Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dourados and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Dourados: $881 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Dourados
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Dourados Living Index
59

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

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Dourados

🇧🇷 Brazil

$881

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $881 in Dourados versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Dourados $881
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Dourados versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Dourados $1,409
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,937 in Dourados versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Dourados $1,937
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Dourados costs roughly 27% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dourados 35% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.05 R$30.20

$10.86 MX$203

-44.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.61 R$158

$44.21 MX$824

-28.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.72 R$38.57

$11.76 MX$219

-34.35%

Cappuccino

$2.09 R$10.44

$3.68 MX$68.6

-43.21%

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

$1.33 R$6.63

$1.34 MX$25.01

-0.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 R$3.84

$0.82 MX$15.38

-6.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.02 R$10.10

$3.06 MX$57.1

-33.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 R$15.35

$4.94 MX$92.1

-37.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 R$5.34

$1.47 MX$27.41

-27.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.73 R$8.64

$2.22 MX$41.32

-22.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.42

$1.48 MX$27.57

-13.51%

Eggs

$2.15 R$10.75

$2.49 MX$46.41

-13.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.53 R$47.61

$7.52 MX$140

26.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.35 R$21.71

$7.96 MX$148

-45.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.40 R$41.97

$12.57 MX$234

-33.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 R$11.19

$2.78 MX$51.8

-19.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 R$6.56

$1.43 MX$26.61

-8.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.21 R$6.06

$2.62 MX$48.81

-53.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 R$7.65

$2.14 MX$39.85

-28.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.35

$2.02 MX$37.72

-37.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 R$5.55

$1.99 MX$37.08

-44.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 R$4.20

$1.14 MX$21.20

-26.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 R$4.17

$1.20 MX$22.38

-30.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.47 R$12.36

$4.26 MX$79.4

-42.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.87 R$39.30

$10.02 MX$187

-21.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 R$6.36

$1.54 MX$28.67

-17.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 R$10.17

$2.66 MX$49.62

-23.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.00 R$4.99

$0.53 MX$9.82

88.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.26 R$221

$27.51 MX$513

60.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 R$6.60

$4.90 MX$91.4

-73.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R$4.61

$3.43 MX$64.1

-73.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.17 R$40.82

$5.38 MX$100

51.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 R$6.53

$1.45 MX$27.00

-9.66%

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

$23.9K R$119.5K

$21.2K MX$394.5K

13.05%

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

$32.6K R$162.8K

$23.0K MX$429.2K

41.55%

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

$75.6 R$378

$85.4 MX$1,592

-11.41%

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

$12.64 R$63.2

$23.46 MX$438

-46.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.95 R$105

$28.43 MX$530

-26.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.92 R$130

$62.2 MX$1,160

-58.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.94 R$140

$28.68 MX$535

-2.58%

Cinema Ticket

$7.39 R$36.94

$5.10 MX$95.2

44.90%

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

$284 R$1,420

$201 MX$3,749

41.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,338 R$36.7K

$3,947 MX$73.6K

85.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 R$274

$44.39 MX$828

23.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.3 R$251

$41.35 MX$771

21.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 R$460

$72.7 MX$1,356

26.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.8 R$369

$89.6 MX$1,671

-17.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$360 R$1,798

$979 MX$18.3K

-63.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$240 R$1,198

$373 MX$6,950

-35.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$686 R$3,425

$1,681 MX$31.3K

-59.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$481 R$2,402

$1,095 MX$20.4K

-56.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,719 R$8,588

$3,949 MX$73.6K

-56.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,189 R$5,939

$6,137 MX$114.4K

-80.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-3.93%

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

Last update for Dourados: October 18, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dourados

$240 27.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 55.5% $133

Groceries & Markets

Dourados

$194 22.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 32.9% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Dourados

$122 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 8.4% $10

Eating Out

Dourados

$121 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 65.1% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dourados

$109 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 25.7% $28

Getting Around

Dourados

$54 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 4.6% $2.5

Sport & Entertainment

Dourados

$41 4.6%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 77.8% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $360 in Dourados and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Dourados vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $194 vs $258 per month, with Dourados cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Dourados

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:39 10:39 PM

21:39 9:39 PM

1 h behind Dourados

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

243,367

149,923

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 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 October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 5 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.65 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.89 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Dourados Playa del Carmen 5,910 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Dourados
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

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

Dourados wins on cost – living expenses run 27% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Dourados the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,322 in Dourados 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: $360 in Dourados versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 33% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Dourados – a meal for two runs $32 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Dourados is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.