Cost of Living Comparison Between Kota Kinabalu and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Kota Kinabalu and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Kota Kinabalu is 4.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 32.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Kota Kinabalu is 12.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 39.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.52 MYR 13.92

$11.61 MX$200

-69.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.10 MYR 75.5

$42.75 MX$738

-55.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.79 MYR 18.93

$10.60 MX$183

-54.81%

Cappuccino

$2.67 MYR 10.53

$3.59 MX$62.0

-25.63%

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

$0.68 MYR 2.69

$1.45 MX$25.08

-53.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 MYR 1.56

$0.90 MX$15.50

-56.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.33 MYR 9.22

$3.03 MX$52.4

-23.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.47 MYR 13.72

$4.56 MX$78.8

-23.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 MYR 6.63

$1.45 MX$25.07

15.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 MYR 4.94

$1.83 MX$31.55

-31.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.62

$1.61 MX$27.77

4.35%

Eggs

$2.91 MYR 11.50

$2.54 MX$43.82

14.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.95 MYR 102

$8.54 MX$148

203.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.64 MYR 14.36

$8.47 MX$146

-57.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.09 MYR 28.01

$10.86 MX$188

-34.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.66 MYR 10.52

$2.73 MX$47.13

-2.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.13 MYR 4.47

$1.49 MX$25.77

-24.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.24 MYR 12.82

$1.94 MX$33.55

67.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 MYR 7.78

$2.16 MX$37.38

-8.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 MYR 5.99

$1.85 MX$31.88

-17.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 MYR 6.74

$2.19 MX$37.80

-21.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 MYR 4.45

$1.07 MX$18.52

5.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.85

$1.08 MX$18.71

-56.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.02 MYR 15.88

$4.06 MX$70.1

-0.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$27.13 MYR 107

$10.46 MX$181

159.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 MYR 7.55

$1.65 MX$28.56

15.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 MYR 6.44

$2.55 MX$44.01

-36.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 MYR 5.97

$0.56 MX$9.60

169.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.65 MYR 161

$26.20 MX$453

55.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 MYR 7.37

$3.14 MX$54.2

-40.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 MYR 1.72

$2.37 MX$40.96

-81.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.00 MYR 23.69

$3.24 MX$56.0

85.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.83

$1.31 MX$22.70

-64.89%

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

$29.6K MYR 117.0K

$30.5K MX$527.4K

-2.97%

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

$28.1K MYR 110.8K

$23.8K MX$411.4K

17.77%

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

$51.2 MYR 202

$83.1 MX$1,436

-38.45%

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

$9.14 MYR 36.11

$22.15 MX$383

-58.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.66 MYR 129

$29.37 MX$507

11.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.05 MYR 170

$51.2 MX$884

-15.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$2.87 MYR 11.33

$18.69 MX$323

-84.64%

Cinema Ticket

$4.76 MYR 18.80

$4.89 MX$84.4

-2.66%

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

$133 MYR 524

$199 MX$3,431

-33.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,434 MYR 17.5K

$5,207 MX$89.9K

-14.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.0 MYR 233

$35.93 MX$621

64.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 MYR 90.0

$39.39 MX$680

-42.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 MYR 281

$80.3 MX$1,387

-11.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.6 MYR 374

$87.6 MX$1,512

8.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$378 MYR 1,492

$963 MX$16.6K

-60.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$162 MYR 641

$482 MX$8,326

-66.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$645 MYR 2,548

$1,645 MX$28.4K

-60.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 MYR 1,456

$1,192 MX$20.6K

-69.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,893 MYR 7,478

$3,957 MX$68.3K

-52.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,130 MYR 4,463

$6,513 MX$112.5K

-82.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$612 MYR 2,417

$726 MX$12.5K

-15.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.8

11.42

-66.73%

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

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: April 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: April 12, 2026

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

Kota Kinabalu vs other spots: cost of living compared

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