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

πŸ™‚ Solo nomad: Arrecife is 3.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 26.4% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Arrecife is 22.8% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 4.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.12 €10.46
$11.99 MX$227
1.08%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$51.9 €44.82
$42.47 MX$803
22.25%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.25 €7.98
$10.47 MX$198
-11.65%
Cappuccino
$2.19 €1.89
$3.6 MX$68.2
-39.17%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.11 €1.82
$1.44 MX$27.16
46.53%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.25 €1.08
$0.89 MX$16.79
40.45%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.96 €2.56
$3.09 MX$58.5
-4.21%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.41 €2.95
$4.58 MX$86.6
-25.55%
πŸ›’ Groceries & Markets
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.22 €1.06
$1.38 MX$26.04
-11.59%
White Bread (500g)
$2.02 €1.75
$1.85 MX$34.9
9.19%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.18 €1.02
$1.57 MX$29.68
-24.84%
Eggs
$3.23 €2.79
$2.55 MX$48.3
26.67%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.99 €10.35
$8.61 MX$163
39.26%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.13 €6.16
$8.54 MX$161
-16.51%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.83 €13.67
$10.98 MX$208
44.17%
Apples (1kg)
$2.47 €2.13
$2.72 MX$51.4
-9.19%
Banana (1kg)
$2.43 €2.1
$1.51 MX$28.57
60.93%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.2 €1.9
$1.88 MX$35.63
17.02%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.64 €2.28
$2.19 MX$41.42
20.55%
Potato (1kg)
$2.19 €1.89
$1.87 MX$35.3
17.11%
Onion (1kg)
$2.65 €2.29
$2.19 MX$41.37
21.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.8 €1.56
$1.07 MX$20.23
68.22%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.9 €0.77
$1.09 MX$20.64
-17.43%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.71 €4.06
$3.96 MX$74.9
18.94%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.38 €5.51
$8.86 MX$167
-27.99%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.56 €1.35
$1.72 MX$32.53
-9.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.55 €3.06
$2.61 MX$49.37
36.02%
🚌 Getting Around
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.99 €1.71
$0.52 MX$9.74
282.69%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$23.57 €20.35
$26.59 MX$503
-11.36%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.43 €2.96
$3.24 MX$61.2
5.86%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.04 €1.76
$2.38 MX$44.94
-14.29%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$23.12 €19.96
$3.11 MX$58.7
643.41%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.58 €1.37
$1.31 MX$24.85
20.61%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.2K €33K
$30.3K MX$573K
25.96%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$29.6K €25.6K
$24K MX$453.6K
23.42%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$79.2 €68.4
$84.2 MX$1,592
-5.99%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$20.86 €18.01
$22.14 MX$419
-5.78%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.37 €25.35
$30.14 MX$570
-2.55%
πŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$70.3 €60.7
$52 MX$983
35.23%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.03 €19.88
$18.72 MX$354
23.02%
Cinema Ticket
$8.26 €7.13
$5.07 MX$95.9
62.92%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$533 €460
$200 MX$3,787
166.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,548 €5,654
$5,333 MX$100.8K
22.79%
πŸ‘•πŸ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$104 €89.4
$35.74 MX$676
189.84%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.78 €30.03
$39.8 MX$753
-12.61%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$92.1 €79.5
$79 MX$1,493
16.58%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$148 €128
$88.4 MX$1,671
67.91%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$859 €742
$965 MX$18.3K
-10.99%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$702 €606
$474 MX$8,968
47.93%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,421 €1,227
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-14.04%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,081 €933
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-10.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,487 €3,010
$3,081 MX$58.3K
13.15%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,380 €1,192
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-81.66%
πŸ’΅ Salaries & Financials
Arrecife
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,788 €1,544
$792 MX$15K
125.87%
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: October 28, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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