Cost of Living Comparison Between Chisinau and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Chisinau and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Chisinau is 20.6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 1.5% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Chisinau is 20.8% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 20.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.89 MDL 154
$11.85 MX$210
-24.98%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$36.59 MDL 633
$42.16 MX$746
-13.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.65 MDL 132
$10.75 MX$190
-28.84%
Cappuccino
$1.82 MDL 31.50
$3.47 MX$61.5
-47.55%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.93 MDL 16.11
$1.45 MX$25.72
-35.86%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 MDL 12.00
$0.90 MX$15.98
-23.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.79 MDL 30.90
$3.05 MX$54.1
-41.31%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.41 MDL 41.58
$4.42 MX$78.2
-45.48%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.28 MDL 22.11
$1.37 MX$24.24
-6.57%
White Bread (500g)
$0.56 MDL 9.65
$1.87 MX$33.14
-70.05%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 MDL 26.06
$1.54 MX$27.32
-1.95%
Eggs
$2.49 MDL 42.97
$2.50 MX$44.31
-0.40%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.48 MDL 181
$8.61 MX$152
21.72%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.62 MDL 97.2
$8.63 MX$153
-34.88%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.01 MDL 156
$11.02 MX$195
-18.24%
Apples (1kg)
$0.89 MDL 15.41
$2.75 MX$48.67
-67.64%
Banana (1kg)
$1.77 MDL 30.58
$1.43 MX$25.28
23.78%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.72 MDL 29.71
$1.87 MX$33.15
-8.02%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MDL 37.53
$2.17 MX$38.37
-
Potato (1kg)
$0.84 MDL 14.45
$1.88 MX$33.33
-55.32%
Onion (1kg)
$0.58 MDL 10.06
$2.25 MX$39.76
-74.22%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.31 MDL 22.70
$1.07 MX$18.90
22.43%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.82 MDL 14.15
$1.07 MX$19.00
-23.36%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.30 MDL 57.0
$4.15 MX$73.5
-20.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.18 MDL 89.5
$10.34 MX$183
-49.90%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 MDL 21.26
$1.68 MX$29.72
-26.79%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.97 MDL 34.02
$2.48 MX$43.97
-20.56%
🚌 Getting Around
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.34 MDL 5.79
$0.55 MX$9.82
-38.18%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$13.44 MDL 232
$26.53 MX$470
-49.34%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.02 MDL 34.88
$3.22 MX$56.9
-37.27%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.27 MDL 4.71
$2.48 MX$43.93
-89.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.28 MDL 91.3
$3.11 MX$55.0
69.77%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.43 MDL 24.65
$1.26 MX$22.22
13.49%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$32.2K MDL 556.1K
$30.7K MX$542.7K
4.90%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.7K MDL 531.4K
$24.0K MX$425.5K
27.86%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$170 MDL 2,942
$82.5 MX$1,460
106.29%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$7.70 MDL 133
$22.29 MX$394
-65.46%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$11.01 MDL 190
$30.02 MX$531
-63.32%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.28 MDL 766
$51.4 MX$911
-13.92%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.02 MDL 381
$18.29 MX$324
20.39%
Cinema Ticket
$7.80 MDL 135
$4.98 MX$88.2
56.63%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$388 MDL 6,708
$200 MX$3,540
93.96%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,588 MDL 131.2K
$5,304 MX$93.9K
43.05%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$66.7 MDL 1,152
$35.71 MX$632
86.64%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.0 MDL 916
$39.56 MX$700
33.87%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$114 MDL 1,979
$80.6 MX$1,426
42.10%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 MDL 2,139
$88.3 MX$1,563
40.09%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$654 MDL 11.3K
$969 MX$17.2K
-32.50%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$468 MDL 8,096
$482 MX$8,535
-2.90%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,249 MDL 21.6K
$1,595 MX$28.2K
-21.71%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$822 MDL 14.2K
$1,184 MX$21.0K
-30.56%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,665 MDL 46.1K
$4,050 MX$71.7K
-34.21%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,860 MDL 32.2K
$6,522 MX$115.4K
-71.48%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$842 MDL 14.6K
$756 MX$13.4K
11.28%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
9.24
11.42
-19.09%

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

Last update for Chisinau: March 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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