Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rio Grande, Puerto Rico and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Rio Grande: $1,234 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $530 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

60

Cost of Living Index in Rio Grande
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Rio Grande Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Rio Grande

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,234

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,234 in Rio Grande versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Rio Grande $1,234
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,939 in Rio Grande versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Rio Grande $1,939
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,643 in Rio Grande versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Rio Grande $2,643
Phuket $3,154

Living in Rio Grande costs roughly 3% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Rio Grande 9% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.16 $19.16

$4.47 ฿151

328.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.8 $81.8

$32.41 ฿1,092

152.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.25 $9.25

$8.81 ฿297

4.99%

Cappuccino

$3.49 $3.49

$2.83 ฿95.2

23.32%

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

$1.85 $1.85

$0.87 ฿29.36

112.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 $1.51

$0.49 ฿16.63

208.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.97 $2.97

$2.56 ฿86.2

16.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.05 $5.05

$3.68 ฿124

37.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.66 ฿55.9

-23.49%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 $3.05

$1.46 ฿49.24

108.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 $2.31

$1.50 ฿50.4

54.00%

Eggs

$5.54 $5.54

$2.09 ฿70.4

165.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.72 $12.72

$19.07 ฿642

-33.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.38 $9.38

$3.30 ฿111

184.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.29 $13.29

$10.91 ฿368

21.81%

Apples (1kg)

$5.10 $5.10

$2.93 ฿98.7

74.06%

Banana (1kg)

$2.52 $2.52

$1.69 ฿56.9

49.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.93 $4.93

$2.25 ฿75.7

119.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.94 $4.94

$2.08 ฿69.9

137.50%

Potato (1kg)

$3.82 $3.82

$1.51 ฿50.9

152.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.38 ฿46.45

62.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.07 ฿35.90

85.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 $1.60

$0.52 ฿17.48

207.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.85 $11.85

$4.20 ฿142

182.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.81 $14.81

$18.79 ฿633

-21.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 $3.11

$1.82 ฿61.4

70.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.94 $3.94

$2.84 ฿95.7

38.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.91

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.53 $2.53

$3.02 ฿102

-16.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.02 ฿34.28

44.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.15 $42.15

$3.69 ฿124

1042.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 $1.18

$1.47 ฿49.69

-19.73%

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

$35.1K $35.1K

$26.8K ฿902.1K

31.07%

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

$28.0K $28.0K

$26.7K ฿899.2K

4.99%

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

$316 $316

$96.4 ฿3,246

227.82%

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

$70.6 $70.6

$11.26 ฿380

526.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.0 $69.0

$16.85 ฿568

309.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$11.15 $11.15

$67.2 ฿2,265

-83.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 $7.81

$7.50 ฿253

4.13%

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

$806 $806

$476 ฿16.0K

69.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K $12.3K

$11.3K ฿379.5K

9.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.7 $56.7

$62.4 ฿2,101

-9.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.91 $24.91

$28.41 ฿957

-12.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.9 $89.9

$94.3 ฿3,177

-4.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.68 $49.68

$85.8 ฿2,891

-42.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.55

5.57

17.59%

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

Last update for Rio Grande: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rio Grande

$455 36.9%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 72.7% $331

Groceries & Markets

Rio Grande

$381 30.9%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 30% $114

Eating Out

Rio Grande

$261 21.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 53.4% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Rio Grande

$100 8.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 22.5% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Rio Grande

$27 2.2%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 207% $55

Getting Around

Rio Grande

$9.9 * 0.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 613% $61

Accommodation & Living

Rio Grande

- * 0%

Phuket

$491 38.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $82 in Rio Grande vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $381 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇷 Rio Grande

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:06 12:06 PM

23:06 11:06 PM

11 h ahead of Rio Grande

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,467

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.894 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.894 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 USD = 33.69 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Rio Grande Phuket 16,620 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Rio Grande
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

Rio Grande vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rio Grande is about 3% cheaper overall, especially in transport, leisure, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,850 in Rio Grande 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.

Childcare runs $806 in Rio Grande 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 $82 in Rio Grande. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Rio Grande is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.