Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Lae is 40.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 0.6% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Lae is 24.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 55% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.68 PGK 45.94

$11.85 MX$212

-9.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 PGK 236

$42.16 MX$755

30.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 MX$192

Cappuccino

$2.80 PGK 12.05

$3.47 MX$62.2

-19.31%

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

$0.81 PGK 3.46

$1.45 MX$26.01

-44.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 PGK 2.49

$0.90 MX$16.16

-35.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.56 PGK 15.30

$3.05 MX$54.7

16.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.79 PGK 24.90

$4.42 MX$79.1

31.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 PGK 9.05

$1.37 MX$24.51

53.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 PGK 6.56

$1.87 MX$33.51

-18.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 PGK 6.10

$1.54 MX$27.63

-7.79%

Eggs

$4.19 PGK 18.03

$2.50 MX$44.81

67.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.23 PGK 44.00

$8.61 MX$154

18.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.92 PGK 42.67

$8.63 MX$155

14.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.34 PGK 48.78

$11.02 MX$197

2.90%

Apples (1kg)

$4.84 PGK 20.80

$2.75 MX$49.22

76.00%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 PGK 12.97

$1.43 MX$25.56

111.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.74 PGK 29.00

$1.87 MX$33.52

260.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 PGK 7.14

$2.17 MX$38.80

-23.50%

Potato (1kg)

$3.70 PGK 15.92

$1.88 MX$33.70

96.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.46 PGK 10.57

$2.25 MX$40.21

9.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 PGK 3.15

$1.07 MX$19.11

-31.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 PGK 4.06

$1.07 MX$19.22

-12.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.17 PGK 30.83

$4.15 MX$74.4

72.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.71 PGK 54.6

$10.34 MX$185

22.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 PGK 11.53

$1.68 MX$30.06

59.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.70 PGK 20.22

$2.48 MX$44.46

89.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 PGK 1.48

$0.55 MX$9.93

-38.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.53 MX$475

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 MX$57.6

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$44.42

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 MX$55.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 PGK 4.86

$1.26 MX$22.48

-10.32%

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

$30.7K MX$548.8K

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

$24.0K MX$430.3K

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

$82.5 MX$1,476

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

$22.29 MX$399

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 MX$537

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 MX$921

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 MX$327

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 MX$89.2

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

$200 MX$3,580

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,304 MX$94.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.71 MX$639

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.56 MX$708

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 MX$1,442

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.3 MX$1,581

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$7,964 PGK 34.2K

$969 MX$17.4K

721.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$763 PGK 3,279

$482 MX$8,632

58.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,456 PGK 6,261

$1,595 MX$28.6K

-8.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 MX$21.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$72.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,522 MX$116.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$161 PGK 692

$756 MX$13.5K

-78.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

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

Last update for Lae: March 1, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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