Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Clarita, CA and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,884 in Santa Clarita, CA, rent and utilities included – about $31,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

185

Cost of Living Index in Santa Clarita, CA
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Santa Clarita, CA Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Santa Clarita, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,884

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,884 in Santa Clarita, CA versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Santa Clarita, CA $3,884
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,163 in Santa Clarita, CA versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Santa Clarita, CA $5,163
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,442 in Santa Clarita, CA versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Santa Clarita, CA $6,442
Phuket $3,154

Living in Santa Clarita, CA is roughly 204% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santa Clarita, CA is 185% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.90 $19.90

$4.47 ฿151

345.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.1 $98.1

$32.41 ฿1,094

202.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.17 $15.17

$8.81 ฿297

72.19%

Cappuccino

$6.16 $6.16

$2.83 ฿95.5

117.67%

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

$3.58 $3.58

$0.87 ฿29.43

311.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 $2.97

$0.49 ฿16.67

506.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.80 $7.80

$2.56 ฿86.4

204.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.78 $8.78

$3.68 ฿124

138.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.66 ฿56.0

-31.93%

White Bread (500g)

$4.07 $4.07

$1.46 ฿49.35

178.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.98 $4.98

$1.50 ฿50.6

232.00%

Eggs

$4.95 $4.95

$2.09 ฿70.5

136.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.52 $19.52

$19.07 ฿644

2.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.07 $8.07

$3.30 ฿111

144.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.68 $16.68

$10.91 ฿368

52.89%

Apples (1kg)

$6.51 $6.51

$2.93 ฿99.0

122.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 $1.96

$1.69 ฿57.1

15.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 $3.08

$2.25 ฿75.8

36.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 $2.95

$2.08 ฿70.1

41.83%

Potato (1kg)

$8.86 $8.86

$1.51 ฿51.0

486.75%

Onion (1kg)

$4.69 $4.69

$1.38 ฿46.56

239.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.49 $3.49

$1.07 ฿35.99

226.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 $2.69

$0.52 ฿17.52

417.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.89 $11.89

$4.20 ฿142

183.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.03 $16.03

$18.79 ฿634

-14.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.82 ฿61.5

-6.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 $4.40

$2.84 ฿95.9

54.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.48 $2.48

$1.45 ฿49.03

71.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.34 $27.34

$56.7 ฿1,913

-51.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 $2.82

$3.02 ฿102

-6.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.47 $2.47

$1.02 ฿34.36

142.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$60.4 $60.4

$3.69 ฿125

1536.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.47 ฿49.81

-13.61%

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

$23.0K $23.0K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-14.17%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-1.62%

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

$223 $223

$96.4 ฿3,254

131.15%

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

$55.6 $55.6

$11.26 ฿380

393.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$72.3 $72.3

$16.85 ฿569

329.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.54 $36.54

$67.2 ฿2,270

-45.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.26 $25.26

$10.73 ฿362

135.41%

Cinema Ticket

$14.26 $14.26

$7.50 ฿253

90.13%

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

$1,451 $1,451

$476 ฿16.1K

204.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K $36.9K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

227.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.6 $73.6

$62.4 ฿2,106

18.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.31 $27.31

$28.41 ฿959

-3.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.1 $73.1

$94.3 ฿3,184

-22.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 $111

$85.8 ฿2,898

29.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,827 $2,827

$716 ฿24.2K

294.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,483 $2,483

$491 ฿16.6K

405.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,861 $3,861

$1,927 ฿65.1K

100.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,261 $3,261

$1,431 ฿48.3K

127.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,653 $3,653

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-12.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,227 $4,227

$3,045 ฿102.8K

38.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,249 $5,249

$502 ฿17.0K

945.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.49

5.57

16.52%

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

Last update for Santa Clarita, CA: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Clarita, CA

$2.5K 63.9%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 80.2% $2K

Groceries & Markets

Santa Clarita, CA

$444 11.4%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 40% $177

Eating Out

Santa Clarita, CA

$361 9.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 66.3% $240

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Clarita, CA

$351 9%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 64.5% $226

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Clarita, CA

$128 3.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 5% $6.4

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Clarita, CA

$65 1.7%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 26.4% $17

Getting Around

Santa Clarita, CA

$52 1.4%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 34.6% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,827 in Santa Clarita, CA and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santa Clarita, CA pays about 10 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $98 in Santa Clarita, CA vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $444 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Santa Clarita, CA

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

18:04 6:04 PM

08:04 8:04 AM

14 h ahead of Santa Clarita, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

182,371

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 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 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Santa Clarita, CA Phuket 13,920 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

Santa Clarita, CA vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 67% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Santa Clarita, CA is about 10 times higher, 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: $2,827 in Santa Clarita, CA versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,451 in Santa Clarita, CA 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 67% higher in Santa Clarita, CA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $3,884 in Santa Clarita, CA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Santa Clarita, CA. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Santa Clarita, CA, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Santa Clarita, CA and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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