Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Martin and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,402 in Martin, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Martin outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

68

Cost of Living Index in Martin
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Martin Living Index
58

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

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Martin

🇸🇰 Slovakia

$1,402

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,402 in Martin versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Martin $1,402
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,003 in Martin versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Martin $2,003
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,604 in Martin versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Martin $2,604
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Martin is roughly 16% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Martin is 3% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.10 €8.17

$10.92 MX$204

-16.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.81 €40.26

$43.37 MX$810

3.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.91 €8.01

$11.78 MX$220

-24.36%

Cappuccino

$2.88 €2.59

$3.81 MX$71.2

-24.41%

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

$1.85 €1.67

$1.28 MX$23.96

44.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.16

$0.78 MX$14.63

65.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 €1.87

$3.17 MX$59.2

-34.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 €2.04

$4.93 MX$92.2

-53.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 €0.95

$1.41 MX$26.28

-25.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 €1.38

$2.22 MX$41.43

-31.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 €1.80

$1.42 MX$26.48

40.85%

Eggs

$3.67 €3.30

$2.52 MX$47.14

45.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.45 €11.19

$7.26 MX$136

71.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.82 €7.03

$7.70 MX$144

1.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.75 €11.46

$12.69 MX$237

0.47%

Apples (1kg)

$1.22 €1.10

$2.78 MX$52.0

-56.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 €1.50

$1.37 MX$25.56

21.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 €2.09

$2.55 MX$47.66

-9.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 €1.96

$2.12 MX$39.67

2.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 €1.17

$1.94 MX$36.22

-32.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.53 €1.38

$1.89 MX$35.24

-19.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 €1.45

$1.15 MX$21.42

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.76

$1.18 MX$22.03

-27.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 €5.30

$4.30 MX$80.3

37.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.59 €4.13

$9.95 MX$186

-53.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.85

$1.58 MX$29.59

-40.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.67 MX$49.91

-30.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.42 €1.28

$0.55 MX$10.34

158.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 €24.71

$26.62 MX$497

3.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 €1.50

$4.97 MX$92.9

-66.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 €1.08

$3.33 MX$62.2

-63.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.12 €19.88

$5.36 MX$100

312.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.61

$1.44 MX$26.98

24.31%

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

$22.3K €20.0K

$20.7K MX$386.2K

7.97%

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

$26.1K €23.4K

$23.5K MX$438.5K

11.04%

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

$295 €265

$84.8 MX$1,584

247.89%

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

$19.13 €17.19

$23.41 MX$437

-18.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.28 €11.03

$28.66 MX$535

-57.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.18 €32.51

$57.1 MX$1,066

-36.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.60 €14.92

$28.91 MX$540

-42.58%

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 €8.35

$5.14 MX$96.0

80.93%

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

$333 €299

$207 MX$3,860

61.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K €9,689

$3,927 MX$73.4K

174.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.2 €63.1

$43.35 MX$810

61.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$13.41 €12.04

$41.44 MX$774

-67.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.0 €71.0

$74.2 MX$1,386

6.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.9 €83.5

$89.3 MX$1,668

4.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$512 €460

$980 MX$18.3K

-47.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 €415

$381 MX$7,116

21.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$766 €688

$1,708 MX$31.9K

-55.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$677 €608

$1,075 MX$20.1K

-37.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,309 €2,075

$3,943 MX$73.7K

-41.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,737 €1,561

$6,158 MX$115.1K

-71.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,475 €1,325

$735 MX$13.7K

100.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

11.45

-66.90%

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

Last update for Martin: October 27, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Martin

$462 33%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 17.6% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Martin

$326 23.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 58.1% $190

Groceries & Markets

Martin

$241 17.2%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 5.8% $14

Eating Out

Martin

$162 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 25.2% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Martin

$115 8.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 2.9% $3.3

Sport & Entertainment

Martin

$55 3.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 22.9% $13

Getting Around

Martin

$41 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 23.4% $9.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $512 in Martin and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Martin pays about 2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $45 in Martin vs $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $241 vs $255, with Martin cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇰 Martin

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:22 11:22 AM

05:22 5:22 AM

6 h behind Martin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,794

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Martin Playa del Carmen 9,390 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Martin
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

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

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in clothing. The 16% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Martin is about 2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $512 in Martin versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,402 per month in Martin versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 16% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 3% less than in Martin. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Martin on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.