Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Beihai and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Beihai: $744 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Beihai
Learn more

Beihai Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Beihai

🇨🇳 China

$744

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $744 per month in Beihai vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Beihai $744
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,167 per month in Beihai vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Beihai $1,167
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $1,590 per month in Beihai vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Beihai $1,590
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Beihai is about 39% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Beihai and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Beihai 45% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.40 ¥22.74

$10.76 MX$199

-68.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.56 ¥131

$43.03 MX$795

-54.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.58 ¥37.30

$11.79 MX$218

-52.67%

Cappuccino

$2.43 ¥16.28

$3.87 MX$71.4

-37.21%

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

$0.46 ¥3.09

$1.37 MX$25.29

-66.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ¥1.99

$0.84 MX$15.44

-64.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ¥8.13

$3.10 MX$57.3

-60.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.34

$5.07 MX$93.6

-54.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ¥12.68

$1.44 MX$26.55

31.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 ¥11.36

$2.23 MX$41.23

-23.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.10 ¥7.33

$1.47 MX$27.17

-25.17%

Eggs

$1.87 ¥12.53

$2.53 MX$46.71

-26.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.95 ¥93.3

$7.30 MX$135

91.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.92 ¥19.54

$7.86 MX$145

-62.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.58 ¥70.8

$12.79 MX$236

-17.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 ¥14.02

$2.90 MX$53.6

-27.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 ¥9.91

$1.44 MX$26.53

2.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 ¥10.19

$2.55 MX$47.07

-40.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ¥8.47

$2.06 MX$38.03

-38.35%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$2.00 MX$36.97

-63.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 ¥6.45

$2.01 MX$37.07

-51.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.47

$1.19 MX$22.02

-43.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ¥3.33

$1.26 MX$23.23

-60.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.39 ¥22.70

$4.40 MX$81.4

-22.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.05 ¥80.6

$9.59 MX$177

25.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.95

$1.59 MX$29.41

-53.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 ¥11.10

$2.81 MX$51.9

-40.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 ¥2.02

$0.57 MX$10.47

-47.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.17 ¥115

$27.82 MX$514

-38.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 ¥10.42

$4.98 MX$92.1

-68.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 ¥2.08

$3.50 MX$64.6

-91.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.21 ¥41.52

$5.40 MX$99.8

15.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 ¥9.31

$1.47 MX$27.08

-5.44%

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

$18.2K ¥121.6K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-13.35%

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

$18.2K ¥121.9K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-23.72%

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

$61.5 ¥411

$84.2 MX$1,556

-26.93%

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

$9.42 ¥63.0

$23.99 MX$443

-60.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.09 ¥80.8

$29.02 MX$536

-58.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.99 ¥274

$63.0 MX$1,164

-34.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.01 ¥93.7

$29.14 MX$539

-51.92%

Cinema Ticket

$5.71 ¥38.19

$4.94 MX$91.3

15.59%

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

$458 ¥3,064

$204 MX$3,763

125.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K ¥122.5K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

365.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.58 ¥325

$43.60 MX$806

11.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.03 ¥254

$43.12 MX$797

-11.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 ¥534

$75.8 MX$1,400

5.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 ¥528

$88.6 MX$1,637

-10.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$279 ¥1,862

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-72.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$178 ¥1,190

$374 MX$6,911

-52.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$718 ¥4,803

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-57.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 ¥2,221

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-69.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,665 ¥24.5K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-7.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,221 ¥14.8K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-64.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

11.45

-70.66%

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

Last update for Beihai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Beihai

$212 28.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 22% $47

Accommodation & Living

Beihai

$178 23.9%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 110% $196

Clothing & Footwear

Beihai

$110 14.9%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 2.3% $2.5

Eating Out

Beihai

$87 11.7%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 133% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Beihai

$83 11.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 65.2% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Beihai

$52 7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 39% $20

Getting Around

Beihai

$22 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 145% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $279 in Beihai versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Beihai versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $212 vs $258 – making Beihai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Beihai

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

17:17 5:17 PM

04:17 4:17 AM

13 h behind Beihai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,617,500

149,923

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Beihai Playa del Carmen 15,010 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Beihai
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

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

Playa del Carmen costs about 63% more than Beihai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,116 per month in Beihai and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Beihai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 22% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Beihai and $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Beihai, where all-in costs run around $744, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Beihai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Beihai costs $744 versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Beihai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.