Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Itu and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Itu: $719 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Itu
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Itu Living Index
58

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

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Itu

🇧🇷 Brazil

$719

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $719 per month in Itu vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Itu $719
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,300 per month in Itu vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Itu $1,300
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,882 per month in Itu vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Itu $1,882
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Itu is about 40% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Itu and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Itu 47% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.36 R$28.67

$10.92 MX$204

-50.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.63 R$207

$43.37 MX$808

-10.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.99 R$32.04

$11.78 MX$220

-49.15%

Cappuccino

$1.63 R$8.70

$3.81 MX$71.0

-57.22%

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

$0.72 R$3.85

$1.28 MX$23.90

-43.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 R$2.62

$0.78 MX$14.59

-37.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.14 R$6.09

$3.17 MX$59.0

-64.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 R$10.03

$4.93 MX$92.0

-61.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 R$4.55

$1.41 MX$26.22

-39.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 R$7.69

$2.22 MX$41.33

-35.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.18 R$6.29

$1.42 MX$26.42

-16.90%

Eggs

$2.16 R$11.55

$2.52 MX$47.03

-14.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.33 R$49.88

$7.26 MX$135

28.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.64 R$19.46

$7.70 MX$143

-52.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.62 R$30.04

$12.69 MX$237

-55.71%

Apples (1kg)

$1.62 R$8.68

$2.78 MX$51.9

-41.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.73

$1.37 MX$25.50

-8.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.76 R$4.08

$2.55 MX$47.55

-70.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 R$10.45

$2.12 MX$39.58

-8.02%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 R$5.21

$1.94 MX$36.13

-50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.27

$1.89 MX$35.16

-47.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 R$3.90

$1.15 MX$21.37

-36.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 R$2.40

$1.18 MX$21.98

-61.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.32 R$12.43

$4.30 MX$80.1

-46.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.50 R$29.40

$9.95 MX$185

-44.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 R$6.34

$1.58 MX$29.52

-24.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 R$10.07

$2.67 MX$49.79

-29.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.38

$0.55 MX$10.31

83.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.39 R$227

$26.62 MX$496

59.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.90 R$4.82

$4.97 MX$92.6

-81.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R$4.80

$3.33 MX$62.1

-72.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.24 R$38.69

$5.36 MX$99.8

35.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 R$4.85

$1.44 MX$26.92

-36.81%

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

$22.0K R$117.4K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

6.27%

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

$26.5K R$141.9K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

13.07%

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

$78.1 R$418

$84.8 MX$1,581

-7.91%

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

$11.00 R$58.8

$23.41 MX$436

-53.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.94 R$85.2

$28.66 MX$534

-44.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.10 R$129

$57.1 MX$1,063

-57.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.43 R$141

$28.91 MX$539

-8.58%

Cinema Ticket

$4.52 R$24.18

$5.14 MX$95.8

-12.06%

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

$198 R$1,060

$207 MX$3,851

-4.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,502 R$40.1K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

91.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.56 R$249

$43.35 MX$808

7.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.52 R$195

$41.44 MX$772

-11.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.2 R$343

$74.2 MX$1,383

-13.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.18 R$252

$89.3 MX$1,664

-47.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$301 R$1,609

$980 MX$18.3K

-69.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$185 R$991

$381 MX$7,099

-51.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 R$3,931

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-56.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$617 R$3,299

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-42.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,600 R$8,554

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-59.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,135 R$6,068

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-81.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$275 R$1,469

$735 MX$13.7K

-62.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.38

11.45

8.12%

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

Last update for Itu: October 26, 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

Itu

$185 25.8%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 106% $196

Groceries & Markets

Itu

$162 22.5%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 57.6% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Itu

$105 14.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 30.3% $32

Eating Out

Itu

$95 13.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 114% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Itu

$88 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 27.7% $24

Getting Around

Itu

$52 7.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 2.6% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Itu

$33 4.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 103% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $301 in Itu 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.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 2.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39 in Itu versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $162 vs $255 – making Itu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Itu

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:05 11:05 AM

09:05 9:05 AM

2 h behind Itu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

168,240

149,923

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

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 BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Itu Playa del Carmen 6,510 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Itu
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $719 in Itu, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 67% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,079 per month in Itu and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Itu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $301 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39 in Itu and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $719 in Itu and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 67%.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Itu, where all-in costs run around $719, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Itu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Itu – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Itu. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.