Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santarem and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,300 in Santarem, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Santarem despite lower rent and utilities.

63

Cost of Living Index in Santarem
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Santarem Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Santarem

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,300

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,300 in Santarem versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Santarem $1,300
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,014 in Santarem versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Santarem $2,014
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,729 in Santarem versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Santarem $2,729
Phuket $2,867

Living in Santarem is roughly 8% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Santarem 4% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 €10.94

$4.58 ฿153

168.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.39 €35.04

$32.48 ฿1,086

21.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.99 €8.00

$8.55 ฿286

5.15%

Cappuccino

$1.71 €1.52

$2.72 ฿91.0

-37.13%

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

$1.78 €1.59

$0.94 ฿31.25

89.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.15 €1.03

$0.49 ฿16.39

134.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.59 ฿86.6

-16.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.83 ฿128

-11.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 €1.01

$1.74 ฿58.1

-34.48%

White Bread (500g)

$0.46 €0.41

$1.43 ฿47.82

-67.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.53 ฿51.0

-28.76%

Eggs

$3.27 €2.91

$2.17 ฿72.7

50.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.05 €9.83

$19.15 ฿640

-42.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.14 €6.35

$3.30 ฿110

116.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.42 €11.93

$11.14 ฿372

20.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 €2.50

$2.95 ฿98.5

-4.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.68 ฿56.1

-19.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.50 €2.23

$2.30 ฿76.8

8.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 €1.88

$2.13 ฿71.3

-0.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.40 €1.25

$1.53 ฿51.1

-8.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.36 ฿45.55

13.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 €0.97

$1.12 ฿37.44

-1.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 €0.28

$0.55 ฿18.24

-43.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.62 €5.00

$4.26 ฿142

31.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.78 €5.14

$18.19 ฿608

-68.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.09

$1.74 ฿58.2

-29.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 €3.17

$2.79 ฿93.3

27.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.22 ฿74.1

1.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.4 €50.2

$22.06 ฿737

155.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.53 €3.14

$2.91 ฿97.3

21.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.49 ฿49.85

36.91%

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

$33.8K €30.1K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

26.68%

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

$38.4K €34.1K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

43.64%

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

$130 €116

$99.4 ฿3,321

30.87%

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

$20.74 €18.45

$11.28 ฿377

83.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 €49.81

$17.36 ฿580

222.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.97 €33.78

$52.3 ฿1,747

-27.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$6.65 €5.91

$7.57 ฿253

-12.15%

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

$416 €370

$558 ฿18.7K

-25.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K €16.4K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

60.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.0 €69.3

$62.9 ฿2,102

23.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.74 €33.57

$28.58 ฿955

32.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.6

$96.1 ฿3,213

11.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 €117

$88.1 ฿2,943

49.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$656 €584

$729 ฿24.4K

-10.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$412 €366

$460 ฿15.4K

-10.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 €927

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-50.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$810 €720

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-33.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,167 €1,927

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-37.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,103 €981

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-55.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,068 €950

$493 ฿16.5K

116.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.76

5.57

-14.54%

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

Last update for Santarem: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santarem

$412 31.7%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 11.7% $48

Groceries & Markets

Santarem

$226 17.4%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 18.6% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santarem

$207 15.9%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 38.1% $79

Eating Out

Santarem

$175 13.5%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 30.8% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Santarem

$160 12.3%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 22.4% $36

Getting Around

Santarem

$69 * 5.3%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 43.6% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Santarem

$51 4%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 31.5% $16

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $656 in Santarem and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santarem pays 117% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $39.00 in Santarem vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $226 vs $268, with Santarem cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Santarem

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:04 2:04 AM

08:04 8:04 AM

6 h ahead of Santarem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,671

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

On the map

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Between locations

Santarem Phuket 10,890 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Santarem
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

Santarem vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 8% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 117% higher in Santarem, 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: $656 in Santarem versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $416 in Santarem versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Santarem pay roughly 19% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,300 in Santarem, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Santarem. 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 Santarem, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Santarem and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Santarem. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.