Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kajang, Selangor and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Kajang, Selangor: $925 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Kajang, Selangor
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Kajang, Selangor Living Index
58

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

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Kajang, Selangor

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$925

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $925 per month in Kajang, Selangor vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Kajang, Selangor $925
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,410 per month in Kajang, Selangor vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Kajang, Selangor $1,410
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,895 per month in Kajang, Selangor vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Kajang, Selangor $1,895
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Kajang, Selangor is about 23% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Kajang, Selangor and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Kajang, Selangor 32% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.77 MYR 15.29

$10.92 MX$205

-65.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.15 MYR 73.6

$43.37 MX$814

-58.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.83 MYR 19.60

$11.78 MX$221

-59.00%

Cappuccino

$2.86 MYR 11.58

$3.81 MX$71.5

-24.93%

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

$0.79 MYR 3.19

$1.28 MX$24.07

-38.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 MYR 1.85

$0.78 MX$14.70

-41.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 MYR 18.17

$3.17 MX$59.5

41.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.17 MYR 25.02

$4.93 MX$92.7

25.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 MYR 6.86

$1.41 MX$26.40

19.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 MYR 4.33

$2.22 MX$41.62

-51.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 MYR 6.09

$1.42 MX$26.61

5.63%

Eggs

$1.65 MYR 6.70

$2.52 MX$47.36

-34.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.37 MYR 74.5

$7.26 MX$136

153.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 MYR 18.05

$7.70 MX$144

-42.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.06 MYR 40.80

$12.69 MX$238

-20.72%

Apples (1kg)

$3.43 MYR 13.91

$2.78 MX$52.3

23.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 MYR 6.84

$1.37 MX$25.68

23.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 MYR 9.38

$2.55 MX$47.89

-9.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 MYR 6.13

$2.12 MX$39.86

-28.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 MYR 4.99

$1.94 MX$36.39

-36.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.82

$1.89 MX$35.41

-11.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 MYR 4.75

$1.15 MX$21.53

1.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.23

$1.18 MX$22.13

-53.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 MYR 17.42

$4.30 MX$80.6

-0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.03 MYR 56.9

$9.95 MX$187

41.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.99 MYR 12.14

$1.58 MX$29.73

89.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 MYR 12.23

$2.67 MX$50.1

12.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 MYR 3.04

$0.55 MX$10.39

36.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.39 MYR 50.3

$26.62 MX$500

-53.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 MYR 5.08

$4.97 MX$93.3

-74.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 MYR 3.06

$3.33 MX$62.5

-77.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.01 MYR 20.34

$5.36 MX$101

-6.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.81 MYR 3.29

$1.44 MX$27.11

-43.75%

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

$43.4K MYR 176.2K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

110.20%

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

$35.4K MYR 143.8K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

51.02%

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

$53.0 MYR 215

$84.8 MX$1,592

-37.54%

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

$9.61 MYR 38.99

$23.41 MX$439

-58.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.69 MYR 104

$28.66 MX$538

-10.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.05 MYR 171

$57.1 MX$1,071

-26.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.38 MYR 29.92

$28.91 MX$543

-74.47%

Cinema Ticket

$4.91 MYR 19.91

$5.14 MX$96.5

-4.47%

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

$234 MYR 951

$207 MX$3,878

13.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,442 MYR 18.0K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

13.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 MYR 218

$43.35 MX$814

23.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.39 MYR 66.5

$41.44 MX$778

-60.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.4 MYR 330

$74.2 MX$1,393

9.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.0 MYR 397

$89.3 MX$1,676

9.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$358 MYR 1,454

$980 MX$18.4K

-63.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$274 MYR 1,112

$381 MX$7,150

-28.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$727 MYR 2,951

$1,708 MX$32.1K

-57.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 MYR 1,993

$1,075 MX$20.2K

-54.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,045 MYR 8,297

$3,943 MX$74.0K

-48.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,056 MYR 4,285

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-82.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

11.45

-64.54%

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

Last update for Kajang, Selangor: October 25, 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

Kajang, Selangor

$274 29.6%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 39% $107

Groceries & Markets

Kajang, Selangor

$259 28%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 1.7% $4.4

Eating Out

Kajang, Selangor

$119 12.8%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 70.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Kajang, Selangor

$112 12.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 0.5% $0.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kajang, Selangor

$88 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 55.1% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Kajang, Selangor

$52 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 29.8% $15

Getting Around

Kajang, Selangor

$20 2.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 147% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $358 in Kajang, Selangor 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $18 in Kajang, Selangor versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $259 in Kajang, Selangor vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kajang, Selangor

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

02:57 2:57 AM

13 h behind Kajang, Selangor

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,047,356

149,923

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kajang, Selangor Playa del Carmen 17,220 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Kajang, Selangor
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

Kajang, Selangor vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $925 in Kajang, Selangor, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Kajang, Selangor comes out roughly 23% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,387 per month in Kajang, Selangor 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 Kajang, Selangor, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $358 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $18 in Kajang, Selangor and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 53% less in Kajang, Selangor. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Kajang, Selangor, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Kajang, Selangor 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 $925 in Kajang, Selangor to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.