Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Liuzhou and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Liuzhou: $770 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Liuzhou
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Liuzhou Living Index
59

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

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Liuzhou

🇨🇳 China

$770

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $770 per month in Liuzhou vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Liuzhou $770
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,196 per month in Liuzhou vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Liuzhou $1,196
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $1,621 per month in Liuzhou vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Liuzhou $1,621
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Liuzhou is about 36% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Liuzhou and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Liuzhou 43% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.79 ¥18.65

$10.76 MX$199

-74.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.22 ¥149

$43.03 MX$795

-48.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 ¥34.55

$11.79 MX$218

-56.15%

Cappuccino

$2.79 ¥18.68

$3.87 MX$71.4

-27.91%

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

$0.51 ¥3.42

$1.37 MX$25.29

-62.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ¥2.10

$0.84 MX$15.44

-63.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ¥7.10

$3.10 MX$57.3

-65.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 ¥14.16

$5.07 MX$93.6

-58.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 ¥12.08

$1.44 MX$26.55

25.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 ¥10.75

$2.23 MX$41.23

-27.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ¥6.62

$1.47 MX$27.17

-32.65%

Eggs

$1.66 ¥11.10

$2.53 MX$46.71

-34.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.17 ¥88.1

$7.30 MX$135

80.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.31 ¥22.14

$7.86 MX$145

-57.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.98 ¥73.4

$12.79 MX$236

-14.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 ¥9.85

$2.90 MX$53.6

-49.31%

Banana (1kg)

$0.88 ¥5.87

$1.44 MX$26.53

-38.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 ¥9.94

$2.55 MX$47.07

-41.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ¥8.51

$2.06 MX$38.03

-38.35%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$2.00 MX$36.97

-63.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 ¥6.40

$2.01 MX$37.07

-52.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 ¥4.20

$1.19 MX$22.02

-47.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥3.75

$1.26 MX$23.23

-55.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.85 ¥25.74

$4.40 MX$81.4

-12.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.99 ¥80.2

$9.59 MX$177

25.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥5.82

$1.59 MX$29.41

-45.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ¥10.42

$2.81 MX$51.9

-44.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.93

$0.57 MX$10.47

-49.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.81 ¥119

$27.82 MX$514

-35.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 ¥10.18

$4.98 MX$92.1

-69.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ¥2.19

$3.50 MX$64.6

-90.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.96 ¥46.54

$5.40 MX$99.8

28.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 ¥9.02

$1.47 MX$27.08

-8.16%

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

$19.7K ¥132.0K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-5.95%

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

$17.7K ¥118.3K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-25.98%

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

$57.1 ¥382

$84.2 MX$1,556

-32.18%

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

$8.60 ¥57.5

$23.99 MX$443

-64.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.23 ¥75.1

$29.02 MX$536

-61.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$82.2 ¥550

$63.0 MX$1,164

30.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.17 ¥101

$29.14 MX$539

-47.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.25 ¥41.77

$4.94 MX$91.3

26.52%

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

$425 ¥2,842

$204 MX$3,763

108.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.7K ¥118.2K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

348.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.51 ¥291

$43.60 MX$806

-0.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.03 ¥221

$43.12 MX$797

-23.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 ¥494

$75.8 MX$1,400

-2.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.6 ¥492

$88.6 MX$1,637

-16.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$240 ¥1,603

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-76.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$188 ¥1,257

$374 MX$6,911

-49.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$423 ¥2,827

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-75.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$319 ¥2,133

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-71.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,425 ¥22.9K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-13.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,957 ¥13.1K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-68.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$594 ¥3,970

$754 MX$13.9K

-21.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

11.45

-70.66%

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

Last update for Liuzhou: 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

Liuzhou

$204 26.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 27% $55

Accommodation & Living

Liuzhou

$188 24.4%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 98.9% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Liuzhou

$101 13.1%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 12.1% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Liuzhou

$95 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 23% $22

Eating Out

Liuzhou

$84 10.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 140% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Liuzhou

$77 10%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 78.3% $60

Getting Around

Liuzhou

$22 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 138% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $240 in Liuzhou versus $1,008 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.

Salaries run about 27% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Liuzhou versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $204 vs $258 – making Liuzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Liuzhou

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

01:26 1:26 AM

13 h behind Liuzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,157,934

149,923

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Liuzhou Playa del Carmen 14,710 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Liuzhou
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $770 in Liuzhou, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 57% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,156 per month in Liuzhou and $1,816 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 Liuzhou, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 27% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Liuzhou and $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Liuzhou, where all-in costs run around $770, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Liuzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $770 in Liuzhou to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Liuzhou. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.