Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Changchun and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Changchun: $904 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Changchun
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Changchun Living Index
59

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

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Changchun

🇨🇳 China

$904

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $904 in Changchun versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Changchun $904
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,324 in Changchun versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Changchun $1,324
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,743 in Changchun versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Changchun $1,743
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Changchun costs roughly 25% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Changchun 33% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.02 ¥20.22

$10.86 MX$201

-72.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.15 ¥148

$44.21 MX$817

-49.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.19 ¥34.68

$11.76 MX$217

-55.87%

Cappuccino

$2.40 ¥16.02

$3.68 MX$68.0

-34.78%

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

$0.47 ¥3.14

$1.34 MX$24.79

-64.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ¥2.10

$0.82 MX$15.24

-62.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ¥8.12

$3.06 MX$56.6

-60.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ¥12.74

$4.94 MX$91.2

-61.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ¥12.70

$1.47 MX$27.17

29.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ¥8.16

$2.22 MX$40.95

-45.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 ¥9.65

$1.48 MX$27.32

-2.70%

Eggs

$1.81 ¥12.12

$2.49 MX$45.99

-27.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$34.55 ¥231

$7.52 MX$139

359.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.71 ¥38.15

$7.96 MX$147

-28.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.36 ¥69.3

$12.57 MX$232

-17.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.72 ¥11.51

$2.78 MX$51.3

-38.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ¥9.71

$1.43 MX$26.37

1.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 ¥12.05

$2.62 MX$48.37

-31.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.89 ¥12.66

$2.14 MX$39.49

-11.68%

Potato (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.95

$2.02 MX$37.38

-55.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.89

$1.14 MX$21.01

-49.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 ¥9.80

$1.20 MX$22.18

22.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.78 ¥25.28

$4.26 MX$78.7

-11.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.06 ¥141

$10.02 MX$185

110.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ¥6.13

$1.54 MX$28.41

-40.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 ¥7.37

$2.66 MX$49.17

-58.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 ¥2.92

$0.53 MX$9.73

-16.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 ¥8.26

$4.90 MX$90.6

-74.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 ¥2.09

$3.43 MX$63.5

-90.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ¥20.18

$5.38 MX$99.4

-43.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.58

$1.45 MX$26.76

-11.72%

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

$19.3K ¥129.3K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

-8.58%

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

$17.8K ¥118.9K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

-22.75%

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

$76.7 ¥513

$85.4 MX$1,577

-10.18%

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

$4.43 ¥29.63

$23.46 MX$434

-81.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.76 ¥98.7

$28.43 MX$525

-48.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.44 ¥250

$62.2 MX$1,149

-39.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.13 ¥27.59

$28.68 MX$530

-85.60%

Cinema Ticket

$6.64 ¥44.42

$5.10 MX$94.3

30.20%

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

$553 ¥3,701

$201 MX$3,715

175.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.9K ¥146.1K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

453.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.7 ¥493

$44.39 MX$820

66.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.44 ¥297

$41.35 MX$764

7.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.2 ¥402

$72.7 MX$1,344

-17.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.7 ¥466

$89.6 MX$1,656

-22.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$216 ¥1,446

$979 MX$18.1K

-77.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 ¥1,648

$373 MX$6,887

-33.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$576 ¥3,848

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-65.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$308 ¥2,057

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-71.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,668 ¥11.2K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-57.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,006 ¥6,728

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-83.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$961 ¥6,423

$738 MX$13.6K

30.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

11.45

-61.83%

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

Last update for Changchun: October 20, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Changchun

$313 * 34.6%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 17.4% $55

Accommodation & Living

Changchun

$246 27.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 51.2% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Changchun

$112 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 0% $0

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Changchun

$96 10.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 43.2% $41

Eating Out

Changchun

$82 9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 146% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Changchun

$51 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 42.7% $22

Getting Around

Changchun

$4.5 * 0.5%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 1039% $47

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $216 in Changchun and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Changchun pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $22.00 in Changchun vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $313 vs $258, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Changchun

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

23:04 11:04 PM

10:04 10:04 AM

13 h behind Changchun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,066,906

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 25, 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 25, 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

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Between locations

Changchun Playa del Carmen 12,120 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Changchun
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

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

Changchun is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 33% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 30% higher in Changchun, 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: $216 in Changchun versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $553 in Changchun versus $201 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Changchun – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $904 in Changchun versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Changchun but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Changchun the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Changchun is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Playa del Carmen, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Changchun gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.