Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Forbes and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,543 in Forbes, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Forbes
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Forbes Living Index
58

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

Jump to prices

Forbes

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,543

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,543 in Forbes versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Forbes $2,543
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,751 in Forbes versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Forbes $3,751
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,958 in Forbes versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Forbes $4,958
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Forbes is roughly 111% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Forbes is 87% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.91 A$22.54

$10.92 MX$203

45.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.9 A$134

$43.37 MX$808

118.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.31 A$16.02

$11.78 MX$219

-3.99%

Cappuccino

$3.52 A$4.99

$3.81 MX$71.0

-7.61%

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

$2.99 A$4.23

$1.28 MX$23.89

133.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 A$3.36

$0.78 MX$14.58

203.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.98 A$9.89

$3.17 MX$59.0

120.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.40 A$10.49

$4.93 MX$91.9

50.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 A$2.40

$1.41 MX$26.20

19.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.42 A$3.43

$2.22 MX$41.30

9.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.14 A$3.03

$1.42 MX$26.40

50.70%

Eggs

$5.00 A$7.08

$2.52 MX$47.00

98.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.16 A$14.40

$7.26 MX$135

39.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.52 A$13.49

$7.70 MX$143

23.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.72 A$19.43

$12.69 MX$236

8.12%

Apples (1kg)

$3.78 A$5.35

$2.78 MX$51.9

35.97%

Banana (1kg)

$3.01 A$4.26

$1.37 MX$25.49

119.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 A$5.04

$2.55 MX$47.52

39.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.92 A$6.97

$2.12 MX$39.55

132.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 A$3.54

$1.94 MX$36.11

28.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.62

$1.89 MX$35.13

34.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.28 A$3.23

$1.15 MX$21.36

98.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 A$2.06

$1.18 MX$21.96

22.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$46.43 A$65.8

$4.30 MX$80.0

979.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.36 A$17.51

$9.95 MX$185

24.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.75 A$6.73

$1.58 MX$29.50

200.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.80 A$8.21

$2.67 MX$49.76

117.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 A$3.76

$0.55 MX$10.31

383.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.5 A$111

$26.62 MX$496

194.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.70 A$5.25

$4.97 MX$92.6

-25.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 A$2.44

$3.33 MX$62.1

-48.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$45.70 A$64.7

$5.36 MX$99.8

752.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 A$1.78

$1.44 MX$26.90

-13.19%

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

$33.8K A$47.9K

$20.7K MX$385.0K

63.66%

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

$28.1K A$39.9K

$23.5K MX$437.2K

19.95%

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

$195 A$276

$84.8 MX$1,580

129.86%

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

$23.66 A$33.52

$23.41 MX$436

1.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.4 A$75.6

$28.66 MX$534

86.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.1 A$83.7

$57.1 MX$1,063

3.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.72 A$27.93

$28.91 MX$539

-31.79%

Cinema Ticket

$12.05 A$17.07

$5.14 MX$95.7

134.44%

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

$2,301 A$3,259

$207 MX$3,848

1013.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.3K A$30.2K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

443.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 A$114

$43.35 MX$808

85.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 A$80.4

$41.44 MX$772

36.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 A$165

$74.2 MX$1,382

57.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 A$175

$89.3 MX$1,663

38.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,558 A$2,207

$980 MX$18.2K

59.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,278 A$1,810

$381 MX$7,095

235.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,463 A$3,488

$1,708 MX$31.8K

44.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,041 A$2,892

$1,075 MX$20.0K

89.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,228 A$7,405

$3,943 MX$73.5K

32.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,146 A$7,290

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-16.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

11.45

-48.47%

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

Last update for Forbes: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Forbes

$1.3K 50.3%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 70.2% $897

Groceries & Markets

Forbes

$364 14.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 30% $109

Eating Out

Forbes

$275 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 26.3% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Forbes

$272 10.7%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 49.7% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Forbes

$170 6.7%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 34.3% $58

Getting Around

Forbes

$101 4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 50.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Forbes

$83 3.3%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 19.1% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,558 in Forbes and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $95 in Forbes vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $364 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Forbes

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:26 4:26 PM

00:26 12:26 AM

16 h behind Forbes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,481

149,923

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.706 USD

1 AUD = 0.634 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.706 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.634 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Forbes Playa del Carmen 14,450 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

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Forbes
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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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,543 in Forbes and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,814 in Forbes 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: $1,558 in Forbes versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,543 per month in Forbes versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 66% less than in Forbes. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,543 in Forbes, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Forbes. 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Forbes. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.