Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Makarska and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,613 in Makarska, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Makarska
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Makarska Living Index
57

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

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Makarska

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,613

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,613 in Makarska versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Makarska $1,613
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,481 in Makarska versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Makarska $2,481
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,349 in Makarska versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Makarska $3,349
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Makarska is roughly 34% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Makarska is 19% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.40 €15.52

$10.67 MX$201

63.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.1 €68.7

$43.80 MX$824

75.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.93 €7.07

$11.79 MX$222

-32.74%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.90

$3.79 MX$71.2

-14.25%

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

$4.00 €3.56

$1.30 MX$24.41

207.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 €2.73

$0.83 MX$15.69

268.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.86

$3.15 MX$59.2

73.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.83 €4.31

$4.93 MX$92.9

-2.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.41 MX$26.51

-16.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.66 €1.48

$2.20 MX$41.32

-24.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.04 €2.71

$1.47 MX$27.71

106.80%

Eggs

$5.03 €4.49

$2.50 MX$46.99

101.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.99 €13.37

$7.29 MX$137

105.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.57 €8.54

$7.95 MX$150

20.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.11 €10.80

$12.86 MX$242

-5.83%

Apples (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$2.90 MX$54.5

-33.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 €1.42

$1.38 MX$26.03

15.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.49 MX$46.88

-16.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.67 €2.39

$2.03 MX$38.20

31.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.02 MX$38.11

8.91%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.86

$1.90 MX$35.82

9.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 €1.41

$1.14 MX$21.54

39.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 €1.39

$1.24 MX$23.32

25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.69 €5.08

$4.27 MX$80.4

33.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.92 €7.07

$9.81 MX$185

-19.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.59 MX$29.85

-13.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$2.75 MX$51.7

-46.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.69 €1.51

$0.51 MX$9.69

231.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.77 €39.04

$27.39 MX$515

59.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 €2.95

$4.76 MX$89.6

-30.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 €1.23

$3.25 MX$61.1

-57.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.47 €12.02

$5.39 MX$101

149.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.65 €1.47

$1.53 MX$28.76

7.84%

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

$26.2K €23.3K

$21.2K MX$399.2K

23.28%

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

$24.6K €22.0K

$23.3K MX$437.8K

5.90%

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

$181 €162

$83.5 MX$1,571

116.94%

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

$27.54 €24.57

$23.19 MX$436

18.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.92 €38.28

$27.61 MX$520

55.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.7 €46.12

$56.4 MX$1,062

-8.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.42 €13.75

$28.19 MX$531

-45.30%

Cinema Ticket

$10.67 €9.52

$5.00 MX$94.1

113.40%

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

$412 €367

$207 MX$3,897

98.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,854 €6,114

$5,231 MX$98.4K

31.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.0 €81.2

$43.45 MX$818

109.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.42 €39.63

$42.54 MX$801

4.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.8

$72.8 MX$1,369

42.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 €70.8

$88.4 MX$1,663

-10.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$685 €611

$995 MX$18.7K

-31.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$525 €469

$382 MX$7,197

37.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,162 €1,037

$1,674 MX$31.5K

-30.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$862 €769

$1,081 MX$20.3K

-20.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,989 €3,558

$3,909 MX$73.6K

2.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,885 €2,574

$6,138 MX$115.5K

-52.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.72

11.45

-67.51%

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

Last update for Makarska: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Makarska

$525 32.6%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 27.2% $143

Groceries & Markets

Makarska

$292 18.1%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 11.9% $35

Eating Out

Makarska

$267 16.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 25% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Makarska

$252 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 46.6% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Makarska

$143 8.9%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 22.5% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Makarska

$73 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 9% $6.6

Getting Around

Makarska

$61 3.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 16.9% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $685 in Makarska and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $77 in Makarska vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $257 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Makarska

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

09:46 9:46 AM

03:46 3:46 AM

6 h behind Makarska

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,809

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Makarska Playa del Carmen 9,520 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Makarska
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

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

Playa del Carmen is about 25% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,420 in Makarska and $1,804 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $685 in Makarska versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $412 in Makarska versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Makarska. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,613 in Makarska, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Makarska. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value at $1,202 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.