7% $8.8

Clothing & Footwear

Punta Cana

$89 12.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 37.7% $33

Getting Around

Punta Cana

$24 * 3.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 196% $47

Accommodation & Living

Punta Cana

- * 0%

Phuket

$491 38.4%

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 $926 in Punta Cana and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $40 in Punta Cana vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $230 vs $266, with Punta Cana cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Punta Cana

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:02 12:02 AM

11:02 11:02 AM

11 h ahead of Punta Cana

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,023

79,308

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.66 USD

100 DOP = 1.48 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to DOP – Dominican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇴 Dominican Peso ($)

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 60.42 DOP (100 DOP = 1.66 USD). 1 EUR = 67.46 DOP (100 DOP = 1.48 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to DOP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Punta Cana Phuket 16,740 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

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

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

You’d need roughly $1,085 in Punta Cana and $1,917 in Phuket 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: $926 in Punta Cana versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $147 in Punta Cana 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 $40 in Punta Cana. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $723 in Punta Cana versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Punta Cana but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Punta Cana 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.