Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Meilen and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $3,386 in Meilen, rent and utilities included – about $26,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

164

Cost of Living Index in Meilen
Learn more

Meilen Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Meilen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,386

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,386 per month in Meilen vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Meilen $3,386
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $5,977 per month in Meilen vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Meilen $5,977
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $8,568 per month in Meilen vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Meilen $8,568
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Meilen costs about 181% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meilen sits 149% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$32.96 CHF 27.19

$10.92 MX$205

201.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$120 CHF 98.8

$43.37 MX$814

176.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.48 CHF 13.60

$11.78 MX$221

39.90%

Cappuccino

$6.36 CHF 5.24

$3.81 MX$71.5

66.93%

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

$5.76 CHF 4.75

$1.28 MX$24.07

350.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.25 CHF 4.33

$0.78 MX$14.70

573.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.63 CHF 7.12

$3.17 MX$59.5

172.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.56 CHF 7.06

$4.93 MX$92.7

73.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.41 MX$26.40

54.61%

White Bread (500g)

$3.42 CHF 2.82

$2.22 MX$41.62

54.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.74 CHF 3.08

$1.42 MX$26.61

163.38%

Eggs

$7.85 CHF 6.48

$2.52 MX$47.36

211.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.09 CHF 21.52

$7.26 MX$136

259.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$25.84 CHF 21.32

$7.70 MX$144

235.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.94 CHF 32.94

$12.69 MX$238

214.74%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 CHF 2.88

$2.78 MX$52.3

25.54%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 CHF 1.74

$1.37 MX$25.68

54.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 CHF 2.24

$2.55 MX$47.89

6.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$2.12 MX$39.86

112.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 CHF 1.71

$1.94 MX$36.39

6.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.89 MX$35.41

15.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.36 CHF 1.94

$1.15 MX$21.53

105.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 CHF 1.04

$1.18 MX$22.13

6.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.05 CHF 9.12

$4.30 MX$80.6

156.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.29 CHF 10.96

$9.95 MX$187

33.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.25 CHF 1.85

$1.58 MX$29.73

42.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 CHF 2.60

$2.67 MX$50.1

17.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.43 CHF 3.65

$0.55 MX$10.39

705.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$102 CHF 84.2

$26.62 MX$500

283.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.64 CHF 6.30

$4.97 MX$93.3

53.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$3.33 MX$62.5

35.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$87.5 CHF 72.2

$5.36 MX$101

1533.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 CHF 1.81

$1.44 MX$27.11

52.08%

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

$38.6K CHF 31.9K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

87.02%

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

$39.0K CHF 32.1K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

66.04%

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

$234 CHF 193

$84.8 MX$1,592

175.78%

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

$38.39 CHF 31.67

$23.41 MX$439

63.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.6 CHF 53.3

$28.66 MX$538

125.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.9 CHF 75.0

$57.1 MX$1,071

59.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.64 CHF 37.65

$28.91 MX$543

57.87%

Cinema Ticket

$23.65 CHF 19.51

$5.14 MX$96.5

360.12%

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

$2,822 CHF 2,328

$207 MX$3,878

1266.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$42.6K CHF 35.2K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

985.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$138 CHF 114

$43.35 MX$814

218.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.1 CHF 47.96

$41.44 MX$778

40.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$145 CHF 120

$74.2 MX$1,393

95.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$175 CHF 144

$89.3 MX$1,676

95.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,778 CHF 1,466

$980 MX$18.4K

81.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,463 CHF 1,207

$381 MX$7,150

284.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,894 CHF 2,388

$1,708 MX$32.1K

69.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,088 CHF 3,372

$1,075 MX$20.2K

280.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.4K CHF 13.5K

$3,943 MX$74.0K

315.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.6K CHF 10.4K

$6,158 MX$115.6K

104.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$8,262 CHF 6,815

$735 MX$13.8K

1024.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.72

11.45

-84.98%

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

Last update for Meilen: October 25, 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

Meilen

$1.5K 43.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 74% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Meilen

$572 16.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 55.5% $318

Eating Out

Meilen

$494 14.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 59% $291

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Meilen

$337 10%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 59.4% $200

Clothing & Footwear

Meilen

$232 6.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 51.9% $120

Getting Around

Meilen

$150 4.4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 66.3% $99

Sport & Entertainment

Meilen

$138 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 51.3% $71

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,778 in Meilen 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 Meilen are about 11 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $120 in Meilen versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $572 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Meilen

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

02:02 2:02 AM

20:02 8:02 PM

6 h behind Meilen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,515

149,923

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.921 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Meilen Playa del Carmen 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Meilen
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

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

Meilen costs about 181% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,079 per month in Meilen 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,778 in Meilen.

Public transport costs about 74% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,822 per month in Meilen 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 Meilen at $3,386. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Meilen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – 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 Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Meilen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.