Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Coast and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Cape Coast and in Playa del Carmen: $1,261 and $1,210 a month, rent and utilities included.

61

Cost of Living Index in Cape Coast
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Cape Coast Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Cape Coast

🇬🇭 Ghana

$1,261

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,261 per month in Cape Coast vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Cape Coast $1,261
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,989 per month in Cape Coast vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Cape Coast $1,989
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $2,716 per month in Cape Coast vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Cape Coast $2,716
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Cape Coast costs about 4% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Cape Coast and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Cape Coast 7% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.15 GHS 94.8

$10.76 MX$199

-24.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.9 GHS 603

$43.03 MX$795

20.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.18 GHS 118

$11.79 MX$218

-13.66%

Cappuccino

$4.45 GHS 51.7

$3.87 MX$71.4

14.99%

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

$1.57 GHS 18.27

$1.37 MX$25.29

14.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 GHS 5.19

$0.84 MX$15.44

-46.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 GHS 21.40

$3.10 MX$57.3

-40.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 GHS 25.56

$5.07 MX$93.6

-56.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.64 GHS 42.35

$1.44 MX$26.55

152.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 GHS 19.47

$2.23 MX$41.23

-25.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 GHS 35.70

$1.47 MX$27.17

108.84%

Eggs

$2.55 GHS 29.68

$2.53 MX$46.71

0.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.01 GHS 140

$7.30 MX$135

64.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.04 GHS 81.8

$7.86 MX$145

-10.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.76 GHS 114

$12.79 MX$236

-23.69%

Apples (1kg)

$3.57 GHS 41.48

$2.90 MX$53.6

23.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 GHS 16.10

$1.44 MX$26.53

-4.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 GHS 20.53

$2.55 MX$47.07

-30.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.63 GHS 42.26

$2.06 MX$38.03

76.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.77 GHS 32.22

$2.00 MX$36.97

38.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 GHS 31.82

$2.01 MX$37.07

36.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 GHS 8.06

$1.19 MX$22.02

-42.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 GHS 7.00

$1.26 MX$23.23

-52.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.50 GHS 29.13

$4.40 MX$81.4

-43.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.32 GHS 85.1

$9.59 MX$177

-23.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 GHS 14.86

$1.59 MX$29.41

-19.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 GHS 27.71

$2.81 MX$51.9

-15.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.73 GHS 20.07

$4.98 MX$92.1

-65.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 GHS 14.50

$3.50 MX$64.6

-64.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.26 GHS 49.55

$5.40 MX$99.8

-21.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 GHS 14.98

$1.47 MX$27.08

-12.24%

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

$7,862 GHS 91.4K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-62.53%

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

$9,880 GHS 114.9K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-58.67%

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

$73.2 GHS 851

$84.2 MX$1,556

-13.12%

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

$19.55 GHS 227

$23.99 MX$443

-18.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.07 GHS 501

$29.02 MX$536

48.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$12.92 GHS 150

$4.94 MX$91.3

161.54%

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

$466 GHS 5,421

$204 MX$3,763

128.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K GHS 217.7K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

374.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.04 GHS 163

$43.60 MX$806

-67.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.28 GHS 213

$43.12 MX$797

-57.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.79 GHS 428

$75.8 MX$1,400

-51.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.0 GHS 616

$88.6 MX$1,637

-40.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$608 GHS 7,076

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-39.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 GHS 6,848

$374 MX$6,911

57.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,230 GHS 14.3K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-28.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 GHS 13.0K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

1.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

26.75

11.45

133.62%

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

Last update for Cape Coast: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Cape Coast

$589 46.7%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 36.5% $215

Groceries & Markets

Cape Coast

$277 22%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 6.7% $19

Eating Out

Cape Coast

$171 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 18.4% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Coast

$136 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 1% $1.4

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Coast

$55 4.4%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 106% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Coast

$26 * 2.1%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 182% $47

Getting Around

Cape Coast

$8 * 0.6%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 560% $45

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $608 in Cape Coast 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 $52.0 in Cape Coast versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $277 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇭 Cape Coast

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

10:26 10:26 AM

05:26 5:26 AM

5 h behind Cape Coast

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

155,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 GHS = 8.6 USD

100 GHS = 7.65 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GHS – Ghanaian Cedi Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇭 Ghanaian Cedi (₵)

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 11.63 GHS (100 GHS = 8.6 USD). 1 EUR = 13.07 GHS (100 GHS = 7.65 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GHS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cape Coast Playa del Carmen 9,380 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Coast
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

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

Yes – Cape Coast is pricier by about 4%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,892 per month in Cape Coast 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,261 in Cape Coast and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 4%.

Kindergarten costs $466 per month in Cape Coast and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Cape Coast at $1,261. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Coast it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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