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

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: El Nido is 34.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 35.3% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ™‚ Family of 3: El Nido is 18.8% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 41.5% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.22 โ‚ฑ290
$11.99 MX$227
-56.46%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$30.22 โ‚ฑ1,682
$42.47 MX$803
-28.84%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.24 โ‚ฑ236
$10.47 MX$198
-59.50%
Cappuccino
$3.94 โ‚ฑ220
$3.6 MX$68.2
9.44%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.35 โ‚ฑ75
$1.44 MX$27.16
-6.25%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 โ‚ฑ45.56
$0.89 MX$16.79
-7.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.35 โ‚ฑ75.4
$3.09 MX$58.5
-56.31%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 โ‚ฑ119
$4.58 MX$86.6
-53.28%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.85 โ‚ฑ103
$1.38 MX$26.04
34.06%
White Bread (500g)
$1.21 โ‚ฑ67.5
$1.85 MX$34.9
-34.59%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.81 โ‚ฑ101
$1.57 MX$29.68
15.29%
Eggs
$2.51 โ‚ฑ140
$2.55 MX$48.3
-1.57%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.16 โ‚ฑ454
$8.61 MX$163
-5.23%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.47 โ‚ฑ193
$8.54 MX$161
-59.37%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.22 โ‚ฑ458
$10.98 MX$208
-25.14%
Apples (1kg)
$2.87 โ‚ฑ160
$2.72 MX$51.4
5.51%
Banana (1kg)
$0.74 โ‚ฑ40.98
$1.51 MX$28.57
-50.99%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.68 โ‚ฑ149
$1.88 MX$35.63
42.55%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 โ‚ฑ116
$2.19 MX$41.42
-4.57%
Potato (1kg)
$2.31 โ‚ฑ129
$1.87 MX$35.3
23.53%
Onion (1kg)
$2.09 โ‚ฑ116
$2.19 MX$41.37
-4.57%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.12 โ‚ฑ62.2
$1.07 MX$20.23
4.67%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.73 โ‚ฑ40.48
$1.09 MX$20.64
-33.03%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.89 โ‚ฑ161
$3.96 MX$74.9
-27.02%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.22 โ‚ฑ346
$8.86 MX$167
-29.80%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.2 โ‚ฑ66.8
$1.72 MX$32.53
-30.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.04 โ‚ฑ114
$2.61 MX$49.37
-21.84%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.34 โ‚ฑ18.92
$0.52 MX$9.74
-34.62%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.59 MX$503
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.84 โ‚ฑ46.64
$3.24 MX$61.2
-74.07%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.24 โ‚ฑ13.43
$2.38 MX$44.94
-89.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$2.17 โ‚ฑ121
$3.11 MX$58.7
-30.23%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.03 โ‚ฑ57.4
$1.31 MX$24.85
-21.37%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.2K โ‚ฑ1.5M
$30.3K MX$573K
-13.48%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.1K โ‚ฑ1.1M
$24K MX$453.6K
-16.18%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$114 โ‚ฑ6,344
$84.2 MX$1,592
35.24%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$32.49 โ‚ฑ1,809
$22.14 MX$419
46.75%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$32.26 โ‚ฑ1,796
$30.14 MX$570
7.03%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$33.76 โ‚ฑ1,880
$52 MX$983
-35.05%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.72 MX$354
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.8 โ‚ฑ323
$5.07 MX$95.9
14.40%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$155 โ‚ฑ8,610
$200 MX$3,787
-22.80%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,265 โ‚ฑ237.5K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
-20.01%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$46.04 โ‚ฑ2,563
$35.74 MX$676
28.82%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$26.66 โ‚ฑ1,484
$39.8 MX$753
-33.02%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.6 โ‚ฑ4,211
$79 MX$1,493
-4.23%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$53.8 โ‚ฑ2,993
$88.4 MX$1,671
-39.18%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$270 โ‚ฑ15K
$965 MX$18.3K
-72.04%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$177 โ‚ฑ9,860
$474 MX$8,968
-62.67%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$592 โ‚ฑ33K
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-64.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$402 โ‚ฑ22.4K
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-66.56%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,167 โ‚ฑ120.6K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-29.69%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
El Nido
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$277 โ‚ฑ15.4K
$792 MX$15K
-65.08%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.67
11.42
-41.59%

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

Last update for El Nido: October 28, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Join the CityCost newsletter โ€“ low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.