Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chaves and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Chaves: $1,064 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

51

Cost of Living Index in Chaves
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Chaves Living Index
59

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

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Chaves

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,064

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,064 per month in Chaves vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Chaves $1,064
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,607 per month in Chaves vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Chaves $1,607
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $2,150 per month in Chaves vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Chaves $2,150
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Chaves is about 12% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chaves and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Chaves 21% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.99 €7.10

$10.86 MX$201

-26.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.32 €19.86

$44.21 MX$817

-49.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.78 €6.92

$11.76 MX$217

-33.84%

Cappuccino

$1.54 €1.37

$3.68 MX$68.0

-58.15%

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

$1.49 €1.33

$1.34 MX$24.79

11.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 €0.51

$0.82 MX$15.24

-30.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.28 €2.03

$3.06 MX$56.6

-25.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 €2.43

$4.94 MX$91.2

-44.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.47 MX$27.17

-30.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.14 €1.01

$2.22 MX$40.95

-48.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.48 MX$27.32

-23.65%

Eggs

$3.05 €2.71

$2.49 MX$45.99

22.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.23 €5.54

$7.52 MX$139

-17.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.53 €5.81

$7.96 MX$147

-17.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.26 €9.12

$12.57 MX$232

-18.38%

Apples (1kg)

$1.14 €1.01

$2.78 MX$51.3

-58.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.43 MX$26.37

-19.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.11 €0.98

$2.62 MX$48.37

-57.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.10 €0.97

$2.14 MX$39.49

-48.60%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.02 MX$37.38

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.99 MX$36.74

-43.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.14 MX$21.01

23.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 €0.70

$1.20 MX$22.18

-34.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.97 €5.31

$4.26 MX$78.7

40.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.03 €3.58

$10.02 MX$185

-59.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.54 MX$28.41

-25.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.15 €1.02

$2.66 MX$49.17

-56.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 €0.77

$0.53 MX$9.73

64.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.67 €24.61

$27.51 MX$508

0.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.97 €3.53

$4.90 MX$90.6

-18.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.68 €0.61

$3.43 MX$63.5

-80.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 €17.60

$5.38 MX$99.4

267.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.95 €1.73

$1.45 MX$26.76

34.48%

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

$34.1K €30.4K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

61.29%

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

$37.6K €33.4K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

63.36%

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

$134 €119

$85.4 MX$1,577

56.54%

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

$17.81 €15.84

$23.46 MX$434

-24.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.69 €28.19

$28.43 MX$525

11.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.25 €22.46

$62.2 MX$1,149

-59.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.49 €4.88

$28.68 MX$530

-80.86%

Cinema Ticket

$7.14 €6.35

$5.10 MX$94.3

40.00%

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

$223 €199

$201 MX$3,715

11.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,620 €3,220

$3,947 MX$72.9K

-8.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.9 €63.9

$44.39 MX$820

61.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.56 €20.07

$41.35 MX$764

-45.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.0 €56.1

$72.7 MX$1,344

-13.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.2 €80.3

$89.6 MX$1,656

0.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 €425

$979 MX$18.1K

-51.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$378 €336

$373 MX$6,887

1.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$951 €846

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-43.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$736 €655

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-32.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,870 €1,663

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-52.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,472 €1,310

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-76.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,015 €903

$738 MX$13.6K

37.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-73.80%

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

Last update for Chaves: October 19, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chaves

$378 35.5%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 1.4% $5.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chaves

$183 17.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 25.1% $46

Groceries & Markets

Chaves

$182 17.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 41.6% $76

Eating Out

Chaves

$131 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 53% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Chaves

$111 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 0.2% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Chaves

$40 3.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 83.2% $33

Getting Around

Chaves

$39 3.6%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 34.3% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $478 in Chaves versus $979 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 38% higher in Chaves, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Chaves versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $182 vs $258 – making Chaves the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Chaves

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:16 2:16 PM

08:16 8:16 AM

6 h behind Chaves

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,592

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Chaves Playa del Carmen 7,660 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chaves
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

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

Playa del Carmen costs about 13% more than Chaves, 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 $1,596 per month in Chaves and $1,806 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 Chaves, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 1% less in Chaves. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $223 per month in Chaves and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chaves, where all-in costs run around $1,064, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Chaves it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chaves costs $1,064 versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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