Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the Maldives and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,501 in the Maldives, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in the Maldives outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

🇲🇻 Maldives
$1,501
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,215
/mo nomad
🙂 Solo nomad: The Maldives is 19.7% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 23.5% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: The Maldives is 12.7% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 6.8% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.54 MVR 101
$10.97 MX$201
-40.38%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$49.62 MVR 765
$44.85 MX$823
10.64%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.00 MVR 154
$11.92 MX$219
-16.11%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.97 MVR 76.6
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$9.82 MVR 151
-
-
Cappuccino
$3.27 MVR 50.4
$3.80 MX$69.9
-13.95%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.51 MVR 23.32
$1.31 MX$24.08
15.27%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.31 MVR 4.81
$0.86 MX$15.72
-63.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.21 MX$59.0
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$5.01 MX$92.0
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.88 MVR 29.01
$1.46 MX$26.77
28.77%
White Bread (500g)
$1.56 MVR 24.10
$2.33 MX$42.72
-33.05%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.04 MVR 16.04
$1.44 MX$26.48
-27.78%
Eggs
$1.75 MVR 27.04
$2.46 MX$45.20
-28.86%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.18 MVR 95.4
$7.70 MX$141
-19.74%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.75 MVR 104
$7.89 MX$145
-14.45%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.03 MVR 155
$12.80 MX$235
-21.64%
Apples (1kg)
$3.98 MVR 61.3
$2.92 MX$53.6
36.30%
Banana (1kg)
$2.99 MVR 46.12
$1.42 MX$26.11
110.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.88 MVR 59.8
$2.57 MX$47.10
50.97%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.56 MVR 39.48
$2.14 MX$39.24
19.63%
Potato (1kg)
$1.75 MVR 26.93
$1.95 MX$35.75
-10.26%
Onion (1kg)
$1.75 MVR 26.99
$1.94 MX$35.55
-9.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.23 MVR 34.38
$1.15 MX$21.13
93.91%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.60 MVR 9.25
$1.22 MX$22.42
-50.82%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
$11.14 MVR 172
-
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.53 MVR 39.01
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.61 MVR 71.1
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$15.06 MVR 232
$4.38 MX$80.3
243.84%
Wine (Bottle)
-
$9.85 MX$181
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.54 MX$28.23
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.72 MX$49.86
-
🚌 Getting Around
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.68 MVR 10.51
$0.52 MX$9.64
30.77%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$28.89 MVR 446
$27.42 MX$503
5.36%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.89 MVR 29.15
$4.91 MX$90.2
-61.51%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.95 MVR 30.12
$3.52 MX$64.7
-44.60%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.02 MVR 124
$5.69 MX$104
40.95%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.99 MVR 15.19
$1.54 MX$28.27
-35.71%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$31.7K MVR 489.3K
$21.2K MX$389.9K
49.41%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$29.9K MVR 460.5K
$24.5K MX$449.6K
21.96%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$132 MVR 2,038
$83.6 MX$1,535
58.07%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$30.76 MVR 474
$24.03 MX$441
28.01%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$68.3 MVR 1,052
$29.33 MX$539
132.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$63.4 MVR 978
$64.9 MX$1,191
-2.22%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$21.44 MVR 331
$29.46 MX$541
-27.22%
Cinema Ticket
$9.03 MVR 139
$5.09 MX$93.4
77.41%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$183 MVR 2,826
$208 MX$3,813
-11.76%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,922 MVR 45.1K
$4,045 MX$74.3K
-27.77%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$37.67 MVR 581
$44.55 MX$818
-15.44%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$50.1 MVR 772
$42.06 MX$772
19.09%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$86.1 MVR 1,327
$75.5 MX$1,387
13.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$51.9 MVR 800
$91.4 MX$1,678
-43.22%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$911 MVR 14.0K
$986 MX$18.1K
-7.69%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$672 MVR 10.4K
$385 MX$7,072
74.43%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,927 MVR 29.7K
$1,713 MX$31.5K
12.47%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,467 MVR 22.6K
$1,108 MX$20.4K
32.32%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,641 MVR 40.7K
$4,016 MX$73.7K
-34.25%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$781 MVR 12.0K
$6,247 MX$114.7K
-87.50%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Maldives
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$783 MVR 12.1K
$758 MX$13.9K
3.31%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
14
11.45
22.27%

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

Last update for the Maldives: October 5, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Maldives
$672
Playa del Carmen
$385 42.7% $287
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maldives
$231
Playa del Carmen
$137 40.7% $94
Groceries & Markets
Maldives
$219
Playa del Carmen
$260 18.9% $41
Eating Out
Maldives
$129
Playa del Carmen
$204 58.3% $75
Clothing & Footwear
Maldives
$102
Playa del Carmen
$114 12.3% $13
Sport & Entertainment
Maldives
$81
Playa del Carmen
$75 7.9% $6.4
Getting Around
Maldives
$43
Playa del Carmen
$52 20.3% $8.8
Good to know
🇲🇻 Maldives
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
15:39 3:39 PM
05:39 5:39 AM
10 h behind the Maldives
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
436,330
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to MVR – Maldivian Rufiyaa Converter

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.28 MVR (100 MVR = 5.79 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Maldives Playa del Carmen 16,540 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Maldives
  • 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

Maldives vs other spots: cost of living compared

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