Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz, Laguna and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz, Laguna: $616 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz, Laguna
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Santa Cruz, Laguna Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Santa Cruz, Laguna

🇵🇭 Philippines

$616

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $616 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz, Laguna $616
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $911 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz, Laguna $911
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,206 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Santa Cruz, Laguna $1,206
Phuket $3,154

Living in Santa Cruz, Laguna costs roughly 52% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Santa Cruz, Laguna 55% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.55 ₱98.8

$4.47 ฿151

-65.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$7.73 ₱494

$32.41 ฿1,094

-76.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.79 ₱178

$8.81 ฿297

-68.33%

Cappuccino

$1.76 ₱113

$2.83 ฿95.5

-37.81%

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

$0.37 ₱23.90

$0.87 ฿29.43

-57.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 ₱15.42

$0.49 ฿16.67

-51.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₱64.7

$2.56 ฿86.4

-60.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₱57.2

$3.68 ฿124

-75.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 ₱98.4

$1.66 ฿56.0

-7.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 ₱73.3

$1.46 ฿49.35

-21.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 ₱57.9

$1.50 ฿50.6

-39.33%

Eggs

$1.52 ₱97.0

$2.09 ฿70.5

-27.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.82 ₱308

$19.07 ฿644

-74.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.29 ₱210

$3.30 ฿111

-0.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.20 ₱460

$10.91 ฿368

-34.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.37 ₱87.7

$2.93 ฿99.0

-53.24%

Banana (1kg)

$0.49 ₱31.52

$1.69 ฿57.1

-71.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.43 ₱91.7

$2.25 ฿75.8

-36.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.06 ₱67.7

$2.08 ฿70.1

-49.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 ₱107

$1.51 ฿51.0

10.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.68 ₱107

$1.38 ฿46.56

21.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.61 ₱39.25

$1.07 ฿35.99

-42.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ₱33.12

$0.52 ฿17.52

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.93 ₱187

$4.20 ฿142

-30.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.49 ₱543

$18.79 ฿634

-54.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₱61.4

$1.82 ฿61.5

-47.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ₱131

$2.84 ฿95.9

-27.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$1.45 ฿49.03

-85.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.50 ₱735

$56.7 ฿1,913

-79.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.74

$3.02 ฿102

-74.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱14.00

$1.02 ฿34.36

-78.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.93 ₱124

$3.69 ฿125

-47.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 ₱76.5

$1.47 ฿49.81

-18.37%

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

$20.7K ₱1.3M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-22.69%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-29.08%

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

$82.8 ₱5,290

$96.4 ฿3,254

-14.07%

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

$17.51 ₱1,118

$11.26 ฿380

55.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.58 ₱1,443

$16.85 ฿569

34.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.30 ₱1,744

$67.2 ฿2,270

-59.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.47 ₱285

$10.73 ฿362

-58.34%

Cinema Ticket

$5.03 ₱321

$7.50 ฿253

-32.93%

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

$128 ₱8,194

$476 ฿16.1K

-73.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K ₱677.6K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-5.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.32 ₱1,809

$62.4 ฿2,106

-54.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.21 ₱1,227

$28.41 ฿959

-32.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.6 ₱4,447

$94.3 ฿3,184

-26.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.7 ₱3,431

$85.8 ฿2,898

-37.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$219 ₱14.0K

$716 ฿24.2K

-69.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$160 ₱10.2K

$491 ฿16.6K

-67.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$480 ₱30.7K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-75.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₱19.1K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-79.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,453 ₱156.7K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-41.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,079 ₱68.9K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-64.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

5.57

21.18%

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

Last update for Santa Cruz, Laguna: 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 Cruz, Laguna

$160 26%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 207% $331

Groceries & Markets

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$153 24.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 74.1% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$123 20%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 1.3% $1.6

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$77 12.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 58.5% $45

Eating Out

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$51 8.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 138% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$37 6.1%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 120% $45

Getting Around

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$14 2.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 398% $56

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $219 in Santa Cruz, Laguna and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $8 in Santa Cruz, Laguna vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $153 vs $266 per month, with Santa Cruz, Laguna cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Santa Cruz, Laguna

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

04:01 4:01 AM

03:01 3:01 AM

1 h behind Santa Cruz, Laguna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

123,574

79,308

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 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 PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santa Cruz, Laguna Phuket 2,610 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

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

Santa Cruz, Laguna is about 52% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $923 in Santa Cruz, Laguna 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $219 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $128 in Santa Cruz, Laguna 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 74% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $616 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Santa Cruz, Laguna but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Cruz, Laguna 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.

Expats usually find Santa Cruz, Laguna gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.