Last update: Oct 2026
Cost of Living Comparison Between Malta and Playa del Carmen
For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,992 in Malta, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.
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Malta Living Index96Cost of Living Index in MaltaLearn more -
Playa del Carmen Living Index60Cost of Living Index in Playa del CarmenLearn more
😐 Solo nomad: Malta is 5.9% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 63.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Malta is 25.6% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 31.9% more expensive with rent.
🍽 Eating Out
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.10 €15.26
$10.97 MX$201
55.88%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$82.9 €74.0
$44.85 MX$823
84.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.21 €10.89
$11.92 MX$219
2.43%
Cappuccino
$2.81 €2.51
$3.80 MX$69.9
-26.05%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.50 €2.23
$1.31 MX$24.08
90.84%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 €1.49
$0.86 MX$15.72
94.19%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.59 €4.10
$3.21 MX$59.0
42.99%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.47 €3.99
$5.01 MX$92.0
-10.78%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.32 €1.18
$1.46 MX$26.77
-9.59%
White Bread (500g)
$1.29 €1.15
$2.33 MX$42.72
-44.64%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.62 €3.23
$1.44 MX$26.48
151.39%
Eggs
$4.00 €3.57
$2.46 MX$45.20
62.60%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.78 €9.62
$7.70 MX$141
40.00%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.18 €9.09
$7.89 MX$145
29.02%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.99 €15.16
$12.80 MX$235
32.73%
Apples (1kg)
$3.20 €2.85
$2.92 MX$53.6
9.59%
Banana (1kg)
$2.15 €1.92
$1.42 MX$26.11
51.41%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.93 €2.61
$2.57 MX$47.10
14.01%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.24 €2.89
$2.14 MX$39.24
51.40%
Potato (1kg)
$1.96 €1.75
$1.95 MX$35.75
0.51%
Onion (1kg)
$2.13 €1.90
$1.94 MX$35.55
9.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.91 €1.70
$1.15 MX$21.13
66.09%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.95 €0.85
$1.22 MX$22.42
-22.13%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.89 €6.15
$4.38 MX$80.3
57.31%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.27 €7.38
$9.85 MX$181
-16.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.81 €1.61
$1.54 MX$28.23
17.53%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.37 €2.12
$2.72 MX$49.86
-12.87%
🚌 Getting Around
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.23 €1.99
$0.52 MX$9.64
328.85%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$27.42 MX$503
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.66 €5.05
$4.91 MX$90.2
15.27%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.28 €2.04
$3.52 MX$64.7
-35.23%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$32.85 €29.32
$5.69 MX$104
477.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.48 €1.32
$1.54 MX$28.27
-3.90%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.0K €25.0K
$21.2K MX$389.9K
31.86%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.5K €34.4K
$24.5K MX$449.6K
57.42%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$103 €92.0
$83.6 MX$1,535
23.29%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.11 €24.19
$24.03 MX$441
12.82%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.88 €31.13
$29.33 MX$539
18.92%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$67.5 €60.3
$64.9 MX$1,191
4.07%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$21.31 €19.01
$29.46 MX$541
-27.66%
Cinema Ticket
$11.21 €10.00
$5.09 MX$93.4
120.24%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$413 €369
$208 MX$3,813
99.07%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.9K €9,687
$4,045 MX$74.3K
168.33%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$99.9 €89.2
$44.55 MX$818
124.33%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$45.95 €41.01
$42.06 MX$772
9.25%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$105 €93.8
$75.5 MX$1,387
39.12%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$114 €102
$91.4 MX$1,678
24.90%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,181 €1,054
$986 MX$18.1K
19.72%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$988 €882
$385 MX$7,072
156.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,974 €1,761
$1,713 MX$31.5K
15.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,562 €1,394
$1,108 MX$20.4K
40.95%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,418 €3,943
$4,016 MX$73.7K
10.02%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,292 €2,938
$6,247 MX$114.7K
-47.30%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Malta
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,792 €1,600
$758 MX$13.9K
136.47%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.13
11.45
-63.93%
CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.
Last update for Malta: October 6, 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
Malta $988 49.5%
Playa del Carmen $385 31.4% 61% $603
Groceries & Markets
Malta $307 15.4%
Playa del Carmen $260 21.2% 15.2% $47
Eating Out
Malta $256 12.8%
Playa del Carmen $204 16.6% 20.2% $52
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Malta $165 8.3%
Playa del Carmen $137 11.2% 17% $28
Clothing & Footwear
Malta $164 8.2%
Playa del Carmen $114 9.3% 30.6% $50
Sport & Entertainment
Malta $90 4.5%
Playa del Carmen $75 6.1% 16.6% $15
Getting Around
Malta $26 * 1.3%
Playa del Carmen $52 4.2% 100% $26
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Accommodation & Living
Malta $1.6K 38.8%
Playa del Carmen $1.1K 36.5% 29.1% $454
Groceries & Markets
Malta $720 17.9%
Playa del Carmen $602 19.8% 16.4% $118
Eating Out
Malta $930 23.1%
Playa del Carmen $631 20.8% 32.1% $299
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Malta $192 4.8%
Playa del Carmen $161 5.3% 16.2% $31
Clothing & Footwear
Malta $365 9.1%
Playa del Carmen $254 8.3% 30.6% $112
Sport & Entertainment
Malta $201 5%
Playa del Carmen $180 5.9% 10.8% $22
Getting Around
Malta $56 * 1.4%
Playa del Carmen $105 3.5% 86.4% $49
Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.
Good to know
🇲🇹 Malta
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
Weather
Population
553,214
149,923
Exchange rates and currency converter
On the map
Lowest
Highest
Between locations
- Malta Playa del Carmen 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
- Malta
- 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
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