Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Samui and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Samui and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Koh Samui is 14.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 13.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Koh Samui is 16.6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 9.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.06 ฿99
$11.73 MX$222
-73.91%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$30.52 ฿988
$41.52 MX$785
-26.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.42 ฿273
$10.57 MX$200
-20.34%
Cappuccino
$2.32 ฿75.2
$3.49 MX$65.9
-33.52%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 ฿23.56
$1.45 MX$27.33
-49.66%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.39 ฿12.78
$0.97 MX$18.33
-59.79%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.42 ฿78.3
$3.03 MX$57.2
-20.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.57 ฿116
$4.59 MX$86.8
-22.22%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.66 ฿53.7
$1.42 MX$26.87
16.90%
White Bread (500g)
$1.67 ฿54.1
$1.87 MX$35.43
-10.70%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.41 ฿45.47
$1.54 MX$29.2
-8.44%
Eggs
$2.24 ฿72.4
$2.6 MX$49.21
-13.85%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.36 ฿627
$8.32 MX$157
132.69%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$2.59 ฿83.8
$8.54 MX$161
-69.67%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.62 ฿408
$10.67 MX$202
18.28%
Apples (1kg)
$3.38 ฿109
$2.66 MX$50.2
27.07%
Banana (1kg)
$1.18 ฿38.31
$1.51 MX$28.5
-21.85%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.2 ฿71.3
$1.9 MX$35.87
15.79%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.98 ฿64.1
$2.19 MX$41.45
-9.59%
Potato (1kg)
$1.45 ฿46.79
$1.78 MX$33.7
-18.54%
Onion (1kg)
$1.43 ฿46.33
$2.17 MX$41.05
-34.10%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.98 ฿31.76
$1.07 MX$20.14
-8.41%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.45 ฿14.51
$1.09 MX$20.53
-58.72%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.23 ฿137
$4.17 MX$78.8
1.44%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.75 ฿607
$8.75 MX$165
114.29%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.65 ฿53.4
$1.69 MX$31.91
-2.37%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.95 ฿63.2
$2.53 MX$47.74
-22.92%
🚌 Getting Around
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.5 ฿48.52
$0.51 MX$9.59
194.12%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$45.46 ฿1,471
$26.97 MX$510
68.56%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 ฿101
$3.25 MX$61.4
-4.31%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1 ฿32.43
$2.49 MX$47.01
-59.84%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$14.04 ฿454
$3.22 MX$60.8
336.02%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 ฿42.51
$1.26 MX$23.87
3.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28K ฿905.3K
$29.8K MX$564.1K
-6.25%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.6K ฿859.3K
$23.4K MX$442.5K
13.45%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$110 ฿3,571
$84.2 MX$1,592
31.04%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.9 ฿450
$22.8 MX$431
-39.04%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.32 ฿593
$30.04 MX$568
-39.01%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.07 ฿1,005
$51.4 MX$972
-39.54%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.79 ฿608
$18.28 MX$346
2.79%
Cinema Ticket
$7.21 ฿233
$4.97 MX$94.1
45.07%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$660 ฿21.4K
$197 MX$3,719
235.72%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.1K ฿327K
$5,254 MX$99.3K
92.32%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$52.4 ฿1,695
$35.81 MX$677
46.24%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.04 ฿1,102
$39.43 MX$745
-13.67%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$81.9 ฿2,649
$80.9 MX$1,529
1.20%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$83.2 ฿2,693
$86.3 MX$1,631
-3.57%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$699 ฿22.6K
$968 MX$18.3K
-27.77%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$369 ฿11.9K
$478 MX$9,037
-22.80%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,407 ฿45.5K
$1,631 MX$30.8K
-13.71%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,124 ฿36.4K
$1,197 MX$22.6K
-6.08%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,004 ฿64.8K
$3,137 MX$59.3K
-36.11%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,414 ฿45.8K
$7,586 MX$143.4K
-81.36%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Koh Samui
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$463 ฿15K
$805 MX$15.2K
-42.45%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.33
11.42
-53.33%

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

Last update for Koh Samui: November 3, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2025

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