Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gharb and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,217 in Gharb, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

100

Cost of Living Index in Gharb
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Gharb Living Index
58

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

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Gharb

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,217

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,217 per month in Gharb vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gharb $2,217
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,242 per month in Gharb vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gharb $3,242
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,267 per month in Gharb vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gharb $4,267
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Gharb costs about 84% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Gharb sits 63% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.16 €19.77

$10.92 MX$205

102.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.5 €79.9

$43.37 MX$813

106.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.17 €11.75

$11.78 MX$221

11.80%

Cappuccino

$3.26 €2.91

$3.81 MX$71.4

-14.44%

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

$2.34 €2.09

$1.28 MX$24.03

82.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 €1.72

$0.78 MX$14.67

146.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.55 €4.95

$3.17 MX$59.3

75.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.59 €5.88

$4.93 MX$92.5

33.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.41 MX$26.35

-6.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.22 MX$41.54

-36.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.51 €3.13

$1.42 MX$26.56

147.18%

Eggs

$4.38 €3.90

$2.52 MX$47.27

73.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.14 €9.04

$7.26 MX$136

39.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.11 €10.80

$7.70 MX$144

57.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.36 €16.38

$12.69 MX$238

44.68%

Apples (1kg)

$3.68 €3.28

$2.78 MX$52.2

32.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$1.37 MX$25.64

99.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.79 €3.38

$2.55 MX$47.80

48.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.81 €3.40

$2.12 MX$39.78

79.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 €1.64

$1.94 MX$36.32

-5.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.33 €2.97

$1.89 MX$35.34

76.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.28 €2.04

$1.15 MX$21.49

98.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.18 MX$22.09

25.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.29 €5.61

$4.30 MX$80.5

46.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 €5.40

$9.95 MX$186

-39.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 €2.16

$1.58 MX$29.67

53.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.13

$2.67 MX$50.1

-10.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.21 €1.97

$0.55 MX$10.37

301.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.82 €3.41

$4.97 MX$93.1

-23.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 €1.62

$3.33 MX$62.4

-45.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.93 €29.38

$5.36 MX$100

514.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.44 MX$27.06

5.56%

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

$27.6K €24.6K

$20.7K MX$387.3K

33.43%

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

$38.7K €34.5K

$23.5K MX$439.7K

64.99%

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

$154 €137

$84.8 MX$1,589

81.39%

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

$30.85 €27.53

$23.41 MX$439

31.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.18 €26.03

$28.66 MX$537

1.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.5 €62.0

$57.1 MX$1,069

21.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$11.14 €9.94

$5.14 MX$96.3

116.73%

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

$283 €252

$207 MX$3,871

36.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K €11.1K

$3,927 MX$73.6K

215.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.4 €50.3

$43.35 MX$812

30.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.1 €61.7

$41.44 MX$777

66.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €99.7

$74.2 MX$1,390

50.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €115

$89.3 MX$1,672

43.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$975 €870

$980 MX$18.4K

-0.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,070 €954

$381 MX$7,136

180.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,644 €1,467

$1,708 MX$32.0K

-3.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,532 €1,367

$1,075 MX$20.1K

42.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,033 €3,598

$3,943 MX$73.9K

2.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,039 €2,711

$6,158 MX$115.4K

-50.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

11.45

-64.63%

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

Last update for Gharb: October 25, 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

Gharb

$1.1K 48.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 64.4% $689

Groceries & Markets

Gharb

$342 15.4%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 25.5% $87

Eating Out

Gharb

$314 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 35.5% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gharb

$214 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 36% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Gharb

$165 7.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 32.1% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Gharb

$92 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 26.6% $24

Getting Around

Gharb

$22 * 1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 132% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $975 in Gharb versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $90 in Gharb versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $342 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Gharb

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:47 8:47 PM

14:47 2:47 PM

6 h behind Gharb

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,500

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Gharb Playa del Carmen 9,630 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Gharb
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

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

Gharb costs about 84% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,326 per month in Gharb and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $975 in Gharb and $980 in Playa del Carmen. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,217 in Gharb and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 46% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $283 per month in Gharb and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Gharb at $2,217. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Gharb it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $2,217 in Gharb. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.