Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matola and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Matola: $999 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Matola
Learn more

Matola Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Matola

🇲🇿 Mozambique

$999

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $999 per month in Matola vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Matola $999
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,523 per month in Matola vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Matola $1,523
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,048 per month in Matola vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Matola $2,048
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Matola is about 17% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Matola and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Matola 27% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.80 MZN 493

$10.92 MX$205

-28.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.6 MZN 3,960

$43.37 MX$813

44.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.34 MZN 464

$11.78 MX$221

-37.69%

Cappuccino

$1.59 MZN 100

$3.81 MX$71.4

-58.27%

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

$0.82 MZN 52.0

$1.28 MX$24.03

-35.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 MZN 42.67

$0.78 MX$14.67

-14.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.18 MZN 74.8

$3.17 MX$59.3

-62.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 MZN 97.5

$4.93 MX$92.5

-68.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 MZN 101

$1.41 MX$26.35

12.77%

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 MZN 62.6

$2.22 MX$41.54

-55.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 MZN 101

$1.42 MX$26.56

11.97%

Eggs

$1.93 MZN 122

$2.52 MX$47.27

-23.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.47 MZN 852

$7.26 MX$136

85.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.82 MZN 368

$7.70 MX$144

-24.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.76 MZN 301

$12.69 MX$238

-62.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 MZN 125

$2.78 MX$52.2

-29.14%

Banana (1kg)

$0.62 MZN 39.38

$1.37 MX$25.64

-54.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 MZN 103

$2.55 MX$47.80

-35.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 MZN 65.4

$2.12 MX$39.78

-51.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 MZN 63.5

$1.94 MX$36.32

-48.45%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 MZN 47.08

$1.89 MX$35.34

-60.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 MZN 60.1

$1.15 MX$21.49

-17.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MZN 33.64

$1.18 MX$22.09

-55.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.89 MZN 183

$4.30 MX$80.5

-32.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.21 MZN 456

$9.95 MX$186

-27.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 MZN 61.3

$1.58 MX$29.67

-38.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MZN 76.8

$2.67 MX$50.1

-54.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 MZN 102

$4.97 MX$93.1

-67.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 MZN 76.1

$3.33 MX$62.4

-63.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.12 MZN 1,525

$5.36 MX$100

350.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 MZN 88.5

$1.44 MX$27.06

-2.78%

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

$31.4K MZN 2.0M

$20.7K MX$387.3K

52.03%

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

$22.5K MZN 1.4M

$23.5K MX$439.7K

-3.97%

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

$39.21 MZN 2,480

$84.8 MX$1,589

-53.76%

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

$7.64 MZN 483

$23.41 MX$439

-67.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.9 MZN 4,926

$28.66 MX$537

171.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.09 MZN 2,473

$57.1 MX$1,069

-31.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$7.60 MZN 481

$5.14 MX$96.3

47.86%

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

$173 MZN 10.9K

$207 MX$3,871

-16.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,041 MZN 318.8K

$3,927 MX$73.6K

28.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.21 MZN 3,113

$43.35 MX$812

13.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.0 MZN 3,539

$41.44 MX$777

35.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 MZN 5,011

$74.2 MX$1,390

6.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.4 MZN 4,898

$89.3 MX$1,672

-13.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$462 MZN 29.2K

$980 MX$18.4K

-52.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$391 MZN 24.7K

$381 MX$7,136

2.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$696 MZN 44.0K

$1,708 MX$32.0K

-59.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 MZN 34.9K

$1,075 MX$20.1K

-48.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$307 MZN 19.4K

$735 MX$13.8K

-58.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

118.34%

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

Last update for Matola: 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

Matola

$391 39.1%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 2.5% $9.9

Groceries & Markets

Matola

$185 18.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 37.4% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matola

$125 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 9.7% $12

Eating Out

Matola

$118 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 70.9% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Matola

$118 11.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 5.2% $6.1

Sport & Entertainment

Matola

$54 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 24% $13

Getting Around

Matola

$7.6 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 562% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $462 in Matola 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 Playa del Carmen are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63 in Matola versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $185 in Matola vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Matola wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇿 Matola

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

01:55 1:55 AM

18:55 6:55 PM

7 h behind Matola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

675,422

149,923

💱 Currency

Mozambican Metical MZN MT

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MZN = 1.58 USD

100 MZN = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to MZN – Mozambican Metical Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇿 Mozambican Metical (MT)

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.89 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to MZN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Matola Playa del Carmen 13,870 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Matola
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $999 in Matola, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Matola comes out roughly 17% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,498 per month in Matola and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Matola, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $462 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $999 in Matola and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Matola about 17% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $173 per month in Matola 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 $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Matola, where all-in costs run around $999, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Matola it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Matola – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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