Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Pola and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $1,675 in Santa Pola, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Santa Pola
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Santa Pola Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Santa Pola

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,675

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,675 in Santa Pola versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Santa Pola $1,675
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Santa Pola versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Santa Pola $2,402
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,129 in Santa Pola versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Santa Pola $3,129
Phuket $3,115

Living in Santa Pola is roughly 30% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santa Pola is 24% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.67 €15.74

$4.39 ฿147

302.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.7 €55.8

$32.31 ฿1,080

93.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.26 €10.03

$8.70 ฿291

29.43%

Cappuccino

$2.52 €2.24

$2.72 ฿91.1

-7.35%

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

$2.23 €1.99

$0.93 ฿31.11

139.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 €1.63

$0.50 ฿16.70

266.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 €2.82

$2.53 ฿84.6

25.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 €3.62

$3.63 ฿121

12.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.74 ฿58.2

-32.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.45 ฿48.51

0.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.50 ฿50.2

-10.00%

Eggs

$3.13 €2.79

$2.17 ฿72.6

44.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.88 €12.36

$19.09 ฿638

-27.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.19 €7.29

$3.40 ฿114

140.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 €13.48

$10.90 ฿364

38.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 €2.30

$2.94 ฿98.3

-11.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.69 ฿56.6

-3.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

$2.19 ฿73.4

-1.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.12 ฿71.0

21.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.46 ฿48.77

21.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.37 ฿45.74

38.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 €1.07

$1.08 ฿35.98

11.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 €0.70

$0.55 ฿18.24

43.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.78 €6.04

$4.43 ฿148

53.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.81 €4.29

$18.25 ฿610

-73.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.77 ฿59.3

-23.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 €2.00

$2.88 ฿96.3

-22.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.45 ฿48.40

15.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.54 €25.41

$54.9 ฿1,835

-48.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 €3.44

$1.51 ฿50.6

155.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.15 €1.03

$0.78 ฿25.94

47.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.43 €20.86

$3.84 ฿128

510.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.49 ฿49.74

20.81%

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

$36.2K €32.2K

$26.9K ฿898.9K

34.54%

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

$34.4K €30.7K

$26.3K ฿881.0K

30.71%

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

$137 €122

$97.8 ฿3,271

39.92%

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

$17.68 €15.75

$11.29 ฿378

56.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.47 €26.24

$17.19 ฿575

71.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.47 €39.59

$68.3 ฿2,285

-34.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.40 €11.93

$10.92 ฿365

22.71%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 €7.92

$7.43 ฿248

19.65%

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

$419 €373

$530 ฿17.7K

-21.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,498 €7,567

$18.8K ฿628.1K

-54.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.8 €86.2

$61.7 ฿2,062

57.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.79 €34.54

$28.25 ฿945

37.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.5 €71.7

$96.0 ฿3,210

-16.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 €94.5

$86.8 ฿2,903

22.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$886 €789

$721 ฿24.1K

22.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$733 €653

$509 ฿17.0K

44.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,338 €1,191

$1,950 ฿65.2K

-31.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$940 €837

$1,397 ฿46.7K

-32.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,295 €2,934

$4,192 ฿140.2K

-21.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,285 €2,034

$3,298 ฿110.3K

-30.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

5.57

-40.75%

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

Last update for Santa Pola: 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 Pola

$733 43.8%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 30.6% $224

Groceries & Markets

Santa Pola

$261 15.6%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 2.4% $6.2

Eating Out

Santa Pola

$246 14.7%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 51.3% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Pola

$184 11%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 31.4% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Pola

$145 8.7%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 15.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Pola

$62 3.7%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 33.6% $21

Getting Around

Santa Pola

$45 2.7%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 47.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $886 in Santa Pola and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $63 in Santa Pola vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $261 vs $267, with Santa Pola cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Santa Pola

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

08:43 8:43 AM

14:43 2:43 PM

6 h ahead of Santa Pola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,816

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Santa Pola Phuket 10,240 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

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

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

You’d need roughly $2,513 in Santa Pola and $1,940 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: $886 in Santa Pola versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $419 in Santa Pola versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $63 in Santa Pola. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,675 in Santa Pola, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Santa Pola. 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.