Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chilliwack and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,320 in Chilliwack, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Chilliwack
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Chilliwack Living Index
59

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

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Chilliwack

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,320

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,320 in Chilliwack versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Chilliwack $2,320
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,412 in Chilliwack versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Chilliwack $3,412
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,504 in Chilliwack versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Chilliwack $4,504
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Chilliwack is roughly 93% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chilliwack is 71% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.02 CA$19.82

$10.86 MX$201

29.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.6 CA$74.3

$44.21 MX$817

18.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.69 CA$12.29

$11.76 MX$217

-26.11%

Cappuccino

$4.41 CA$6.23

$3.68 MX$68.0

19.84%

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

$1.95 CA$2.75

$1.34 MX$24.79

45.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 CA$2.11

$0.82 MX$15.24

81.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.95 CA$7.00

$3.06 MX$56.6

61.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 CA$7.83

$4.94 MX$91.2

12.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.09 CA$2.96

$1.47 MX$27.17

42.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.98 CA$4.22

$2.22 MX$40.95

34.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.46 CA$6.30

$1.48 MX$27.32

201.35%

Eggs

$4.22 CA$5.96

$2.49 MX$45.99

69.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.66 CA$29.21

$7.52 MX$139

174.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.06 CA$19.87

$7.96 MX$147

76.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.16 CA$28.51

$12.57 MX$232

60.38%

Apples (1kg)

$5.63 CA$7.97

$2.78 MX$51.3

102.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 CA$1.88

$1.43 MX$26.37

-6.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.14 CA$5.86

$2.62 MX$48.37

58.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.43 CA$7.67

$2.14 MX$39.49

153.74%

Potato (1kg)

$4.78 CA$6.76

$2.02 MX$37.38

136.63%

Onion (1kg)

$3.11 CA$4.39

$1.99 MX$36.74

56.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.17 CA$4.49

$1.14 MX$21.01

178.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 CA$3.49

$1.20 MX$22.18

105.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.94 CA$16.87

$4.26 MX$78.7

180.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 CA$19.85

$10.02 MX$185

40.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.54 CA$6.42

$1.54 MX$28.41

194.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.03 CA$7.11

$2.66 MX$49.17

89.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.00 CA$2.83

$0.53 MX$9.73

277.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.16 CA$46.87

$27.51 MX$508

20.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.95 CA$4.17

$4.90 MX$90.6

-39.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.33 CA$3.29

$3.43 MX$63.5

-32.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 CA$1.76

$1.45 MX$26.76

-13.79%

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

$27.2K CA$38.4K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

28.37%

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

$19.9K CA$28.1K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

-13.60%

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

$166 CA$234

$85.4 MX$1,577

94.14%

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

$54.4 CA$76.9

$23.46 MX$434

131.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.1 CA$99.1

$28.43 MX$525

146.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.17 CA$58.2

$62.2 MX$1,149

-33.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.82 CA$25.19

$28.68 MX$530

-37.87%

Cinema Ticket

$12.14 CA$17.16

$5.10 MX$94.3

138.04%

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

$201 MX$3,715

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K CA$16.8K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

201.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.2 CA$85.2

$44.39 MX$820

35.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.87 CA$45.05

$41.35 MX$764

-22.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 CA$145

$72.7 MX$1,344

41.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$211 CA$298

$89.6 MX$1,656

135.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,136 CA$1,605

$979 MX$18.1K

15.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,004 CA$1,419

$373 MX$6,887

169.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,042 CA$2,886

$1,681 MX$31.1K

21.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,646 CA$2,326

$1,095 MX$20.2K

50.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,321 CA$4,695

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-15.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,333 CA$4,711

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-45.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,075 CA$4,348

$738 MX$13.6K

317.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.71

11.45

-58.86%

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

Last update for Chilliwack: 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

Chilliwack

$1K 43.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 62.9% $631

Groceries & Markets

Chilliwack

$482 20.8%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 46.4% $223

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chilliwack

$290 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 52.7% $153

Eating Out

Chilliwack

$241 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 16.8% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Chilliwack

$183 7.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 38.8% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Chilliwack

$65 2.8%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 10.6% $7

Getting Around

Chilliwack

$56 2.4%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 7.3% $4.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,136 in Chilliwack and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chilliwack pays 317% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $53.0 in Chilliwack vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $482 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Chilliwack

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

21:29 9:29 PM

23:29 11:29 PM

2 h ahead of Chilliwack

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,788

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 23, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chilliwack Playa del Carmen 4,420 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chilliwack
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

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

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 93% lower than in Chilliwack. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 317% higher in Chilliwack, 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: $1,136 in Chilliwack versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $53.0 in Chilliwack. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 21% less than in Chilliwack. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,320 in Chilliwack, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Chilliwack. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,204 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in Chilliwack. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.