Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gzira and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,246 in Gzira, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Gzira
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Gzira Living Index
58

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

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Gzira

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,246

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,246 in Gzira versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Gzira $2,246
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,315 in Gzira versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Gzira $3,315
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,384 in Gzira versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Gzira $4,384
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Gzira is roughly 87% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gzira is 65% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.17 €19.91

$10.92 MX$204

103.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.8 €66.3

$43.37 MX$808

70.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.31 €11.96

$11.78 MX$220

12.99%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.75

$3.81 MX$71.0

-19.69%

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

$2.39 €2.15

$1.28 MX$23.90

86.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 €1.80

$0.78 MX$14.59

156.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 €3.98

$3.17 MX$59.0

39.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.57 €5.00

$4.93 MX$92.0

12.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 €1.24

$1.41 MX$26.22

-2.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 €1.25

$2.22 MX$41.33

-37.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.58 €3.22

$1.42 MX$26.42

152.11%

Eggs

$4.44 €3.99

$2.52 MX$47.03

76.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.45 €9.39

$7.26 MX$135

43.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.62 €9.54

$7.70 MX$143

37.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.23 €16.38

$12.69 MX$237

43.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 €2.77

$2.78 MX$51.9

11.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.66 €2.39

$1.37 MX$25.50

94.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.55 MX$47.55

29.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.57 €3.21

$2.12 MX$39.58

68.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.84 €1.65

$1.94 MX$36.13

-5.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.83 €2.54

$1.89 MX$35.16

49.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.15 MX$21.37

27.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 €0.93

$1.18 MX$21.98

-11.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.23 €5.60

$4.30 MX$80.1

44.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.91 €5.31

$9.95 MX$185

-40.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 €2.20

$1.58 MX$29.52

55.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 €2.00

$2.67 MX$49.79

-16.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.84 €2.55

$0.55 MX$10.31

416.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.94 €3.54

$4.97 MX$92.6

-20.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.74 €1.56

$3.33 MX$62.1

-47.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.05 €28.79

$5.36 MX$99.8

497.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 €1.33

$1.44 MX$26.92

2.78%

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

$27.5K €24.7K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

32.85%

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

$38.4K €34.5K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

63.64%

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

$137 €123

$84.8 MX$1,581

61.63%

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

$25.60 €22.99

$23.41 MX$436

9.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.51 €26.50

$28.66 MX$534

2.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$81.2 €72.9

$57.1 MX$1,063

42.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.38 €24.60

$28.91 MX$539

-5.29%

Cinema Ticket

$11.32 €10.17

$5.14 MX$95.8

120.23%

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

$279 €250

$207 MX$3,851

35.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.2K €10.9K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

210.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 €52.5

$43.35 MX$808

34.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.4 €48.84

$41.44 MX$772

31.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €101

$74.2 MX$1,383

51.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.5 €89.4

$89.3 MX$1,664

11.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,379 €1,239

$980 MX$18.3K

40.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,156 €1,038

$381 MX$7,099

203.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,114 €1,899

$1,708 MX$31.8K

23.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,805 €1,622

$1,075 MX$20.0K

67.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,102 €5,481

$3,943 MX$73.5K

54.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,399 €3,951

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-28.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,416 €2,171

$735 MX$13.7K

228.96%

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 Gzira: 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

Gzira

$1.2K 51.5%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 67.1% $775

Groceries & Markets

Gzira

$320 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 20.3% $65

Eating Out

Gzira

$305 13.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 33.6% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gzira

$192 8.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 28.8% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Gzira

$146 6.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 23.5% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Gzira

$104 4.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 35.2% $36

Getting Around

Gzira

$24 * 1.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 110% $26

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 $1,379 in Gzira and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gzira pays about 3.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $74 in Gzira vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Gzira

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

23:09 11:09 PM

17:09 5:09 PM

6 h behind Gzira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Gzira Playa del Carmen 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Gzira
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

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

Playa del Carmen is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Gzira is about 3.3 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: $1,379 in Gzira versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Gzira. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,246 per month in Gzira versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 46% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,246 in Gzira, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Gzira. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Gzira, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Gzira on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.