Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aliso Viejo, CA and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $3,964 in Aliso Viejo, CA, rent and utilities included – about $33,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in Aliso Viejo, CA
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Aliso Viejo, CA Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Aliso Viejo, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,964

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aliso Viejo, CA and in Playa del Carmen

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aliso Viejo, CA and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,964 in Aliso Viejo, CA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Aliso Viejo, CA $3,964
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $6,003 in Aliso Viejo, CA versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Aliso Viejo, CA $6,003
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $8,043 in Aliso Viejo, CA versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Aliso Viejo, CA $8,043
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Aliso Viejo, CA is roughly 229% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Aliso Viejo, CA is 193% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.73 $24.73

$10.86 MX$201

127.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.4 $98.4

$44.21 MX$817

122.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.32 $14.32

$11.76 MX$217

21.77%

Cappuccino

$5.91 $5.91

$3.68 MX$68.0

60.60%

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

$3.51 $3.51

$1.34 MX$24.79

161.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.80 $2.80

$0.82 MX$15.24

241.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.22 $8.22

$3.06 MX$56.6

168.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.94 $9.94

$4.94 MX$91.2

101.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 $1.15

$1.47 MX$27.17

-21.77%

White Bread (500g)

$4.77 $4.77

$2.22 MX$40.95

114.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.72 $4.72

$1.48 MX$27.32

218.92%

Eggs

$5.08 $5.08

$2.49 MX$45.99

104.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 $11.33

$7.52 MX$139

50.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.09 $16.09

$7.96 MX$147

102.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.67 $17.67

$12.57 MX$232

40.57%

Apples (1kg)

$5.50 $5.50

$2.78 MX$51.3

97.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 $1.73

$1.43 MX$26.37

20.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.68 $4.68

$2.62 MX$48.37

78.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.62 $6.62

$2.14 MX$39.49

209.35%

Potato (1kg)

$3.61 $3.61

$2.02 MX$37.38

78.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.81 $2.81

$1.99 MX$36.74

41.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.14 MX$21.01

92.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 $2.43

$1.20 MX$22.18

102.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.92 $11.92

$4.26 MX$78.7

179.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.26 $15.26

$10.02 MX$185

52.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 $1.81

$1.54 MX$28.41

17.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 $3.11

$2.66 MX$49.17

16.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.07 $3.07

$0.53 MX$9.73

479.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.47 $4.47

$4.90 MX$90.6

-8.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 $1.91

$3.43 MX$63.5

-44.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.04 $32.04

$5.38 MX$99.4

495.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.45 MX$26.76

9.66%

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

$35.0K $35.0K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

65.38%

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

$27.0K $27.0K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

17.37%

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

$212 $212

$85.4 MX$1,577

148.16%

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

$71.5 $71.5

$23.46 MX$434

204.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.3 $71.3

$28.43 MX$525

150.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.84 $38.84

$62.2 MX$1,149

-37.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$17.19 $17.19

$5.10 MX$94.3

237.06%

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

$1,698 $1,698

$201 MX$3,715

744.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.8K $31.8K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

705.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.5 $72.5

$44.39 MX$820

63.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.1 $65.1

$41.35 MX$764

57.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 $116

$72.7 MX$1,344

59.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$169 $169

$89.6 MX$1,656

89.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,908 $2,908

$979 MX$18.1K

196.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,466 $2,466

$373 MX$6,887

561.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,191 $4,191

$1,681 MX$31.1K

149.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,644 $4,644

$1,095 MX$20.2K

324.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,007 $7,007

$3,949 MX$73.0K

77.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,500 $6,500

$6,137 MX$113.4K

5.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,985 $7,985

$738 MX$13.6K

982.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.86

11.45

-40.09%

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

Last update for Aliso Viejo, CA: October 18, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Aliso Viejo, CA

$2.5K 62.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 84.9% $2.1K

Groceries & Markets

Aliso Viejo, CA

$456 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 43.3% $197

Eating Out

Aliso Viejo, CA

$398 10%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 49.7% $198

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aliso Viejo, CA

$355 8.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 61.3% $217

Clothing & Footwear

Aliso Viejo, CA

$190 4.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 41.4% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Aliso Viejo, CA

$73 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 1.1% $0.8

Getting Around

Aliso Viejo, CA

$26 * 0.7%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 96.4% $25

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 $2,908 in Aliso Viejo, CA and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aliso Viejo, CA pays 983% 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: $98.0 in Aliso Viejo, CA vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $456 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Aliso Viejo, CA

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

23:02 11:02 PM

01:02 1:02 AM

2 h ahead of Aliso Viejo, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

41,489

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aliso Viejo, CA Playa del Carmen 3,340 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Aliso Viejo, CA
Playa del Carmen

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

Aliso Viejo, CA vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aliso Viejo, CA and Playa del Carmen differ by about 229% in total monthly costs ($3,964 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 983% higher in Aliso Viejo, CA, 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: $2,908 in Aliso Viejo, CA versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 76% higher in Aliso Viejo, CA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $3,964 per month in Aliso Viejo, CA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 229% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,964 in Aliso Viejo, CA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Aliso Viejo, CA. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen 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.

Safety-wise, Aliso Viejo, CA and Playa del Carmen 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 Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 229% less than in Aliso Viejo, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.