Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jos and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Jos: $534 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Jos
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Jos Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Jos

🇳🇬 Nigeria

$534

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $534 per month in Jos vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Jos $534
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,097 per month in Jos vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Jos $1,097
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,661 per month in Jos vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Jos $1,661
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Jos is about 56% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Jos and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Jos 61% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.04 ₦2,729

$10.92 MX$204

-81.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.16 ₦40.4K

$43.37 MX$808

-30.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.97 ₦5,325

$11.78 MX$220

-66.30%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₦4,357

$3.81 MX$71.0

-14.70%

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

$0.43 ₦571

$1.28 MX$23.90

-66.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₦896

$0.78 MX$14.59

-14.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.02 ₦1,366

$3.17 MX$59.0

-67.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 ₦2,658

$4.93 MX$92.0

-59.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.70 ₦4,958

$1.41 MX$26.22

162.41%

White Bread (500g)

$0.87 ₦1,171

$2.22 MX$41.33

-60.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₦2,931

$1.42 MX$26.42

54.23%

Eggs

$1.79 ₦2,397

$2.52 MX$47.03

-28.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.95 ₦13.3K

$7.26 MX$135

37.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.02 ₦6,728

$7.70 MX$143

-34.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.02 ₦5,384

$12.69 MX$237

-68.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.00 ₦2,674

$2.78 MX$51.9

-28.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₦1,940

$1.37 MX$25.50

5.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 ₦2,025

$2.55 MX$47.55

-40.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 ₦3,046

$2.12 MX$39.58

7.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 ₦2,390

$1.94 MX$36.13

-8.25%

Onion (1kg)

$2.41 ₦3,229

$1.89 MX$35.16

27.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 ₦785

$1.15 MX$21.37

-48.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 ₦534

$1.18 MX$21.98

-66.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.95 ₦2,619

$4.30 MX$80.1

-54.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.93 ₦7,949

$9.95 MX$185

-40.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 ₦1,605

$1.58 MX$29.52

-24.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 ₦2,371

$2.67 MX$49.79

-33.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.58 ₦780

$4.97 MX$92.6

-88.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 ₦1,166

$3.33 MX$62.1

-73.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 ₦2,453

$5.36 MX$99.8

-65.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.54 ₦723

$1.44 MX$26.92

-62.50%

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

$25.7K ₦34.4M

$20.7K MX$385.2K

24.14%

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

$36.3K ₦48.6M

$23.5K MX$437.4K

54.55%

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

$100 ₦134.5K

$84.8 MX$1,581

18.35%

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

$6.50 ₦8,712

$23.41 MX$436

-72.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.97 ₦38.8K

$28.66 MX$534

1.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.52 ₦53.0K

$57.1 MX$1,063

-30.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.03 ₦16.1K

$28.91 MX$539

-58.39%

Cinema Ticket

$6.22 ₦8,331

$5.14 MX$95.8

21.01%

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

$44.67 ₦59.9K

$207 MX$3,851

-78.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,001 ₦1.3M

$3,927 MX$73.2K

-74.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$10.09 ₦13.5K

$43.35 MX$808

-76.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$14.98 ₦20.1K

$41.44 MX$772

-63.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.0 ₦68.3K

$74.2 MX$1,383

-31.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.1 ₦67.1K

$89.3 MX$1,664

-43.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$554 ₦743.1K

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-67.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 ₦646.7K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-55.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,030 ₦2.7M

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-48.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,485 ₦2.0M

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-75.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$102 ₦136.4K

$735 MX$13.7K

-86.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

22.5

11.45

96.51%

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

Last update for Jos: 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.

Groceries & Markets

Jos

$203 38.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 25.3% $51

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jos

$136 25.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 0.8% $1

Eating Out

Jos

$81 15.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 151% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Jos

$57 10.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 96.8% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Jos

$52 9.7%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 29.6% $15

Getting Around

Jos

$4.9 * 0.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 923% $46

Accommodation & Living

Jos

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 7.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Jos versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $203 vs $255 – making Jos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇬 Jos

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

00:06 12:06 AM

18:06 6:06 PM

6 h behind Jos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

900,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Nigerian Naira NGN ₦

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 NGN = 7.46 USD

10,000 NGN = 6.7 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NGN – Nigerian Naira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇬 Nigerian Naira (₦)

Nigerian Naira exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,340 NGN (10,000 NGN = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,492 NGN (10,000 NGN = 6.7 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 NGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Jos Playa del Carmen 10,230 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Jos
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $534 in Jos, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Jos comes out roughly 56% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $800 per month in Jos and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Jos and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 25% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Jos, where all-in costs run around $534, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Jos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen 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 $534 in Jos to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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