Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz and Phuket Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz and Phuket

😐 Solo nomad: Santa Cruz is 22.8% more expensive than Phuket without rent, and 28.6% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Santa Cruz is 0.5% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 39.9% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.66 JMD 1,198
$4.65 ฿147
64.73%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$62.9 JMD 9,834
$46.11 ฿1,460
36.35%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.65 JMD 1,354
$8.74 ฿277
-1.03%
Cappuccino
$4.33 JMD 677
$3.04 ฿96.2
42.43%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.37 JMD 215
$0.72 ฿22.80
90.28%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.70 JMD 109
$0.39 ฿12.38
79.49%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.55 JMD 400
$2.44 ฿77.2
4.51%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.17 JMD 496
$3.79 ฿120
-16.36%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$4.41 JMD 689
$2.14 ฿67.9
106.07%
White Bread (500g)
$3.59 JMD 561
$1.86 ฿58.9
93.01%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 JMD 245
$2.19 ฿69.2
-28.31%
Eggs
$3.53 JMD 552
$2.25 ฿71.1
56.89%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.97 JMD 1,716
$19.73 ฿625
-44.40%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.45 JMD 1,009
$3.79 ฿120
70.18%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.85 JMD 1,228
$13.55 ฿429
-42.07%
Apples (1kg)
$6.11 JMD 956
$3.25 ฿103
88.00%
Banana (1kg)
$3.09 JMD 483
$1.67 ฿52.9
85.03%
Oranges (1kg)
$4.25 JMD 665
$2.39 ฿75.7
77.82%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.96 JMD 464
$2.09 ฿66.2
41.63%
Potato (1kg)
$2.09 JMD 327
$1.53 ฿48.39
36.60%
Onion (1kg)
$2.01 JMD 315
$1.51 ฿47.79
33.11%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.97 JMD 464
$0.99 ฿31.30
200.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.44 JMD 225
$0.51 ฿16.30
182.35%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$8.54 JMD 1,336
$4.27 ฿135
100.00%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.28 JMD 1,765
$20.31 ฿643
-44.46%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.81 JMD 439
$1.79 ฿56.7
56.98%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.19 JMD 499
$2.77 ฿87.6
15.16%
🚌 Getting Around
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$1.40 ฿44.44
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$11.70 ฿370
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.07 JMD 167
$3.11 ฿98.4
-65.59%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.24 JMD 507
$0.99 ฿31.48
227.27%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$6.39 JMD 1,000
$13.73 ฿435
-53.46%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.28 JMD 201
$1.32 ฿41.75
-3.03%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$43.4K JMD 6.8M
$27.2K ฿862.0K
59.48%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.9K JMD 5.2M
$34.1K ฿1.1M
-3.46%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$160 JMD 25.1K
$120 ฿3,811
33.12%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.79 JMD 3,408
$13.93 ฿441
56.42%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$50.4 JMD 7,889
$18.31 ฿579
175.42%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$60.9 ฿1,928
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.23 ฿545
-
Cinema Ticket
$13.25 JMD 2,072
$8.71 ฿276
52.12%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$227 JMD 35.5K
$698 ฿22.1K
-67.47%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,440 JMD 381.7K
$15.7K ฿498.0K
-84.49%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$26.36 JMD 4,122
$57.6 ฿1,824
-54.27%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.86 JMD 4,045
$34.24 ฿1,084
-24.47%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$71.3 JMD 11.1K
$113 ฿3,582
-37.02%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$75.4 JMD 11.8K
$84.8 ฿2,684
-11.13%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$604 ฿19.1K
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$436 ฿13.8K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$2,057 ฿65.1K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,498 ฿47.4K
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,252 ฿134.6K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$2,988 ฿94.6K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Santa Cruz
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$401 JMD 62.7K
$529 ฿16.7K
-24.31%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
9.15
5.33
71.67%

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

Last update for Santa Cruz: March 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: February 28, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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