Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Imbituba and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Imbituba: $795 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Imbituba
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Imbituba Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Imbituba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$795

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $795 in Imbituba versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Imbituba $795
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,262 in Imbituba versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Imbituba $1,262
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,729 in Imbituba versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Imbituba $1,729
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Imbituba costs roughly 34% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Imbituba 41% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.73 R$25.83

$10.67 MX$198

-55.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.27 R$154

$43.80 MX$813

-35.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.38 R$34.85

$11.79 MX$219

-45.89%

Cappuccino

$1.79 R$9.76

$3.79 MX$70.3

-52.77%

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

$1.06 R$5.78

$1.30 MX$24.07

-18.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 R$2.66

$0.83 MX$15.47

-40.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 R$12.05

$3.15 MX$58.4

-30.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 R$12.33

$4.93 MX$91.6

-54.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 R$5.10

$1.41 MX$26.14

-34.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 R$6.30

$2.20 MX$40.75

-47.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 R$4.73

$1.47 MX$27.33

-40.82%

Eggs

$2.05 R$11.19

$2.50 MX$46.34

-18.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.55 R$41.25

$7.29 MX$135

3.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.95 R$16.10

$7.95 MX$148

-62.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.19 R$33.81

$12.86 MX$239

-51.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 R$8.04

$2.90 MX$53.8

-49.31%

Banana (1kg)

$0.77 R$4.20

$1.38 MX$25.67

-44.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.14 R$6.25

$2.49 MX$46.23

-54.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.77 R$4.22

$2.03 MX$37.67

-62.07%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 R$3.96

$2.02 MX$37.58

-64.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 R$6.44

$1.90 MX$35.32

-37.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 R$7.52

$1.14 MX$21.24

21.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$5.07

$1.24 MX$22.99

-25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 R$16.45

$4.27 MX$79.3

-29.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.63 R$47.15

$9.81 MX$182

-12.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 R$5.87

$1.59 MX$29.43

-32.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 R$16.35

$2.75 MX$51.0

8.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 R$5.05

$0.51 MX$9.56

80.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.53 R$227

$27.39 MX$508

51.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 R$10.35

$4.76 MX$88.4

-60.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 R$8.25

$3.25 MX$60.3

-53.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.12 R$49.86

$5.39 MX$100

69.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 R$6.66

$1.53 MX$28.36

-20.26%

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

$22.5K R$123.0K

$21.2K MX$393.7K

6.17%

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

$31.6K R$172.4K

$23.3K MX$431.7K

35.66%

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

$57.4 R$313

$83.5 MX$1,549

-31.31%

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

$10.64 R$58.2

$23.19 MX$430

-54.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.85 R$108

$27.61 MX$512

-28.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.31 R$133

$56.4 MX$1,047

-56.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.89 R$141

$28.19 MX$523

-8.16%

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 R$45.56

$5.00 MX$92.8

66.80%

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

$301 R$1,642

$207 MX$3,843

45.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,099 R$33.3K

$5,231 MX$97.1K

16.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.34 R$231

$43.45 MX$806

-2.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$85.8 R$469

$42.54 MX$789

101.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.1 R$459

$72.8 MX$1,350

15.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.5 R$352

$88.4 MX$1,640

-27.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$330 R$1,801

$995 MX$18.5K

-66.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$228 R$1,246

$382 MX$7,097

-40.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$631 R$3,450

$1,674 MX$31.1K

-62.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$441 R$2,410

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-59.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,549 R$8,460

$3,909 MX$72.5K

-60.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,156 R$6,315

$6,138 MX$113.9K

-81.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.5

11.45

-8.30%

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

Last update for Imbituba: 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

Imbituba

$228 28.7%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 67.6% $154

Groceries & Markets

Imbituba

$159 20%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 62.3% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Imbituba

$125 15.7%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 10.7% $13

Eating Out

Imbituba

$100 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 100% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Imbituba

$88 11.1%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 52.9% $46

Getting Around

Imbituba

$55 6.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 7.7% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

Imbituba

$41 5.2%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 62.1% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $330 in Imbituba and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $28 in Imbituba vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $159 vs $257 per month, with Imbituba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Imbituba

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

19:09 7:09 PM

17:09 5:09 PM

2 h behind Imbituba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

52,579

149,923

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 EUR

100 MXN = 5.39 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.13 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.56 MXN (100 MXN = 5.39 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Imbituba Playa del Carmen 6,820 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Imbituba
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

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

Imbituba is about 34% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,192 in Imbituba and $1,804 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: $330 in Imbituba 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 62% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Imbituba – a meal for two runs $28 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $795 in Imbituba versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Imbituba but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Imbituba 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.