Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexicali and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexicali and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Mexicali is 28.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 15.9% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Mexicali is 25.3% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 30.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.02 MX$211
$11.85 MX$208
1.43%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.32 MX$569
$42.16 MX$742
-23.34%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.36 MX$112
$10.75 MX$189
-40.84%
Cappuccino
$2.70 MX$47.46
$3.47 MX$61.1
-22.19%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.16 MX$20.40
$1.45 MX$25.56
-20.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.97 MX$17.13
$0.90 MX$15.88
7.78%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.35 MX$23.67
$3.05 MX$53.7
-55.74%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.99 MX$70.1
$4.42 MX$77.7
-9.73%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 MX$20.36
$1.37 MX$24.09
-15.33%
White Bread (500g)
$2.28 MX$40.19
$1.87 MX$32.93
21.93%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$26.08
$1.54 MX$27.15
-3.90%
Eggs
$2.60 MX$45.65
$2.50 MX$44.03
4.00%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$2.43 MX$42.79
$8.61 MX$151
-71.78%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.63 MX$99.1
$8.63 MX$152
-34.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.27 MX$110
$11.02 MX$194
-43.10%
Apples (1kg)
$1.60 MX$28.17
$2.75 MX$48.36
-41.82%
Banana (1kg)
$1.33 MX$23.48
$1.43 MX$25.12
-6.99%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.35 MX$23.80
$1.87 MX$32.94
-27.81%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.61 MX$28.25
$2.17 MX$38.13
-25.81%
Potato (1kg)
$1.30 MX$22.81
$1.88 MX$33.12
-30.85%
Onion (1kg)
$1.34 MX$23.55
$2.25 MX$39.51
-40.44%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.05 MX$18.54
$1.07 MX$18.78
-1.87%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.77 MX$13.55
$1.07 MX$18.88
-28.04%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.94 MX$69.3
$4.15 MX$73.1
-5.06%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.84 MX$155
$10.34 MX$182
-14.51%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.94 MX$34.15
$1.68 MX$29.54
15.48%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.21 MX$56.4
$2.48 MX$43.69
29.44%
🚌 Getting Around
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.00 MX$17.64
$0.55 MX$9.76
81.82%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$33.75 MX$594
$26.53 MX$467
27.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.83 MX$49.70
$3.22 MX$56.6
-12.11%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.59 MX$28.04
$2.48 MX$43.65
-35.89%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.26 MX$57.4
$3.11 MX$54.7
4.82%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.11
$1.26 MX$22.09
-
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.9K MX$403.3K
$30.7K MX$539.3K
-25.22%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.4K MX$358.8K
$24.0K MX$422.8K
-15.15%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$55.6 MX$978
$82.5 MX$1,451
-32.57%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.20 MX$391
$22.29 MX$392
-0.40%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$31.55 MX$555
$30.02 MX$528
5.10%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$38.85 MX$683
$51.4 MX$905
-24.48%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.99 MX$281
$18.29 MX$322
-12.58%
Cinema Ticket
$3.99 MX$70.1
$4.98 MX$87.7
-19.88%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$205 MX$3,610
$200 MX$3,518
2.62%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,713 MX$47.7K
$5,304 MX$93.3K
-48.86%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$26.48 MX$466
$35.71 MX$628
-25.85%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$32.15 MX$566
$39.56 MX$696
-18.73%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.0 MX$1,320
$80.6 MX$1,417
-6.87%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$69.6 MX$1,225
$88.3 MX$1,554
-21.15%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$625 MX$11.0K
$969 MX$17.1K
-35.51%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$401 MX$7,050
$482 MX$8,482
-16.89%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,206 MX$21.2K
$1,595 MX$28.1K
-24.40%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$649 MX$11.4K
$1,184 MX$20.8K
-45.16%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,823 MX$49.7K
$4,050 MX$71.2K
-30.29%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,519 MX$26.7K
$6,522 MX$114.7K
-76.71%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mexicali
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$909 MX$16.0K
$756 MX$13.3K
20.20%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.5
11.42
0.70%

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

Last update for Mexicali: March 3, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities