Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Charlottetown and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,957 in Charlottetown, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

95

Cost of Living Index in Charlottetown
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Charlottetown Living Index
60

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

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Charlottetown

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,957

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,957 per month in Charlottetown vs $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Charlottetown $1,957
Playa del Carmen $1,215

A couple spends around $2,920 per month in Charlottetown vs $2,144 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Charlottetown $2,920
Playa del Carmen $2,144

A family of three spends $3,882 per month in Charlottetown vs $3,072 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Charlottetown $3,882
Playa del Carmen $3,072

Charlottetown costs about 61% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Charlottetown sits 46% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 9% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.00 CA$19.95

$10.97 MX$201

27.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.2 CA$84.3

$44.85 MX$823

31.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.23 CA$13.16

$11.92 MX$219

-22.57%

Cappuccino

$3.57 CA$5.08

$3.80 MX$69.9

-6.05%

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

$1.73 CA$2.46

$1.31 MX$24.08

32.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 CA$1.84

$0.86 MX$15.72

50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.52 CA$7.87

$3.21 MX$59.0

71.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.57 CA$7.94

$5.01 MX$92.0

11.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.23 CA$3.18

$1.46 MX$26.77

52.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.99 CA$4.27

$2.33 MX$42.72

28.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.85 CA$6.91

$1.44 MX$26.48

236.81%

Eggs

$3.90 CA$5.56

$2.46 MX$45.20

58.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.34 CA$16.16

$7.70 MX$141

47.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.86 CA$21.18

$7.89 MX$145

88.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.99 CA$24.22

$12.80 MX$235

32.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.52 CA$5.02

$2.92 MX$53.6

20.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 CA$2.07

$1.42 MX$26.11

2.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.91 CA$5.57

$2.57 MX$47.10

52.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.72 CA$6.73

$2.14 MX$39.24

120.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.72 CA$2.45

$1.95 MX$35.75

-11.79%

Onion (1kg)

$3.12 CA$4.44

$1.94 MX$35.55

60.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.67 CA$3.81

$1.15 MX$21.13

132.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.03 CA$2.90

$1.22 MX$22.42

66.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.45 CA$24.87

$4.38 MX$80.3

298.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.70 CA$19.52

$9.85 MX$181

39.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.25 CA$4.64

$1.54 MX$28.23

111.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 CA$4.41

$2.72 MX$49.86

13.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.42 CA$2.03

$0.52 MX$9.64

173.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.18 CA$20.21

$27.42 MX$503

-48.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.29 CA$10.39

$4.91 MX$90.2

48.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 CA$2.93

$3.52 MX$64.7

-41.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.61 CA$39.35

$5.69 MX$104

385.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 CA$1.77

$1.54 MX$28.27

-19.48%

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

$27.6K CA$39.3K

$21.2K MX$389.9K

29.96%

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

$18.3K CA$26.1K

$24.5K MX$449.6K

-25.11%

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

$124 CA$177

$83.6 MX$1,535

48.38%

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

$32.57 CA$46.42

$24.03 MX$441

35.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.0 CA$104

$29.33 MX$539

148.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.9 CA$81.1

$64.9 MX$1,191

-12.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.55 CA$5.06

$29.46 MX$541

-87.95%

Cinema Ticket

$10.57 CA$15.07

$5.09 MX$93.4

107.66%

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

$157 CA$224

$208 MX$3,813

-24.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.61 CA$56.5

$44.55 MX$818

-11.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.73 CA$48.08

$42.06 MX$772

-19.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.1 CA$118

$75.5 MX$1,387

10.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 CA$184

$91.4 MX$1,678

41.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,091 CA$1,555

$986 MX$18.1K

10.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$823 CA$1,174

$385 MX$7,072

113.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,747 CA$2,491

$1,713 MX$31.5K

1.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,358 CA$1,936

$1,108 MX$20.4K

22.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,107 CA$4,428

$4,016 MX$73.7K

-22.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,923 CA$2,741

$6,247 MX$114.7K

-69.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,415 CA$3,442

$758 MX$13.9K

218.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.58

11.45

-60.00%

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

Last update for Charlottetown: October 6, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Charlottetown

$823 42.5%

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4% 53.2% $438

Groceries & Markets

Charlottetown

$408 21.1%

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2% 36.3% $148

Eating Out

Charlottetown

$233 12%

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6% 12.6% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Charlottetown

$230 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2% 40.4% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Charlottetown

$129 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3% 11.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Charlottetown

$78 4%

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1% 3.9% $3

Getting Around

Charlottetown

$37 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2% 39.1% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,091 in Charlottetown versus $986 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.

Salaries run about 219% higher in Charlottetown, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $59.0 in Charlottetown versus $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $408 vs $260 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Charlottetown

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:45 3:45 AM

01:45 1:45 AM

2 h behind Charlottetown

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,809

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Charlottetown Playa del Carmen 3,580 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Charlottetown
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

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

Charlottetown costs about 61% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,936 per month in Charlottetown and $1,823 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 $1,957 in Charlottetown and $1,215 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 61%.

Public transport costs about 93% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,215, than in Charlottetown at $1,957. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Charlottetown it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,215 versus $1,957 in Charlottetown. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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