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

🙂 Solo nomad: Chisinau is 29.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 1.9% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Chisinau is 2.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 18.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.71 MDL 147
$11.99 MX$227
-27.36%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$36.73 MDL 622
$42.47 MX$803
-13.52%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.81 MDL 132
$10.47 MX$198
-25.41%
Cappuccino
$1.8 MDL 30.55
$3.6 MX$68.2
-50.00%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.9 MDL 15.31
$1.44 MX$27.16
-37.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.65 MDL 10.97
$0.89 MX$16.79
-26.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.8 MDL 30.44
$3.09 MX$58.5
-41.75%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.3 MDL 38.88
$4.58 MX$86.6
-49.78%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.27 MDL 21.56
$1.38 MX$26.04
-7.97%
White Bread (500g)
$0.51 MDL 8.72
$1.85 MX$34.9
-72.43%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.5 MDL 25.35
$1.57 MX$29.68
-4.46%
Eggs
$2.5 MDL 42.26
$2.55 MX$48.3
-1.96%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.42 MDL 176
$8.61 MX$163
21.02%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.46 MDL 92.4
$8.54 MX$161
-36.07%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.72 MDL 148
$10.98 MX$208
-20.58%
Apples (1kg)
$0.85 MDL 14.33
$2.72 MX$51.4
-68.75%
Banana (1kg)
$1.82 MDL 30.89
$1.51 MX$28.57
20.53%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.73 MDL 29.21
$1.88 MX$35.63
-7.98%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.06 MDL 34.9
$2.19 MX$41.42
-5.94%
Potato (1kg)
$0.82 MDL 13.96
$1.87 MX$35.3
-56.15%
Onion (1kg)
$0.59 MDL 10.07
$2.19 MX$41.37
-73.06%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.31 MDL 22.21
$1.07 MX$20.23
22.43%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.83 MDL 14.05
$1.09 MX$20.64
-23.85%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.13 MDL 53
$3.96 MX$74.9
-20.96%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.39 MDL 91.2
$8.86 MX$167
-39.16%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 MDL 21.51
$1.72 MX$32.53
-26.16%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.97 MDL 33.38
$2.61 MX$49.37
-24.52%
🚌 Getting Around
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.33 MDL 5.65
$0.52 MX$9.74
-36.54%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$13.63 MDL 231
$26.59 MX$503
-48.74%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.03 MDL 34.44
$3.24 MX$61.2
-37.35%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.25 MDL 4.22
$2.38 MX$44.94
-89.50%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.19 MDL 87.9
$3.11 MX$58.7
66.88%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.42 MDL 24.06
$1.31 MX$24.85
8.40%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$32.6K MDL 551.9K
$30.3K MX$573K
7.56%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.6K MDL 517.4K
$24K MX$453.6K
27.36%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$169 MDL 2,862
$84.2 MX$1,592
100.69%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$7.52 MDL 127
$22.14 MX$419
-66.03%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$10.79 MDL 183
$30.14 MX$570
-64.20%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$43.23 MDL 732
$52 MX$983
-16.83%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$21.81 MDL 369
$18.72 MX$354
16.51%
Cinema Ticket
$7.75 MDL 131
$5.07 MX$95.9
52.86%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$394 MDL 6,675
$200 MX$3,787
96.84%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,676 MDL 130K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
43.94%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$66 MDL 1,117
$35.74 MX$676
84.64%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.9 MDL 913
$39.8 MX$753
35.45%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$113 MDL 1,921
$79 MX$1,493
43.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$123 MDL 2,080
$88.4 MX$1,671
39.02%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$654 MDL 11.1K
$965 MX$18.3K
-32.22%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$458 MDL 7,760
$474 MX$8,968
-3.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,267 MDL 21.4K
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-23.35%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$817 MDL 13.8K
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-32.05%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,442 MDL 41.3K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-20.74%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,779 MDL 30.1K
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-76.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Chisinau
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$782 MDL 13.2K
$792 MX$15K
-1.18%
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: October 27, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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