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

🙂 Solo nomad: Cotonou is 10% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 20.1% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Cotonou is 24.3% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 39.9% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.56 F CFA 2,021
$11.85 MX$212
-69.96%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$26.50 F CFA 15.1K
$42.16 MX$755
-37.14%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.32 F CFA 3,022
$10.75 MX$192
-50.51%
Cappuccino
$5.48 F CFA 3,111
$3.47 MX$62.2
57.93%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 F CFA 510
$1.45 MX$26.01
-37.93%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.72 F CFA 412
$0.90 MX$16.16
-20.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.39 F CFA 791
$3.05 MX$54.7
-54.43%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.57 F CFA 2,025
$4.42 MX$79.1
-19.23%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.63 F CFA 1,494
$1.37 MX$24.51
91.97%
White Bread (500g)
$1.38 F CFA 783
$1.87 MX$33.51
-26.20%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.87 F CFA 1,063
$1.54 MX$27.63
21.43%
Eggs
$2.17 F CFA 1,233
$2.50 MX$44.81
-13.20%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.55 F CFA 5,428
$8.61 MX$154
10.92%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.01 F CFA 2,849
$8.63 MX$155
-41.95%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$5.06 F CFA 2,875
$11.02 MX$197
-54.08%
Apples (1kg)
$4.02 F CFA 2,284
$2.75 MX$49.22
46.18%
Banana (1kg)
$1.44 F CFA 821
$1.43 MX$25.56
0.70%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.26 F CFA 716
$1.87 MX$33.52
-32.62%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.75 F CFA 994
$2.17 MX$38.80
-19.35%
Potato (1kg)
$1.34 F CFA 764
$1.88 MX$33.70
-28.72%
Onion (1kg)
$1.43 F CFA 812
$2.25 MX$40.21
-36.44%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.51 F CFA 290
$1.07 MX$19.11
-52.34%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.22 F CFA 695
$1.07 MX$19.22
14.02%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.33 F CFA 1,324
$4.15 MX$74.4
-43.86%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.79 F CFA 3,860
$10.34 MX$185
-34.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.19 F CFA 677
$1.68 MX$30.06
-29.17%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.25 F CFA 1,279
$2.48 MX$44.46
-9.27%
🚌 Getting Around
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.72 F CFA 975
$0.55 MX$9.93
212.73%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.53 MX$475
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.37 F CFA 781
$3.22 MX$57.6
-57.45%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.25 F CFA 711
$2.48 MX$44.42
-49.60%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$1.79 F CFA 1,019
$3.11 MX$55.7
-42.44%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.09 F CFA 621
$1.26 MX$22.48
-13.49%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
-
$30.7K MX$548.8K
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.4K F CFA 13.9M
$24.0K MX$430.3K
1.62%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$261 F CFA 148.2K
$82.5 MX$1,476
216.36%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$44.26 F CFA 25.1K
$22.29 MX$399
98.56%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$57.3 F CFA 32.6K
$30.02 MX$537
91.01%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.1 F CFA 34.1K
$51.4 MX$921
16.74%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$5.36 F CFA 3,043
$18.29 MX$327
-70.69%
Cinema Ticket
$7.57 F CFA 4,298
$4.98 MX$89.2
52.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$190 F CFA 107.9K
$200 MX$3,580
-5.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,527 F CFA 3.7M
$5,304 MX$94.9K
23.04%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$17.83 F CFA 10.1K
$35.71 MX$639
-50.07%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$8.96 F CFA 5,091
$39.56 MX$708
-77.35%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$8.78 F CFA 4,990
$80.6 MX$1,442
-89.10%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$49.20 F CFA 28.0K
$88.3 MX$1,581
-44.29%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$203 F CFA 115.3K
$969 MX$17.4K
-79.06%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$149 F CFA 84.8K
$482 MX$8,632
-69.03%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$585 F CFA 332.6K
$1,595 MX$28.6K
-63.30%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$287 F CFA 163.1K
$1,184 MX$21.2K
-75.75%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,050 MX$72.5K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,522 MX$116.7K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cotonou
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$756 MX$13.5K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5
11.42
-56.22%

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

Last update for Cotonou: March 1, 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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