Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varadero and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Varadero: $1,172 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. The total is higher in Phuket despite lower rent and utilities.

56

Cost of Living Index in Varadero
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Varadero Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Varadero

🇨🇺 Cuba

$1,172

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,172 in Varadero versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Varadero $1,172
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,542 in Varadero versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Varadero $1,542
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,913 in Varadero versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Varadero $1,913
Phuket $3,115

Living in Varadero costs roughly 9% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Varadero 13% lower, Phuket 4% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.51 CUP 84.2

$4.39 ฿147

-20.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.38 CUP 489

$32.31 ฿1,078

-36.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.89 CUP 117

$8.70 ฿290

-43.79%

Cappuccino

$1.06 CUP 25.43

$2.72 ฿90.9

-61.03%

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

$1.57 CUP 37.69

$0.93 ฿31.06

68.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.01 CUP 24.16

$0.50 ฿16.67

102.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.17 CUP 28.06

$2.53 ฿84.5

-53.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 CUP 49.13

$3.63 ฿121

-43.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.68 CUP 64.2

$1.74 ฿58.1

54.02%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 CUP 33.94

$1.45 ฿48.42

-2.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 CUP 36.40

$1.50 ฿50.1

1.33%

Eggs

$2.22 CUP 53.3

$2.17 ฿72.5

2.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.50 CUP 108

$19.09 ฿637

-76.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.53 CUP 109

$3.40 ฿113

33.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.30 CUP 199

$10.90 ฿364

-23.85%

Apples (1kg)

$3.48 CUP 83.6

$2.94 ฿98.2

18.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 CUP 25.03

$1.69 ฿56.5

-38.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 CUP 36.29

$2.19 ฿73.2

-31.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 CUP 36.63

$2.12 ฿70.9

-27.83%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 CUP 51.2

$1.46 ฿48.68

45.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.68 CUP 64.4

$1.37 ฿45.66

95.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 CUP 16.11

$1.08 ฿35.91

-37.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 CUP 12.75

$0.55 ฿18.21

-3.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.69 CUP 40.45

$4.43 ฿148

-61.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.34 CUP 128

$18.25 ฿609

-70.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 CUP 21.67

$1.77 ฿59.2

-49.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 CUP 51.0

$2.88 ฿96.2

-26.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.11 CUP 2.75

$1.45 ฿48.32

-92.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.49 CUP 372

$54.9 ฿1,832

-71.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.98 CUP 47.44

$1.51 ฿50.5

31.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 CUP 8.80

$0.78 ฿25.90

-52.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.69 CUP 473

$3.84 ฿128

412.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 CUP 30.32

$1.49 ฿49.65

-15.44%

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

$70.3K CUP 1.7M

$26.9K ฿897.3K

161.41%

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

$80.7K CUP 1.9M

$26.3K ฿879.4K

206.31%

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

$40.71 CUP 977

$97.8 ฿3,265

-58.38%

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

$38.72 CUP 929

$11.29 ฿377

242.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$90.1 CUP 2,162

$17.19 ฿574

423.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.51 CUP 972

$68.3 ฿2,281

-40.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.73 CUP 354

$10.92 ฿365

34.89%

Cinema Ticket

$0.88 CUP 21.18

$7.43 ฿248

-88.16%

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

$88.6 CUP 2,126

$530 ฿17.7K

-83.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K CUP 299.9K

$18.8K ฿626.9K

-33.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.43 CUP 946

$61.7 ฿2,059

-36.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.19 CUP 725

$28.25 ฿943

6.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.3 CUP 1,831

$96.0 ฿3,204

-20.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.5 CUP 1,619

$86.8 ฿2,898

-22.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 CUP 11.9K

$721 ฿24.1K

-31.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$574 CUP 13.8K

$509 ฿17.0K

12.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 CUP 28.5K

$1,950 ฿65.1K

-39.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 CUP 15.4K

$1,397 ฿46.6K

-54.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$398 CUP 9,548

$4,192 ฿139.9K

-90.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$343 CUP 8,238

$3,298 ฿110.1K

-89.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$19.44 CUP 467

$492 ฿16.4K

-96.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

5.57

63.38%

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

Last update for Varadero: November 1, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Varadero

$574 49%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 11.3% $65

Groceries & Markets

Varadero

$195 16.6%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 37.2% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varadero

$170 14.5%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 25.5% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Varadero

$96 8.2%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 27.8% $27

Eating Out

Varadero

$76 6.5%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 57.9% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Varadero

$42 3.6%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 96.7% $41

Getting Around

Varadero

$20 1.7%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 234% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $494 in Varadero and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays about 25 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $20 in Varadero vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $195 vs $267 per month, with Varadero cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇺 Varadero

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

11:21 11:21 AM

23:21 11:21 PM

12 h ahead of Varadero

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

27,170

79,308

💱 Currency

Cuban Peso CUP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

100 THB = 3 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CUP – Cuban Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇺 Cuban Peso ($)

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.97 CUP (100 CUP = 3.71 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 CUP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Varadero Phuket 16,560 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Varadero
Phuket

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Varadero vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Varadero is about 9% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 96% lower in Varadero. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $494 in Varadero versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $89 in Varadero versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Varadero is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Varadero gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.