Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotabato City and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotabato City: $738 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Cotabato City
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Cotabato City Living Index
58

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

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Cotabato City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$738

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $738 in Cotabato City versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Cotabato City $738
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,139 in Cotabato City versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Cotabato City $1,139
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,539 in Cotabato City versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Cotabato City $1,539
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Cotabato City costs roughly 39% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cotabato City 46% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.81 ₱308

$10.92 MX$203

-55.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.14 ₱1,033

$43.37 MX$808

-62.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.97 ₱254

$11.78 MX$219

-66.30%

Cappuccino

$2.17 ₱139

$3.81 MX$71.0

-43.04%

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

$1.06 ₱67.7

$1.28 MX$23.89

-17.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₱39.81

$0.78 MX$14.58

-20.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.14 ₱73.2

$3.17 MX$59.0

-64.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 ₱133

$4.93 MX$91.9

-57.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 ₱129

$1.41 MX$26.20

42.55%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.9

$2.22 MX$41.30

-51.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ₱48.27

$1.42 MX$26.40

-47.18%

Eggs

$1.90 ₱121

$2.52 MX$47.00

-24.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.44 ₱412

$7.26 MX$135

-11.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 ₱294

$7.70 MX$143

-40.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.44 ₱604

$12.69 MX$236

-25.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ₱176

$2.78 MX$51.9

-0.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.10 ₱70.2

$1.37 MX$25.49

-19.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 ₱154

$2.55 MX$47.52

-5.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱74.8

$2.12 MX$39.55

-44.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 ₱126

$1.94 MX$36.11

1.55%

Onion (1kg)

$3.30 ₱211

$1.89 MX$35.13

74.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱79.1

$1.15 MX$21.36

7.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ₱42.21

$1.18 MX$21.96

-44.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.40 ₱154

$4.30 MX$80.0

-44.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.03 ₱514

$9.95 MX$185

-19.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱81.0

$1.58 MX$29.50

-19.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₱105

$2.67 MX$49.76

-38.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₱14.00

$0.55 MX$10.31

-60.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.32 ₱724

$26.62 MX$496

-57.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.37

$4.97 MX$92.6

-84.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.99

$3.33 MX$62.1

-93.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 ₱118

$5.36 MX$99.8

-65.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ₱70.3

$1.44 MX$26.90

-23.61%

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

$20.8K ₱1.3M

$20.7K MX$385.0K

0.74%

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

$18.8K ₱1.2M

$23.5K MX$437.2K

-20.02%

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

$108 ₱6,886

$84.8 MX$1,580

26.90%

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

$18.43 ₱1,180

$23.41 MX$436

-21.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.97 ₱1,982

$28.66 MX$534

8.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.96 ₱1,981

$57.1 MX$1,063

-45.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.25 ₱336

$28.91 MX$539

-81.84%

Cinema Ticket

$4.73 ₱302

$5.14 MX$95.7

-7.98%

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

$105 ₱6,694

$207 MX$3,848

-49.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,282 ₱466.0K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

85.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.48 ₱2,078

$43.35 MX$808

-25.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.49 ₱1,247

$41.44 MX$772

-52.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.5 ₱4,445

$74.2 MX$1,382

-6.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.5 ₱3,868

$89.3 MX$1,663

-32.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 ₱14.3K

$980 MX$18.2K

-77.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$153 ₱9,769

$381 MX$7,095

-59.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$447 ₱28.6K

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-73.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ₱21.3K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-69.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,692 ₱172.2K

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-31.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,003 ₱64.2K

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-83.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

11.45

-27.42%

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

Last update for Cotabato City: October 26, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cotabato City

$199 26.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 28.1% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotabato City

$157 21.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 12.8% $20

Accommodation & Living

Cotabato City

$153 20.7%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 150% $228

Eating Out

Cotabato City

$93 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 117% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Cotabato City

$82 11.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 36.5% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Cotabato City

$40 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 66.6% $27

Getting Around

Cotabato City

$14 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 259% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $224 in Cotabato City and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $16 in Cotabato City vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $255 per month, with Cotabato City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cotabato City

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:14 8:14 AM

19:14 7:14 PM

13 h behind Cotabato City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

325,079

149,923

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.56 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 63.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.56 USD). 1 EUR = 71.24 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cotabato City Playa del Carmen 15,400 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotabato City
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

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

Cotabato City wins on cost – living expenses run 39% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cotabato City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,107 in Cotabato City and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $224 in Cotabato City versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $738 per month in Cotabato City versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Cotabato City is about 39% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Cotabato City runs roughly 57% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Cotabato City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.