Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Francisco and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,668 in San Francisco, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in San Francisco
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San Francisco Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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San Francisco

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,668

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,668 in San Francisco versus $1,278 in Phuket.

San Francisco $1,668
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,674 in San Francisco versus $2,216 in Phuket.

San Francisco $2,674
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,680 in San Francisco versus $3,154 in Phuket.

San Francisco $3,680
Phuket $3,154

Living in San Francisco is roughly 31% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Francisco is 23% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.03 ₡4,524

$4.47 ฿151

124.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 ₡27.8K

$32.41 ฿1,094

90.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.13 ₡5,024

$8.81 ฿297

26.33%

Cappuccino

$4.56 ₡2,058

$2.83 ฿95.5

61.13%

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

$1.29 ₡584

$0.87 ฿29.43

48.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₡774

$0.49 ฿16.67

248.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.37 ₡1,520

$2.56 ฿86.4

31.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,020

$3.68 ฿124

21.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 ₡1,095

$1.66 ฿56.0

46.39%

White Bread (500g)

$3.03 ₡1,367

$1.46 ฿49.35

107.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 ₡1,079

$1.50 ฿50.6

59.33%

Eggs

$3.44 ₡1,553

$2.09 ฿70.5

64.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.88 ₡4,911

$19.07 ฿644

-42.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.40 ₡4,691

$3.30 ฿111

215.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.82 ₡6,237

$10.91 ฿368

26.67%

Apples (1kg)

$5.21 ₡2,353

$2.93 ฿99.0

77.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 ₡745

$1.69 ฿57.1

-2.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.79 ₡2,160

$2.25 ฿75.8

112.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.87 ₡1,744

$2.08 ฿70.1

86.06%

Potato (1kg)

$3.92 ₡1,770

$1.51 ฿51.0

159.60%

Onion (1kg)

$3.74 ₡1,689

$1.38 ฿46.56

171.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 ₡491

$1.07 ฿35.99

1.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₡1,401

$0.52 ฿17.52

496.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.82 ₡2,625

$4.20 ฿142

38.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.69 ₡8,883

$18.79 ฿634

4.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.85 ₡1,286

$1.82 ฿61.5

56.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 ₡1,600

$2.84 ฿95.9

25.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 ₡620

$1.45 ฿49.03

-5.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.9 ₡29.7K

$56.7 ฿1,913

16.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.74 ₡787

$3.02 ฿102

-42.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 ₡730

$1.02 ฿34.36

58.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.88 ₡4,008

$3.69 ฿125

140.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 ₡689

$1.47 ฿49.81

4.08%

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

$34.0K ₡15.3M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

26.99%

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

$42.8K ₡19.3M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

60.51%

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

$76.4 ₡34.5K

$96.4 ฿3,254

-20.76%

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

$32.60 ₡14.7K

$11.26 ฿380

189.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.89 ₡22.1K

$16.85 ฿569

190.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 ₡31.0K

$67.2 ฿2,270

2.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.52 ₡3,394

$7.50 ฿253

0.27%

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

$989 ₡446.2K

$476 ฿16.1K

107.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ₡7.7M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

51.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.4 ₡31.8K

$62.4 ฿2,106

12.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 ₡25.7K

$28.41 ฿959

100.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.6 ₡29.6K

$94.3 ฿3,184

-30.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$54.7 ₡24.7K

$85.8 ฿2,898

-36.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$799 ₡360.4K

$716 ฿24.2K

11.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$628 ₡283.3K

$491 ฿16.6K

27.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,905 ₡859.4K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-1.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 ₡580.8K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-10.03%

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)

$895 ₡404.0K

$502 ฿17.0K

78.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.57

54.76%

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

Last update for San Francisco: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Francisco

$628 37.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 21.8% $137

Groceries & Markets

San Francisco

$400 24%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 33.4% $134

Eating Out

San Francisco

$206 12.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 41% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Francisco

$158 9.5%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 21.1% $33

Clothing & Footwear

San Francisco

$111 6.7%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 9.4% $10

Sport & Entertainment

San Francisco

$84 5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 1.9% $1.6

Getting Around

San Francisco

$81 4.9%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 13.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $799 in San Francisco and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Francisco pays 78% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in San Francisco vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $400 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Francisco

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:35 2:35 PM

03:35 3:35 AM

13 h ahead of San Francisco

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

55,923

79,308

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Francisco Phuket 18,010 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

San Francisco
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

San Francisco vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 23% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 78% higher in San Francisco, 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: $799 in San Francisco versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $989 in San Francisco versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 50% higher in San Francisco. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,668 in San Francisco, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in San Francisco. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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, San Francisco and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in San Francisco. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.