Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lautoka and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Lautoka: $333 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Lautoka
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Lautoka Living Index
59

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

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Lautoka

🇫🇯 Fiji

$333

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $333 in Lautoka versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Lautoka $333
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $722 in Lautoka versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Lautoka $722
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,112 in Lautoka versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Lautoka $1,112
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Lautoka costs roughly 73% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lautoka 75% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.19 FJD 11.61

$10.76 MX$199

-51.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.2 FJD 177

$43.03 MX$797

84.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.80 FJD 17.47

$11.79 MX$218

-33.84%

Cappuccino

$2.56 FJD 5.72

$3.87 MX$71.6

-33.85%

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

$2.12 FJD 4.74

$1.37 MX$25.36

54.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 FJD 3.38

$0.84 MX$15.49

79.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 FJD 5.44

$3.10 MX$57.5

-21.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 FJD 6.84

$5.07 MX$93.9

-39.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 FJD 3.72

$1.44 MX$26.62

15.28%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 FJD 1.64

$2.23 MX$41.34

-67.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 FJD 1.95

$1.47 MX$27.25

-40.82%

Eggs

$3.44 FJD 7.70

$2.53 MX$46.84

35.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.80 FJD 12.98

$7.30 MX$135

-20.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.62 FJD 17.06

$7.86 MX$146

-3.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 FJD 16.98

$12.79 MX$237

-40.73%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 FJD 9.90

$2.90 MX$53.7

52.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.60

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 FJD 2.91

$2.55 MX$47.20

-49.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.13

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 FJD 2.09

$2.00 MX$37.07

-53.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 FJD 1.93

$2.01 MX$37.17

-57.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 FJD 1.96

$1.19 MX$22.08

-26.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 FJD 1.03

$1.26 MX$23.29

-63.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.93 FJD 24.46

$4.40 MX$81.6

148.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.46 FJD 12.22

$9.59 MX$178

-43.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 FJD 5.74

$1.59 MX$29.50

61.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 FJD 7.82

$2.81 MX$52.1

24.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.49

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$516

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.4

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.8

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$100

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 FJD 2.99

$1.47 MX$27.15

-9.52%

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

$21.0K MX$388.9K

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

$23.9K MX$443.0K

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

$84.2 MX$1,560

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

$13.14 FJD 29.43

$23.99 MX$444

-45.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$538

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,167

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$540

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.6

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

$204 MX$3,773

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$73.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$808

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$799

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,404

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,642

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 FJD 1,007

$1,008 MX$18.7K

-55.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,931

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$872 FJD 1,952

$1,708 MX$31.7K

-48.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$73.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$688 FJD 1,541

$754 MX$14.0K

-8.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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

Last update for Lautoka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Lautoka

$191 * 57.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 35.3% $67

Eating Out

Lautoka

$128 38.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 57.6% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lautoka

$13 * 4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 944% $124

Getting Around

Lautoka

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Sport & Entertainment

Lautoka

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Clothing & Footwear

Lautoka

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Accommodation & Living

Lautoka

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $450 in Lautoka and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 10% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $79.0 in Lautoka vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $191 vs $258, with Lautoka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇯 Lautoka

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

10:16 10:16 AM

17:16 5:16 PM

17 h behind Lautoka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

50,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Fijian Dollar FJD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.398 EUR

100 MXN = 5.4 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to FJD – Fijian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇫🇯 Fijian Dollar ($)

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.51 FJD (1 FJD = 0.398 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 18.53 MXN (100 MXN = 5.4 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to FJD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lautoka Playa del Carmen 11,240 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Lautoka
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

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

Lautoka and Playa del Carmen differ by about 264% in total monthly costs ($333 vs $1,210 including rent). Lautoka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 10% lower in Playa del Carmen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $450 in Lautoka versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lautoka – a meal for two runs $79.0 versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $333 per month in Lautoka versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – a 264% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $333 in Lautoka versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lautoka but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Lautoka the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Lautoka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 264% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.