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Cost of Living Comparison Between El Medano and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between El Medano and Playa del Carmen

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: El Medano is 3.8% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 6.8% more expensive with rent.
๐Ÿ˜ Family of 3: El Medano is 20.2% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 25.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.10 โ‚ฌ14.74
$11.88 MX$210
43.94%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$58.9 โ‚ฌ50.7
$41.90 MX$740
40.48%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.61 โ‚ฌ9.14
$10.55 MX$186
0.57%
Cappuccino
$1.98 โ‚ฌ1.71
$3.60 MX$63.5
-45.00%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 โ‚ฌ1.51
$1.50 MX$26.45
16.67%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.06 โ‚ฌ0.91
$0.91 MX$16.09
16.48%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.83 โ‚ฌ2.44
$3.08 MX$54.4
-8.12%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.22 โ‚ฌ2.78
$4.47 MX$78.8
-27.96%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.24 โ‚ฌ1.07
$1.39 MX$24.54
-10.79%
White Bread (500g)
$1.76 โ‚ฌ1.51
$1.90 MX$33.47
-7.37%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.45 โ‚ฌ1.25
$1.60 MX$28.27
-9.38%
Eggs
$3.10 โ‚ฌ2.67
$2.60 MX$45.97
19.23%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$15.33 โ‚ฌ13.21
$8.36 MX$148
83.37%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.39 โ‚ฌ7.24
$8.64 MX$152
-2.89%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.50 โ‚ฌ12.50
$10.91 MX$192
32.91%
Apples (1kg)
$2.52 โ‚ฌ2.17
$2.61 MX$45.98
-3.45%
Banana (1kg)
$1.76 โ‚ฌ1.52
$1.44 MX$25.46
22.22%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.66 โ‚ฌ1.43
$1.96 MX$34.55
-15.31%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.54 โ‚ฌ2.19
$2.12 MX$37.34
19.81%
Potato (1kg)
$1.61 โ‚ฌ1.39
$1.86 MX$32.87
-13.44%
Onion (1kg)
$1.76 โ‚ฌ1.52
$2.22 MX$39.20
-20.72%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.53 โ‚ฌ1.32
$1.02 MX$17.99
50.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.65 โ‚ฌ0.56
$1.04 MX$18.36
-37.50%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.24 โ‚ฌ4.52
$4.05 MX$71.5
29.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.41 โ‚ฌ6.39
$10.18 MX$180
-27.21%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 โ‚ฌ1.36
$1.69 MX$29.79
-6.51%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.37 โ‚ฌ1.18
$2.62 MX$46.25
-47.71%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.72 โ‚ฌ1.49
$0.51 MX$9.09
237.25%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$17.55 โ‚ฌ15.12
$26.52 MX$468
-33.82%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.55 โ‚ฌ3.93
$3.15 MX$55.7
44.44%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.29 โ‚ฌ1.11
$2.46 MX$43.49
-47.56%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$17.60 โ‚ฌ15.18
$3.26 MX$57.5
439.88%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.34 โ‚ฌ1.16
$1.32 MX$23.36
1.52%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.0K โ‚ฌ24.2K
$30.1K MX$531.0K
-6.76%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.6K โ‚ฌ26.4K
$23.8K MX$419.3K
28.81%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$91.6 โ‚ฌ79.0
$83.5 MX$1,474
9.71%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.88 โ‚ฌ18.86
$22.86 MX$404
-4.29%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.93 โ‚ฌ26.66
$30.04 MX$530
2.96%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$47.08 โ‚ฌ40.58
$51.9 MX$916
-9.29%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$14.87 โ‚ฌ12.82
$18.30 MX$323
-18.74%
Cinema Ticket
$9.87 โ‚ฌ8.51
$5.12 MX$90.4
92.77%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$354 โ‚ฌ305
$201 MX$3,541
76.36%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,436 โ‚ฌ7,272
$5,318 MX$93.9K
58.63%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$83.0 โ‚ฌ71.6
$35.73 MX$631
132.35%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$33.13 โ‚ฌ28.56
$40.27 MX$711
-17.73%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$85.6 โ‚ฌ73.8
$79.2 MX$1,398
8.09%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$68.8 โ‚ฌ59.3
$89.3 MX$1,576
-22.98%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,030 โ‚ฌ887
$947 MX$16.7K
8.73%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$499 โ‚ฌ431
$483 MX$8,525
3.42%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,856 โ‚ฌ1,600
$1,599 MX$28.2K
16.10%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,888 โ‚ฌ1,628
$1,211 MX$21.4K
55.95%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,692 โ‚ฌ3,182
$3,996 MX$70.5K
-7.61%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,326 โ‚ฌ2,005
$6,402 MX$113.0K
-63.67%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
El Medano
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$730 MX$12.9K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.5
11.42
-69.35%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for El Medano: January 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: January 13, 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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