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 Living Index72Cost of Living Index in the MaldivesLearn more -
Playa del Carmen Living Index60Cost of Living Index in Playa del CarmenLearn more
🙂 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.
🍽 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.
Share of the monthly basket for a family of three, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Maldives $672 45.5%
Playa del Carmen $385 31.4% 42.7% $287
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maldives $231 15.7%
Playa del Carmen $137 11.2% 40.7% $94
Groceries & Markets
Maldives $219 14.8%
Playa del Carmen $260 21.2% 18.9% $41
Eating Out
Maldives $129 8.7%
Playa del Carmen $204 16.6% 58.3% $75
Clothing & Footwear
Maldives $102 6.9%
Playa del Carmen $114 9.3% 12.3% $13
Sport & Entertainment
Maldives $81 5.5%
Playa del Carmen $75 6.1% 7.9% $6.4
Getting Around
Maldives $43 2.9%
Playa del Carmen $52 4.2% 20.3% $8.8
Accommodation & Living
Maldives $1.5K 44.9%
Playa del Carmen $1.1K 36.5% 24.4% $358
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Maldives $262 8%
Playa del Carmen $161 5.3% 38.5% $101
Groceries & Markets
Maldives $537 16.4%
Playa del Carmen $602 19.8% 12.2% $65
Eating Out
Maldives $505 15.5%
Playa del Carmen $631 20.8% 25% $126
Clothing & Footwear
Maldives $226 6.9%
Playa del Carmen $254 8.3% 12.3% $28
Sport & Entertainment
Maldives $184 5.6%
Playa del Carmen $180 5.9% 2.6% $4.9
Getting Around
Maldives $88 2.7%
Playa del Carmen $105 3.5% 19.6% $17
Good to know
🇲🇻 Maldives
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
Weather
Population
436,330
149,923
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
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
Similar countries
75
Cost of Living Index in Poland
Learn more
🇬🇷 Greece
75
Cost of Living Index in Greece
Learn more
🇸🇰 Slovakia
74
Cost of Living Index in Slovakia
Learn more
🇱🇹 Lithuania
71
Cost of Living Index in Lithuania
Learn more
🇱🇻 Latvia
69
Cost of Living Index in Latvia
Learn more
🇴🇲 Oman
69
Cost of Living Index in Oman
Learn more
🇱🇧 Lebanon
73
Cost of Living Index in Lebanon
Learn more
🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago
71
Cost of Living Index in Trinidad And Tobago
Learn more