Cost of Living Comparison Between Buff Bay and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Buff Bay and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Buff Bay is 0.4% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 31% cheaper with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Buff Bay is 2.8% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 35.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.68 JMD 1,223

$11.58 MX$212

-33.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.7 JMD 10.1K

$42 MX$769

51.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.96 JMD 790

$10.5 MX$192

-52.76%

Cappuccino

$4.27 JMD 680

$3.43 MX$62.8

24.49%

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

$0.76 JMD 121

$1.49 MX$27.34

-48.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 JMD 105

$0.94 MX$17.27

-29.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.9 JMD 303

$3.08 MX$56.3

-38.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.2 JMD 510

$4.37 MX$79.9

-26.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.29 JMD 683

$1.39 MX$25.44

208.63%

White Bread (500g)

$3.55 JMD 565

$1.85 MX$33.81

91.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 JMD 251

$1.58 MX$28.88

Eggs

$3.58 JMD 570

$2.51 MX$46

42.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.27 JMD 1,795

$8.26 MX$151

36.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.32 JMD 1,007

$8.7 MX$159

-27.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.77 JMD 1,237

$10.73 MX$196

-27.59%

Apples (1kg)

$5.92 JMD 943

$2.61 MX$47.74

126.82%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 JMD 486

$1.49 MX$27.28

104.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.27 JMD 679

$1.95 MX$35.72

118.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.01 JMD 479

$2.09 MX$38.26

44.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.04 JMD 324

$1.81 MX$33.05

12.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 JMD 305

$2.16 MX$39.62

-11.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.97 JMD 473

$1.03 MX$18.85

188.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 JMD 236

$1.08 MX$19.7

37.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.81 JMD 1,403

$4.14 MX$75.9

112.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.29 JMD 1,799

$8.88 MX$163

27.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 JMD 443

$1.67 MX$30.64

66.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 JMD 508

$2.53 MX$46.31

26.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.27

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.68 MX$488

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.08 JMD 172

$3.26 MX$59.7

-66.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.23 JMD 514

$2.51 MX$45.94

28.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 JMD 1,025

$3.12 MX$57.2

106.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.3 JMD 206

$1.31 MX$23.96

-0.76%

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

$43.6K JMD 6.9M

$30.9K MX$565K

41.30%

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

$33.6K JMD 5.4M

$23.9K MX$436.9K

40.87%

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

$164 JMD 26.1K

$83 MX$1,520

97.46%

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

$22.51 JMD 3,585

$22.59 MX$414

-0.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52 JMD 8,283

$29.51 MX$540

76.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 MX$944

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.42 MX$337

Cinema Ticket

$13.04 JMD 2,077

$4.9 MX$89.7

166.12%

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

$224 JMD 35.7K

$200 MX$3,668

11.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,470 JMD 393.5K

$5,179 MX$94.8K

-52.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.34 JMD 4,196

$36.41 MX$667

-27.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.85 JMD 4,118

$39.91 MX$731

-35.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.4 JMD 11.2K

$79.9 MX$1,462

-11.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.5 JMD 12K

$87.7 MX$1,605

-13.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$983 MX$18K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 MX$8,612

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,610 MX$29.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,189 MX$21.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,839 MX$70.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,205 MX$113.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$724 MX$13.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.15

11.42

-19.88%

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

Last update for Buff Bay: December 1, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 30, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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