Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barbacena and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Barbacena: $802 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Barbacena
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Barbacena Living Index
57

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

Jump to prices

Barbacena

🇧🇷 Brazil

$802

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barbacena 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 Barbacena and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $802 in Barbacena versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Barbacena $802
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,218 in Barbacena versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Barbacena $1,218
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,634 in Barbacena versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Barbacena $1,634
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Barbacena costs roughly 33% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Barbacena 41% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.99 R$27.23

$10.67 MX$199

-53.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.83 R$108

$43.80 MX$815

-54.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.48 R$29.93

$11.79 MX$219

-53.52%

Cappuccino

$1.62 R$8.86

$3.79 MX$70.5

-57.26%

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

$1.42 R$7.77

$1.30 MX$24.14

9.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 R$4.78

$0.83 MX$15.51

6.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 R$6.67

$3.15 MX$58.6

-61.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 R$11.42

$4.93 MX$91.8

-57.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 R$5.76

$1.41 MX$26.22

-25.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.92 R$10.50

$2.20 MX$40.86

-12.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.24

$1.47 MX$27.40

-22.45%

Eggs

$2.15 R$11.75

$2.50 MX$46.46

-14.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.29 R$56.2

$7.29 MX$136

41.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.02 R$21.97

$7.95 MX$148

-49.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 R$50.8

$12.86 MX$239

-27.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 R$14.39

$2.90 MX$53.9

-9.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R$9.36

$1.38 MX$25.74

23.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 R$8.11

$2.49 MX$46.35

-40.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 R$9.47

$2.03 MX$37.77

-14.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.20

$2.02 MX$37.68

-43.56%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 R$5.22

$1.90 MX$35.42

-49.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 R$3.79

$1.14 MX$21.30

-39.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 R$3.57

$1.24 MX$23.05

-47.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.70 R$14.77

$4.27 MX$79.5

-36.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.40 R$40.40

$9.81 MX$183

-24.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R$6.24

$1.59 MX$29.51

-28.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 R$12.70

$2.75 MX$51.1

-15.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 R$5.17

$0.51 MX$9.58

86.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.13 R$225

$27.39 MX$510

50.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 R$6.36

$4.76 MX$88.6

-75.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 R$4.60

$3.25 MX$60.5

-74.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.75 R$47.77

$5.39 MX$100

62.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.79

$1.53 MX$28.44

-18.95%

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

$21.7K R$118.6K

$21.2K MX$394.8K

2.35%

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

$31.8K R$173.8K

$23.3K MX$432.9K

36.81%

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

$127 R$694

$83.5 MX$1,554

52.33%

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

$10.06 R$54.9

$23.19 MX$431

-56.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.32 R$116

$27.61 MX$514

-22.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.54 R$134

$56.4 MX$1,050

-56.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.69 R$140

$28.19 MX$525

-8.87%

Cinema Ticket

$7.63 R$41.68

$5.00 MX$93.1

52.60%

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

$561 R$3,064

$207 MX$3,854

170.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K R$67.0K

$5,231 MX$97.3K

134.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.49 R$210

$43.45 MX$809

-11.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.66 R$255

$42.54 MX$792

9.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.2 R$383

$72.8 MX$1,354

-3.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$63.6 R$347

$88.4 MX$1,645

-28.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$215 R$1,175

$995 MX$18.5K

-78.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$158 R$863

$382 MX$7,116

-58.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R$2,166

$1,674 MX$31.2K

-76.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$284 R$1,553

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-73.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,575 R$8,598

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-59.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,147 R$6,265

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-81.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.93

11.45

4.19%

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

Last update for Barbacena: October 31, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Barbacena

$201 25.1%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 28.1% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barbacena

$159 19.8%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 15.3% $24

Accommodation & Living

Barbacena

$158 19.7%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 142% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Barbacena

$99 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 12.9% $13

Eating Out

Barbacena

$95 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 110% $105

Getting Around

Barbacena

$50 6.3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 0.3% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Barbacena

$40 5%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 66.9% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $215 in Barbacena and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $20 in Barbacena vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $257 per month, with Barbacena cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Barbacena

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

09:29 9:29 AM

2 h behind Barbacena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

125,317

149,923

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.11 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barbacena Playa del Carmen 6,620 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barbacena
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

Barbacena vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $802 in Barbacena and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, so Barbacena is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,202 in Barbacena and $1,804 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $215 in Barbacena versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $802 per month in Barbacena versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen – Barbacena is about 33% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 33% less than in Barbacena. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $802 in Barbacena versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Barbacena but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Barbacena 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.