Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Viejo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in El Viejo: $818 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in El Viejo
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El Viejo Living Index
58

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

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El Viejo

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$818

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $818 in El Viejo versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

El Viejo $818
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,280 in El Viejo versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

El Viejo $1,280
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,741 in El Viejo versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

El Viejo $1,741
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in El Viejo costs roughly 32% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: El Viejo 40% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.08 NIO 369

$10.92 MX$204

-7.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.12 NIO 1,286

$43.37 MX$808

-19.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.57 NIO 277

$11.78 MX$220

-35.74%

Cappuccino

$2.58 NIO 94.3

$3.81 MX$71.0

-32.28%

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

$0.91 NIO 33.29

$1.28 MX$23.90

-28.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 NIO 25.33

$0.78 MX$14.59

-11.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.48 NIO 54.1

$3.17 MX$59.0

-53.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 NIO 82.9

$4.93 MX$92.0

-54.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 NIO 46.10

$1.41 MX$26.22

-10.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 NIO 85.5

$2.22 MX$41.33

4.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.87 NIO 68.4

$1.42 MX$26.42

31.69%

Eggs

$2.39 NIO 87.6

$2.52 MX$47.03

-5.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.51 NIO 422

$7.26 MX$135

58.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.35 NIO 233

$7.70 MX$143

-17.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.56 NIO 277

$12.69 MX$237

-40.43%

Apples (1kg)

$4.11 NIO 150

$2.78 MX$51.9

47.84%

Banana (1kg)

$0.62 NIO 22.84

$1.37 MX$25.50

-54.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 NIO 64.2

$2.55 MX$47.55

-31.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.50 NIO 91.5

$2.12 MX$39.58

17.92%

Potato (1kg)

$3.97 NIO 145

$1.94 MX$36.13

104.64%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 NIO 79.6

$1.89 MX$35.16

14.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 NIO 39.61

$1.15 MX$21.37

-6.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 NIO 37.18

$1.18 MX$21.98

-13.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.81 NIO 103

$4.30 MX$80.1

-34.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.95 NIO 548

$9.95 MX$185

50.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 NIO 51.6

$1.58 MX$29.52

-10.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 NIO 81.8

$2.67 MX$49.79

-16.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.65 NIO 60.5

$4.97 MX$92.6

-66.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 NIO 58.6

$3.33 MX$62.1

-51.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.74 NIO 247

$5.36 MX$99.8

25.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 NIO 49.65

$1.44 MX$26.92

-5.56%

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

$23.4K NIO 856.6K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

13.17%

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

$26.8K NIO 981.2K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

14.17%

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

$151 NIO 5,540

$84.8 MX$1,581

78.41%

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

$19.54 NIO 716

$23.41 MX$436

-16.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.99 NIO 1,172

$28.66 MX$534

11.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$8.93 NIO 327

$5.14 MX$95.8

73.74%

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

$234 NIO 8,571

$207 MX$3,851

13.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,960 NIO 218.3K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

51.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.0 NIO 2,162

$43.35 MX$808

36.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.7 NIO 2,407

$41.44 MX$772

58.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 NIO 4,467

$74.2 MX$1,383

64.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$142 NIO 5,212

$89.3 MX$1,664

59.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.92

11.45

4.10%

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

Last update for El Viejo: October 27, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

El Viejo

$260 31.8%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 2% $5.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Viejo

$203 24.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 32.5% $66

Clothing & Footwear

El Viejo

$175 21.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 36.2% $63

Eating Out

El Viejo

$153 18.7%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 32.6% $50

Sport & Entertainment

El Viejo

$18 * 2.2%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 277% $49

Getting Around

El Viejo

$9.7 * 1.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 423% $41

Accommodation & Living

El Viejo

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $35 in El Viejo vs $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $260 vs $255, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇮 El Viejo

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

17:08 5:08 PM

18:08 6:08 PM

1 h ahead of El Viejo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,607

149,923

💱 Currency

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.45 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NIO – Nicaraguan Córdoba Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇮 Nicaraguan Córdoba (C$)

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 40.77 NIO (100 NIO = 2.45 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to NIO in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

El Viejo Playa del Carmen 890 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

El Viejo
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

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

El Viejo is about 32% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, leisure, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,227 in El Viejo 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.

Dining out is cheaper in El Viejo – a meal for two runs $35 versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $234 in El Viejo versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $818 in El Viejo versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in El Viejo but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes El Viejo 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.