Cost of Living Comparison Between Arrecife and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Arrecife and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Arrecife is 0.3% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 25% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Arrecife is 9.8% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 4.7% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.10 €10.33
$11.85 MX$205
2.11%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$51.7 €44.16
$42.16 MX$730
22.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.43 €8.05
$10.75 MX$186
-12.28%
Cappuccino
$2.27 €1.94
$3.47 MX$60.2
-34.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.11 €1.81
$1.45 MX$25.17
45.52%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.20 €1.02
$0.90 MX$15.64
33.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.96 €2.53
$3.05 MX$52.9
-2.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.41 €2.91
$4.42 MX$76.5
-22.85%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.19 €1.02
$1.37 MX$23.72
-13.14%
White Bread (500g)
$2.14 €1.83
$1.87 MX$32.43
14.44%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.18 €1.01
$1.54 MX$26.74
-23.38%
Eggs
$3.33 €2.84
$2.50 MX$43.36
33.20%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.91 €10.17
$8.61 MX$149
38.33%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.43 €6.34
$8.63 MX$150
-13.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.73 €13.43
$11.02 MX$191
42.74%
Apples (1kg)
$2.42 €2.07
$2.75 MX$47.62
-12.00%
Banana (1kg)
$2.55 €2.18
$1.43 MX$24.73
78.32%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.21 €1.89
$1.87 MX$32.44
18.18%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.63 €2.24
$2.17 MX$37.54
21.20%
Potato (1kg)
$2.21 €1.89
$1.88 MX$32.61
17.55%
Onion (1kg)
$2.76 €2.36
$2.25 MX$38.91
22.67%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.81 €1.55
$1.07 MX$18.49
69.16%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.95 €0.81
$1.07 MX$18.59
-11.21%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.56 €3.90
$4.15 MX$72.0
9.88%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.88 €5.87
$10.34 MX$179
-33.46%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.60 €1.37
$1.68 MX$29.08
-4.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.45 €2.95
$2.48 MX$43.02
39.11%
🚌 Getting Around
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.94 €1.66
$0.55 MX$9.61
252.73%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$23.11 €19.73
$26.53 MX$459
-12.89%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.38 €2.89
$3.22 MX$55.7
4.97%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.13 €1.82
$2.48 MX$42.98
-14.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$23.09 €19.72
$3.11 MX$53.9
642.44%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.67 €1.43
$1.26 MX$21.75
32.54%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.6K €32.9K
$30.7K MX$531.0K
25.84%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.3K €25.9K
$24.0K MX$416.4K
26.15%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$80.8 €69.0
$82.5 MX$1,429
-2.00%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$20.76 €17.73
$22.29 MX$386
-6.86%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.58 €25.26
$30.02 MX$520
-1.47%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$69.8 €59.6
$51.4 MX$891
35.69%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.44 €20.01
$18.29 MX$317
28.16%
Cinema Ticket
$8.29 €7.08
$4.98 MX$86.3
66.47%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$531 €454
$200 MX$3,464
165.64%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,368 €5,438
$5,304 MX$91.9K
20.05%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$104 €89.0
$35.71 MX$618
191.85%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.27 €29.27
$39.56 MX$685
-13.37%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$91.0 €77.7
$80.6 MX$1,395
12.97%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$146 €125
$88.3 MX$1,530
65.70%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$882 €753
$969 MX$16.8K
-9.00%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$706 €603
$482 MX$8,352
46.45%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,438 €1,228
$1,595 MX$27.6K
-9.87%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,059 €905
$1,184 MX$20.5K
-10.52%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,555 €3,036
$4,050 MX$70.1K
-12.24%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,381 €1,180
$6,522 MX$113.0K
-78.82%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,778 €1,518
$756 MX$13.1K
135.00%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.43
11.42
-69.96%

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

Last update for Arrecife: March 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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