Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz, Aruba and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $1,886 in Santa Cruz, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Santa Cruz

🇦🇼 Aruba

$1,886

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,886 in Santa Cruz versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz $1,886
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,900 in Santa Cruz versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz $2,900
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,914 in Santa Cruz versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz $3,914
Phuket $3,115

Living in Santa Cruz is roughly 46% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santa Cruz is 40% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿147

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,078

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿290

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿90.9

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

$0.93 ฿31.06

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.67

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿84.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿121

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 AWG 3.94

$1.74 ฿58.1

26.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.64 AWG 4.73

$1.45 ฿48.42

82.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.42 AWG 7.91

$1.50 ฿50.1

194.67%

Eggs

$4.78 AWG 8.55

$2.17 ฿72.5

120.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.14 AWG 14.57

$19.09 ฿637

-57.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.69 AWG 13.77

$3.40 ฿113

126.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.75 AWG 12.08

$10.90 ฿364

-38.07%

Apples (1kg)

$4.52 AWG 8.08

$2.94 ฿98.2

53.74%

Banana (1kg)

$4.57 AWG 8.18

$1.69 ฿56.5

170.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.12 AWG 14.54

$2.19 ฿73.2

270.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.87 AWG 12.29

$2.12 ฿70.9

224.06%

Potato (1kg)

$6.70 AWG 11.99

$1.46 ฿48.68

358.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 AWG 3.39

$1.37 ฿45.66

37.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.00 AWG 5.37

$1.08 ฿35.91

177.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$4.54 AWG 8.13

$0.55 ฿18.21

725.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.34 AWG 18.52

$4.43 ฿148

133.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.59 AWG 35.06

$18.25 ฿609

7.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 AWG 4.56

$1.77 ฿59.2

44.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 AWG 5.54

$2.88 ฿96.2

7.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.96 AWG 3.50

$1.45 ฿48.32

35.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 AWG 276

$54.9 ฿1,832

180.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$19.32 AWG 34.57

$1.51 ฿50.5

1179.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿25.90

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.75 AWG 35.34

$3.84 ฿128

414.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.65

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

$26.9K ฿897.3K

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

$26.3K ฿879.4K

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

$141 AWG 252

$97.8 ฿3,265

43.71%

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

$71.3 AWG 128

$11.29 ฿377

531.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$207 AWG 371

$17.19 ฿574

1104.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.5 AWG 123

$68.3 ฿2,281

0.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$46.44 AWG 83.1

$10.92 ฿365

325.27%

Cinema Ticket

$8.39 AWG 15.02

$7.43 ฿248

12.92%

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

$141 AWG 252

$530 ฿17.7K

-73.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿626.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.8 AWG 141

$61.7 ฿2,059

27.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$110 AWG 197

$28.25 ฿943

289.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$140 AWG 251

$96.0 ฿3,204

46.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 AWG 245

$86.8 ฿2,898

57.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,268 AWG 2,270

$721 ฿24.1K

75.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$557 AWG 998

$509 ฿17.0K

9.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,534 AWG 2,746

$1,950 ฿65.1K

-21.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 AWG 2,519

$1,397 ฿46.6K

0.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿139.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,667 AWG 6,564

$492 ฿16.4K

646.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Santa Cruz: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Groceries & Markets

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Eating Out

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Getting Around

Santa Cruz

–

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,268 in Santa Cruz and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santa Cruz pays about 7.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Good to know

🇦🇼 Santa Cruz

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:01 12:01 PM

23:01 11:01 PM

11 h ahead of Santa Cruz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,236

79,308

💱 Currency

Aruban Florin AWG ƒ

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AWG = 0.559 USD

1 AWG = 0.497 EUR

100 THB = 3 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AWG – Aruban Florin Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇼 Aruban Florin (ƒ)

Aruban Florin exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 AWG (1 AWG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 AWG (1 AWG = 0.497 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.38 THB (100 THB = 3 USD). 1 EUR = 37.51 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to AWG in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santa Cruz Phuket 17,410 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Cruz
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

Santa Cruz vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 31% cheaper overall, especially in utilities, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Santa Cruz is about 7.5 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: $1,268 in Santa Cruz versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $141 in Santa Cruz versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 64% less than in Santa Cruz. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,886 in Santa Cruz, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Santa Cruz. 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, Santa Cruz 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 Cruz on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.