Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Braga and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,631 in Braga, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Braga outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

79

Cost of Living Index in Braga
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Braga Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Braga

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,631

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,631 in Braga versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Braga $1,631
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,319 in Braga versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Braga $2,319
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,008 in Braga versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Braga $3,008
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Braga is roughly 35% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Braga is 20% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.66 €10.47

$10.92 MX$204

6.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.43 €43.50

$43.37 MX$808

11.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.09 €8.17

$11.78 MX$220

-22.84%

Cappuccino

$1.98 €1.77

$3.81 MX$71.0

-48.03%

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

$2.10 €1.89

$1.28 MX$23.90

64.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.06

$0.78 MX$14.59

52.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.38 €3.04

$3.17 MX$59.0

6.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.31

$4.93 MX$92.0

-47.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 €0.93

$1.41 MX$26.22

-26.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.75 €1.57

$2.22 MX$41.33

-21.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 €1.47

$1.42 MX$26.42

15.49%

Eggs

$3.22 €2.89

$2.52 MX$47.03

27.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.65 €8.67

$7.26 MX$135

32.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.91 €7.10

$7.70 MX$143

2.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.90 €13.39

$12.69 MX$237

17.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.43 €2.18

$2.78 MX$51.9

-12.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 €1.25

$1.37 MX$25.50

2.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 €1.62

$2.55 MX$47.55

-29.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.57

$2.12 MX$39.58

35.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.94 MX$36.13

-1.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.03 €1.82

$1.89 MX$35.16

7.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.15 MX$21.37

18.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.88

$1.18 MX$21.98

-16.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.69 €6.01

$4.30 MX$80.1

55.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.89 €4.39

$9.95 MX$185

-50.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 €1.05

$1.58 MX$29.52

-25.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 €1.41

$2.67 MX$49.79

-41.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.75 €1.57

$0.55 MX$10.31

218.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.57 €20.27

$26.62 MX$496

-15.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.20 €3.78

$4.97 MX$92.6

-15.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 €1.48

$3.33 MX$62.1

-50.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.81 €15.10

$5.36 MX$99.8

213.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 €2.00

$1.44 MX$26.92

54.86%

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

$34.1K €30.6K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

64.82%

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

$37.6K €33.7K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

60.03%

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

$106 €95.1

$84.8 MX$1,581

24.87%

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

$17.15 €15.41

$23.41 MX$436

-26.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.37 €39.85

$28.66 MX$534

54.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.79 €40.24

$57.1 MX$1,063

-21.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.29 €11.93

$28.91 MX$539

-54.03%

Cinema Ticket

$8.90 €7.99

$5.14 MX$95.8

73.15%

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

$302 €271

$207 MX$3,851

46.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,138 €8,208

$3,927 MX$73.2K

132.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.0 €62.0

$43.35 MX$808

59.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.61 €34.68

$41.44 MX$772

-6.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.0 €75.5

$74.2 MX$1,383

13.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 €92.9

$89.3 MX$1,664

15.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$992 €891

$980 MX$18.3K

1.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$798 €717

$381 MX$7,099

109.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,481 €1,330

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-13.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,111 €998

$1,075 MX$20.0K

3.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,616 €2,350

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-33.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,031 €1,824

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-67.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,241 €1,115

$735 MX$13.7K

69.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.47

11.45

-69.69%

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

Last update for Braga: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Braga

$798 49%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 52.3% $417

Groceries & Markets

Braga

$248 15.2%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 2.6% $6.5

Eating Out

Braga

$179 11%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 12.8% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Braga

$167 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 18.2% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Braga

$133 8.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 15.9% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Braga

$63 3.8%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 7.6% $4.7

Getting Around

Braga

$42 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 20.2% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $992 in Braga and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Braga pays 69% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Braga vs $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $248 vs $255, with Braga cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Braga

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

19:00 7:00 PM

14:00 2:00 PM

5 h behind Braga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

193,349

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Braga Playa del Carmen 7,580 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Braga
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

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

Braga and Playa del Carmen differ by about 35% in total monthly costs ($1,631 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 69% higher in Braga, 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: $992 in Braga versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $302 in Braga versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Braga pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,631 in Braga, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Braga. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Braga on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.