Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mataro and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,844 in Mataro, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Mataro
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Mataro Living Index
58

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

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Mataro

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,844

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,844 per month in Mataro vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Mataro $1,844
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,696 per month in Mataro vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Mataro $2,696
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,548 per month in Mataro vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Mataro $3,548
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Mataro costs about 53% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mataro sits 35% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.70 €15.00

$10.92 MX$204

52.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.6 €50.9

$43.37 MX$808

30.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.34 €11.99

$11.78 MX$220

13.24%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.83

$3.81 MX$71.0

-46.46%

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

$2.33 €2.09

$1.28 MX$23.90

82.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.78 MX$14.59

142.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$3.17 MX$59.0

26.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.05

$4.93 MX$92.0

-31.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 €1.11

$1.41 MX$26.22

-12.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.08 €1.87

$2.22 MX$41.33

-6.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 €1.33

$1.42 MX$26.42

4.23%

Eggs

$3.99 €3.58

$2.52 MX$47.03

58.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.04 €15.31

$7.26 MX$135

134.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.27 €8.33

$7.70 MX$143

20.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.59 €17.60

$12.69 MX$237

54.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.64 €2.37

$2.78 MX$51.9

-5.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 €1.76

$1.37 MX$25.50

43.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.69 €2.41

$2.55 MX$47.55

5.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 €2.57

$2.12 MX$39.58

34.91%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$1.94 MX$36.13

6.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.28 €2.05

$1.89 MX$35.16

20.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.15 MX$21.37

32.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.18 MX$21.98

-25.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.35 €5.70

$4.30 MX$80.1

47.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.07

$9.95 MX$185

-43.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.99

$1.58 MX$29.52

-30.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 €2.06

$2.67 MX$49.79

-14.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.54 €2.28

$0.55 MX$10.31

361.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.37 €30.87

$26.62 MX$496

29.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.30 €2.07

$4.97 MX$92.6

-53.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$3.33 MX$62.1

-67.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.06 €26.10

$5.36 MX$99.8

442.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.44 MX$26.92

20.83%

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

$32.3K €29.0K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

56.33%

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

$32.0K €28.8K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

36.50%

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

$184 €165

$84.8 MX$1,581

117.20%

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

$12.18 €10.94

$23.41 MX$436

-47.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.34 €26.35

$28.66 MX$534

2.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.8 €54.6

$57.1 MX$1,063

6.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.76 €12.36

$28.91 MX$539

-52.40%

Cinema Ticket

$10.81 €9.71

$5.14 MX$95.8

110.31%

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

$500 €449

$207 MX$3,851

141.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,830 €7,034

$3,927 MX$73.2K

99.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 €78.2

$43.35 MX$808

100.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.89 €35.83

$41.44 MX$772

-3.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.9 €87.0

$74.2 MX$1,383

30.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €102

$89.3 MX$1,664

27.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$940 €844

$980 MX$18.3K

-4.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 €700

$381 MX$7,099

104.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,333 €1,198

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-21.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,172 €1,053

$1,075 MX$20.0K

9.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,286 €2,951

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-16.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,846 €2,557

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-53.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,861 €1,672

$735 MX$13.7K

153.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

11.45

-71.35%

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

Last update for Mataro: October 26, 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

Mataro

$780 42.3%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 51.2% $399

Groceries & Markets

Mataro

$310 16.8%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 17.8% $55

Eating Out

Mataro

$242 13.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 16.3% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mataro

$226 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 39.4% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Mataro

$152 8.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 26.5% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Mataro

$82 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 18.3% $15

Getting Around

Mataro

$52 2.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 3.3% $1.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $940 in Mataro versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Mataro are about 2.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $57 in Mataro versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $310 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Mataro

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

23:13 11:13 PM

17:13 5:13 PM

6 h behind Mataro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

129,870

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mataro Playa del Carmen 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mataro
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,844 in Mataro, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 35% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,766 per month in Mataro and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $940 in Mataro and $980 in Playa del Carmen. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Public transport costs about 23% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $500 per month in Mataro and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Mataro at $1,844. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mataro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,844 in Mataro. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mataro makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.