Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Escazu and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,934 in Escazu, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in Escazu
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Escazu Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Escazu

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,934

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,934 in Escazu versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Escazu $1,934
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,959 in Escazu versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Escazu $2,959
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,984 in Escazu versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Escazu $3,984
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Escazu is roughly 61% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Escazu is 43% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.06 ₡5,425

$10.67 MX$199

13.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.8 ₡27.8K

$43.80 MX$815

41.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 ₡5,290

$11.79 MX$219

-0.25%

Cappuccino

$4.49 ₡2,021

$3.79 MX$70.5

18.47%

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

$2.66 ₡1,195

$1.30 MX$24.14

104.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ₡860

$0.83 MX$15.51

130.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₡1,505

$3.15 MX$58.6

6.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 ₡1,953

$4.93 MX$91.8

-11.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.45 ₡1,101

$1.41 MX$26.22

73.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 ₡1,389

$2.20 MX$40.86

40.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.50 ₡1,124

$1.47 MX$27.40

70.07%

Eggs

$3.45 ₡1,551

$2.50 MX$46.46

38.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.68 ₡4,805

$7.29 MX$136

46.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.28 ₡4,623

$7.95 MX$148

29.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.14 ₡6,360

$12.86 MX$239

9.95%

Apples (1kg)

$5.16 ₡2,323

$2.90 MX$53.9

77.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 ₡704

$1.38 MX$25.74

13.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.23 ₡1,453

$2.49 MX$46.35

29.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.00 ₡1,351

$2.03 MX$37.77

47.78%

Potato (1kg)

$3.79 ₡1,702

$2.02 MX$37.68

87.62%

Onion (1kg)

$3.73 ₡1,676

$1.90 MX$35.42

96.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 ₡447

$1.14 MX$21.30

-13.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₡755

$1.24 MX$23.05

35.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 ₡2,463

$4.27 MX$79.5

28.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.92 ₡8,509

$9.81 MX$183

92.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₡754

$1.59 MX$29.51

5.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ₡1,246

$2.75 MX$51.1

0.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.05 ₡472

$0.51 MX$9.58

105.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.05 ₡922

$4.76 MX$88.6

-56.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.86 ₡835

$3.25 MX$60.5

-42.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.09 ₡3,638

$5.39 MX$100

50.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₡664

$1.53 MX$28.44

-3.27%

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

$28.0K ₡12.6M

$21.2K MX$394.8K

31.76%

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

$36.6K ₡16.4M

$23.3K MX$432.9K

57.23%

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

$94.5 ₡42.5K

$83.5 MX$1,554

13.22%

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

$29.94 ₡13.5K

$23.19 MX$431

29.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.6 ₡26.4K

$27.61 MX$514

112.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$105 ₡47.3K

$56.4 MX$1,050

86.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.81 ₡4,413

$28.19 MX$525

-65.20%

Cinema Ticket

$7.66 ₡3,446

$5.00 MX$93.1

53.20%

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

$458 ₡206.1K

$207 MX$3,854

121.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K ₡7.7M

$5,231 MX$97.3K

228.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.8 ₡32.3K

$43.45 MX$809

65.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.9 ₡24.7K

$42.54 MX$792

29.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 ₡57.4K

$72.8 MX$1,354

75.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₡59.6K

$88.4 MX$1,645

49.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$866 ₡389.3K

$995 MX$18.5K

-12.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$848 ₡381.4K

$382 MX$7,116

121.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,929 ₡867.3K

$1,674 MX$31.2K

15.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,501 ₡675.0K

$1,081 MX$20.1K

38.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,404 ₡631.2K

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-64.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$969 ₡436.0K

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-84.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,792 ₡805.8K

$832 MX$15.5K

115.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.45

-24.72%

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

Last update for Escazu: November 1, 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

Escazu

$848 43.9%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 54.9% $466

Groceries & Markets

Escazu

$363 18.8%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 29.1% $105

Eating Out

Escazu

$229 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 12.7% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Escazu

$183 9.5%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 26.7% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Escazu

$174 9%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 36.1% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Escazu

$121 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 44.9% $54

Getting Around

Escazu

$16 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 225% $35

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $866 in Escazu and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Escazu pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Escazu vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $363 vs $257 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Escazu

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

12:52 12:52 PM

1 h ahead of Escazu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,984

149,923

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Escazu Playa del Carmen 1,230 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Escazu
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

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

Playa del Carmen is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Escazu is about 2.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $866 in Escazu versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Escazu. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,934 per month in Escazu versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 38% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,934 in Escazu, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Escazu. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen 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 – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Escazu on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.