Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Criciuma and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Criciuma: $711 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Criciuma
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Criciuma Living Index
57

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

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Criciuma

🇧🇷 Brazil

$711

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $711 in Criciuma versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Criciuma $711
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,060 in Criciuma versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Criciuma $1,060
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,410 in Criciuma versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Criciuma $1,410
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Criciuma costs roughly 41% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Criciuma 47% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.38 R$29.26

$10.67 MX$198

-49.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.36 R$111

$43.80 MX$813

-53.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.48 R$29.79

$11.79 MX$219

-53.52%

Cappuccino

$1.23 R$6.69

$3.79 MX$70.3

-67.55%

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

$1.04 R$5.66

$1.30 MX$24.09

-20.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 R$3.70

$0.83 MX$15.48

-18.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.50 R$8.17

$3.15 MX$58.4

-52.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 R$9.92

$4.93 MX$91.6

-62.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.84 R$4.58

$1.41 MX$26.16

-40.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 R$7.36

$2.20 MX$40.77

-38.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 R$5.56

$1.47 MX$27.35

-30.61%

Eggs

$1.90 R$10.32

$2.50 MX$46.37

-24.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.59 R$41.29

$7.29 MX$135

4.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.38 R$18.38

$7.95 MX$148

-57.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.00 R$43.47

$12.86 MX$239

-37.79%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 R$10.68

$2.90 MX$53.8

-32.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 R$5.89

$1.38 MX$25.69

-21.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 R$5.13

$2.49 MX$46.26

-62.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.48 R$8.07

$2.03 MX$37.70

-27.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 R$6.27

$2.02 MX$37.61

-43.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 R$5.61

$1.90 MX$35.35

-45.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 R$4.02

$1.14 MX$21.25

-35.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 R$3.30

$1.24 MX$23.01

-50.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.35 R$12.76

$4.27 MX$79.3

-44.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.38 R$23.83

$9.81 MX$182

-55.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 R$5.89

$1.59 MX$29.45

-32.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 R$7.25

$2.75 MX$51.0

-51.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 R$5.14

$0.51 MX$9.56

86.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.40 R$198

$27.39 MX$509

32.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.45 R$2.47

$4.76 MX$88.4

-90.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.72 R$3.94

$3.25 MX$60.3

-77.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.27 R$12.32

$5.39 MX$100

-57.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 R$6.62

$1.53 MX$28.38

-20.26%

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

$21.7K R$117.9K

$21.2K MX$393.9K

2.26%

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

$28.5K R$154.9K

$23.3K MX$432.0K

22.45%

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

$66.5 R$361

$83.5 MX$1,550

-20.36%

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

$11.38 R$61.9

$23.19 MX$431

-50.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.08 R$109

$27.61 MX$513

-27.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.76 R$145

$56.4 MX$1,048

-52.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.06 R$201

$28.19 MX$524

31.47%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 R$36.79

$5.00 MX$92.9

35.40%

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

$154 R$838

$207 MX$3,846

-25.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,747 R$14.9K

$5,231 MX$97.1K

-47.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.99 R$255

$43.45 MX$807

8.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.95 R$152

$42.54 MX$790

-34.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 R$413

$72.8 MX$1,351

4.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.62 R$221

$88.4 MX$1,641

-54.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$222 R$1,205

$995 MX$18.5K

-77.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 R$1,045

$382 MX$7,102

-49.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$378 R$2,055

$1,674 MX$31.1K

-77.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$248 R$1,349

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-77.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,096 R$5,958

$3,909 MX$72.6K

-71.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$594 R$3,230

$6,138 MX$114.0K

-90.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$288 R$1,565

$832 MX$15.5K

-65.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.74

11.45

-6.20%

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

Last update for Criciuma: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Criciuma

$192 27%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 99% $190

Groceries & Markets

Criciuma

$157 22.2%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 63.5% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Criciuma

$98 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 37.1% $36

Eating Out

Criciuma

$92 13%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 117% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Criciuma

$86 12.1%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 29.1% $25

Getting Around

Criciuma

$44 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 14% $6.2

Sport & Entertainment

Criciuma

$40 5.7%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 64.9% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $222 in Criciuma and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 2.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $20 in Criciuma vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $157 vs $257 per month, with Criciuma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Criciuma

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

10:35 10:35 AM

08:35 8:35 AM

2 h behind Criciuma

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

214,493

149,923

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Criciuma Playa del Carmen 6,810 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Criciuma
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

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

Criciuma is about 41% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 65% lower in Criciuma. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $222 in Criciuma versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 25% less than in Criciuma. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $154 in Criciuma versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $711 in Criciuma versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Criciuma but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Criciuma the clear choice for anyone on this 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.

It comes down to priorities – Criciuma wins on affordability, Playa del Carmen on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.