Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Joliette and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,717 in Joliette, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Joliette
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Joliette Living Index
58

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

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Joliette

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,717

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,717 per month in Joliette vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Joliette $1,717
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,639 per month in Joliette vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Joliette $2,639
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,562 per month in Joliette vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Joliette $3,562
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Joliette costs about 43% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Joliette sits 26% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.02 CA$25.32

$10.92 MX$204

65.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.9 CA$74.3

$43.37 MX$810

21.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 CA$15.05

$11.78 MX$220

-9.08%

Cappuccino

$2.53 CA$3.56

$3.81 MX$71.2

-33.60%

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

$2.06 CA$2.90

$1.28 MX$23.96

60.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 CA$2.44

$0.78 MX$14.63

123.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.22 CA$5.94

$3.17 MX$59.2

33.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.44 CA$9.05

$4.93 MX$92.2

30.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 CA$3.36

$1.41 MX$26.28

69.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 CA$3.58

$2.22 MX$41.43

14.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.02 CA$4.24

$1.42 MX$26.48

112.68%

Eggs

$2.54 CA$3.56

$2.52 MX$47.14

0.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.79 CA$16.56

$7.26 MX$136

62.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.90 CA$16.71

$7.70 MX$144

54.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.70 CA$26.27

$12.69 MX$237

47.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.63 CA$5.10

$2.78 MX$52.0

30.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 CA$1.86

$1.37 MX$25.56

-2.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.88 CA$5.45

$2.55 MX$47.66

52.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.43 CA$4.81

$2.12 MX$39.67

61.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.60 CA$3.65

$1.94 MX$36.22

34.02%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 CA$3.37

$1.89 MX$35.24

26.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 CA$2.26

$1.15 MX$21.42

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.08

$1.18 MX$22.03

25.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.09 CA$19.80

$4.30 MX$80.3

227.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 CA$17.51

$9.95 MX$186

25.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.53 CA$3.56

$1.58 MX$29.59

60.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 CA$4.37

$2.67 MX$49.91

16.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.20 CA$3.08

$0.55 MX$10.34

300.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.0 CA$81.5

$26.62 MX$497

117.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.72 CA$3.82

$4.97 MX$92.9

-45.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.46 CA$2.05

$3.33 MX$62.2

-56.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.01 CA$26.71

$5.36 MX$100

254.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.97 CA$1.37

$1.44 MX$26.98

-32.64%

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

$27.4K CA$38.6K

$20.7K MX$386.2K

32.80%

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

$22.5K CA$31.7K

$23.5K MX$438.5K

-3.91%

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

$141 CA$198

$84.8 MX$1,584

66.20%

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

$36.90 CA$51.9

$23.41 MX$437

57.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.7 CA$71.2

$28.66 MX$535

76.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.60 CA$59.9

$57.1 MX$1,066

-25.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 CA$26.97

$28.91 MX$540

-33.62%

Cinema Ticket

$13.01 CA$18.27

$5.14 MX$96.0

153.11%

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

$809 CA$1,137

$207 MX$3,860

291.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.5K

$3,927 MX$73.4K

307.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.5 CA$71.0

$43.35 MX$810

16.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.12 CA$52.2

$41.44 MX$774

-10.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 CA$122

$74.2 MX$1,386

17.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 CA$141

$89.3 MX$1,668

12.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$652 CA$916

$980 MX$18.3K

-33.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$602 CA$845

$381 MX$7,116

57.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 CA$1,829

$1,708 MX$31.9K

-23.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,087 CA$1,527

$1,075 MX$20.1K

1.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,928 CA$5,518

$3,943 MX$73.7K

-0.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,688 CA$5,181

$6,158 MX$115.1K

-40.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,709 CA$3,806

$735 MX$13.7K

268.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.16

11.45

-63.67%

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

Last update for Joliette: 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

Joliette

$602 35%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 36.7% $221

Groceries & Markets

Joliette

$362 21.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 29.6% $107

Eating Out

Joliette

$256 14.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 20.9% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Joliette

$229 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 40.1% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Joliette

$124 7.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 9.8% $12

Getting Around

Joliette

$77 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 34.3% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Joliette

$69 4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 1.9% $1.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $652 in Joliette 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 Joliette are about 3.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $53 in Joliette versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $362 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Joliette

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

07:06 7:06 AM

06:06 6:06 AM

1 h behind Joliette

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,484

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.712 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.712 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Joliette Playa del Carmen 3,080 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Joliette
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

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

Yes – Joliette is pricier by about 43%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,576 per month in Joliette 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 Joliette, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $652 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $809 per month in Joliette and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 42% more in Joliette, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Joliette at $1,717. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Joliette 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 $1,717 in Joliette. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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