Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hearst and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,266 in Hearst, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Hearst
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Hearst Living Index
57

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

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Hearst

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,266

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,266 in Hearst versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Hearst $2,266
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,257 in Hearst versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Hearst $3,257
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,248 in Hearst versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Hearst $4,248
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Hearst is roughly 88% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hearst is 68% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.11 CA$25.30

$10.67 MX$199

69.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.8 CA$89.2

$43.80 MX$815

45.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.50 CA$14.68

$11.79 MX$219

-10.94%

Cappuccino

$3.69 CA$5.15

$3.79 MX$70.5

-2.64%

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

$2.07 CA$2.89

$1.30 MX$24.14

59.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 CA$2.28

$0.83 MX$15.51

96.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.11 CA$7.13

$3.15 MX$58.6

62.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 CA$7.95

$4.93 MX$91.8

15.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 CA$2.86

$1.41 MX$26.22

45.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.62 CA$3.66

$2.20 MX$40.86

19.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.50 CA$4.89

$1.47 MX$27.40

138.10%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$4.94

$2.50 MX$46.46

41.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.31 CA$14.41

$7.29 MX$136

41.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.37 CA$15.89

$7.95 MX$148

43.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.66 CA$20.48

$12.86 MX$239

14.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.93 CA$5.50

$2.90 MX$53.9

35.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 CA$1.82

$1.38 MX$25.74

-5.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.71 CA$5.18

$2.49 MX$46.35

49.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.78 CA$5.28

$2.03 MX$37.77

86.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.34 CA$3.27

$2.02 MX$37.68

15.84%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 CA$3.05

$1.90 MX$35.42

14.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.44 CA$3.41

$1.14 MX$21.30

114.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 CA$2.24

$1.24 MX$23.05

29.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.54 CA$20.32

$4.27 MX$79.5

240.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.72 CA$17.77

$9.81 MX$183

29.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 CA$3.74

$1.59 MX$29.51

68.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 CA$4.26

$2.75 MX$51.1

10.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 CA$3.28

$0.51 MX$9.58

360.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.0 CA$88.0

$27.39 MX$510

129.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 CA$4.11

$4.76 MX$88.6

-38.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 CA$2.06

$3.25 MX$60.5

-54.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.99 CA$33.52

$5.39 MX$100

345.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.70

$1.53 MX$28.44

-20.92%

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

$27.4K CA$38.3K

$21.2K MX$394.8K

29.15%

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

$21.7K CA$30.3K

$23.3K MX$432.9K

-6.65%

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

$139 CA$194

$83.5 MX$1,554

66.03%

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

$39.53 CA$55.2

$23.19 MX$431

70.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.8 CA$76.6

$27.61 MX$514

98.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.30 CA$53.5

$56.4 MX$1,050

-32.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.53 CA$25.89

$28.19 MX$525

-34.27%

Cinema Ticket

$10.78 CA$15.06

$5.00 MX$93.1

115.60%

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

$639 CA$893

$207 MX$3,854

208.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K CA$18.8K

$5,231 MX$97.3K

156.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.3 CA$75.9

$43.45 MX$809

24.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.41 CA$53.7

$42.54 MX$792

-9.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.7 CA$121

$72.8 MX$1,354

19.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 CA$143

$88.4 MX$1,645

16.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,267 CA$1,770

$995 MX$18.5K

27.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,138 CA$1,590

$382 MX$7,116

197.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,968 CA$2,750

$1,674 MX$31.2K

17.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,706 CA$2,384

$1,081 MX$20.1K

57.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,305 CA$6,014

$3,909 MX$72.7K

10.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,533 CA$4,937

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-42.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,177 CA$4,439

$832 MX$15.5K

281.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.68

11.45

-59.13%

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

Last update for Hearst: October 31, 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

Hearst

$1.1K 50.2%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 66.4% $755

Groceries & Markets

Hearst

$353 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 27.1% $96

Eating Out

Hearst

$272 12%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 26.4% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hearst

$233 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 42.4% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Hearst

$127 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 12.4% $16

Getting Around

Hearst

$83 3.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 39% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Hearst

$60 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 11% $6.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,267 in Hearst and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hearst pays about 3.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $64 in Hearst vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $353 vs $257 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Hearst

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

Same time as Hearst

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.637 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.637 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hearst Playa del Carmen 3,250 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Hearst
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,266 in Hearst and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 47% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Hearst is about 3.8 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: $1,267 in Hearst versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $639 in Hearst versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Hearst. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,266 in Hearst, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Hearst. 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 47% less than in Hearst. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.