Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lija and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,974 in Lija, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

100

Cost of Living Index in Lija
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Lija Living Index
58

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

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Lija

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,974

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,974 per month in Lija vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lija $1,974
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,101 per month in Lija vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lija $3,101
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,228 per month in Lija vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lija $4,228
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Lija costs about 64% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lija sits 45% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.47 €20.05

$10.92 MX$205

105.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.7 €80.9

$43.37 MX$813

109.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.33 €11.89

$11.78 MX$221

13.16%

Cappuccino

$3.20 €2.86

$3.81 MX$71.4

-16.01%

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

$2.34 €2.08

$1.28 MX$24.03

82.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 €1.71

$0.78 MX$14.67

146.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.71 €5.10

$3.17 MX$59.3

80.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 €6.05

$4.93 MX$92.5

37.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.41 MX$26.35

-6.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 €1.30

$2.22 MX$41.54

-34.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.42 €3.05

$1.42 MX$26.56

140.85%

Eggs

$4.23 €3.78

$2.52 MX$47.27

67.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.29 €9.18

$7.26 MX$136

41.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.83 €10.55

$7.70 MX$144

53.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.44 €16.46

$12.69 MX$238

45.31%

Apples (1kg)

$3.75 €3.35

$2.78 MX$52.2

34.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$1.37 MX$25.64

104.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.96 €3.54

$2.55 MX$47.80

55.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.84 €3.42

$2.12 MX$39.78

81.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.94 MX$36.32

-4.12%

Onion (1kg)

$3.36 €3.00

$1.89 MX$35.34

77.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.21 €1.97

$1.15 MX$21.49

92.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.18 MX$22.09

26.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.18 €5.52

$4.30 MX$80.5

43.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.85 €5.22

$9.95 MX$186

-41.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.39 €2.13

$1.58 MX$29.67

51.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.04

$2.67 MX$50.1

-14.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.45 €2.18

$0.55 MX$10.37

345.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$4.97 MX$93.1

-19.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 €1.57

$3.33 MX$62.4

-47.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.80 €29.26

$5.36 MX$100

511.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.44 MX$27.06

5.56%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$20.7K MX$387.3K

36.24%

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

$38.9K €34.8K

$23.5K MX$439.7K

65.99%

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

$157 €140

$84.8 MX$1,589

85.29%

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

$31.50 €28.10

$23.41 MX$439

34.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.99 €25.87

$28.66 MX$537

1.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.7 €50.6

$57.1 MX$1,069

-0.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$11.33 €10.11

$5.14 MX$96.3

120.43%

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

$272 €243

$207 MX$3,871

31.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K €11.0K

$3,927 MX$73.6K

213.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.7 €51.5

$43.35 MX$812

33.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$67.6 €60.3

$41.44 MX$777

63.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 €99.0

$74.2 MX$1,390

49.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €117

$89.3 MX$1,672

46.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,205 €1,075

$980 MX$18.4K

23.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$830 €741

$381 MX$7,136

118.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,528 €1,363

$1,708 MX$32.0K

-10.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,497 €1,336

$1,075 MX$20.1K

39.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,448 €3,969

$3,943 MX$73.9K

12.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,958 €2,639

$6,158 MX$115.4K

-51.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

11.45

-64.63%

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

Last update for Lija: October 24, 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

Lija

$830 42.1%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 54.1% $449

Groceries & Markets

Lija

$341 17.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 25.4% $87

Eating Out

Lija

$317 16.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 36.2% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lija

$218 11%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 37.1% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Lija

$165 8.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 32.4% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Lija

$79 4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 15.1% $12

Getting Around

Lija

$23 * 1.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 124% $28

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,205 in Lija 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 $91 in Lija versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $341 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Lija

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:02 8:02 PM

14:02 2:02 PM

6 h behind Lija

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,200

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lija Playa del Carmen 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Lija
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,974 in Lija, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 39% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,961 per month in Lija 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,205 in Lija.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,974 in Lija and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 39% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $272 per month in Lija and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Lija at $1,974. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lija it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.