Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mississauga and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,596 in Mississauga, rent and utilities included – about $16,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

126

Cost of Living Index in Mississauga
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Mississauga Living Index
58

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

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Mississauga

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,596

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,596 in Mississauga versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Mississauga $2,596
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,763 in Mississauga versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Mississauga $3,763
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,929 in Mississauga versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Mississauga $4,929
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Mississauga is roughly 116% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mississauga is 91% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.60 CA$23.20

$10.92 MX$205

52.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.0 CA$99.2

$43.37 MX$814

63.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.56 CA$14.76

$11.78 MX$221

-10.36%

Cappuccino

$3.67 CA$5.13

$3.81 MX$71.5

-3.67%

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

$1.81 CA$2.53

$1.28 MX$24.07

41.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 CA$2.14

$0.78 MX$14.70

96.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.54 CA$7.74

$3.17 MX$59.5

74.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.63 CA$7.87

$4.93 MX$92.7

14.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.84 CA$3.97

$1.41 MX$26.40

101.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.76 CA$3.85

$2.22 MX$41.62

24.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.55 CA$3.57

$1.42 MX$26.61

79.58%

Eggs

$4.48 CA$6.26

$2.52 MX$47.36

77.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.03 CA$15.41

$7.26 MX$136

51.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.36 CA$15.87

$7.70 MX$144

47.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.83 CA$17.92

$12.69 MX$238

1.10%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 CA$4.64

$2.78 MX$52.3

19.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 CA$2.09

$1.37 MX$25.68

9.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 CA$4.86

$2.55 MX$47.89

36.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.20 CA$5.87

$2.12 MX$39.86

98.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.68 CA$2.34

$1.94 MX$36.39

-13.40%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 CA$3.30

$1.89 MX$35.41

24.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.25 CA$3.15

$1.15 MX$21.53

95.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.17

$1.18 MX$22.13

31.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.82 CA$20.70

$4.30 MX$80.6

244.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.02 CA$18.19

$9.95 MX$187

30.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 CA$3.29

$1.58 MX$29.73

49.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 CA$3.70

$2.67 MX$50.1

-1.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.87 CA$4.00

$0.55 MX$10.39

421.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$100 CA$140

$26.62 MX$500

275.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 CA$4.28

$4.97 MX$93.3

-38.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.24 CA$1.74

$3.33 MX$62.5

-62.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.10 CA$29.49

$5.36 MX$101

293.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 CA$1.67

$1.44 MX$27.11

-16.67%

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

$27.7K CA$38.7K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

33.91%

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

$22.0K CA$30.8K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

-6.08%

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

$139 CA$195

$84.8 MX$1,592

64.21%

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

$35.38 CA$49.44

$23.41 MX$439

51.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.49 CA$62.2

$28.66 MX$538

55.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.43 CA$50.9

$57.1 MX$1,071

-36.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.11 CA$49.05

$28.91 MX$543

21.45%

Cinema Ticket

$11.20 CA$15.65

$5.14 MX$96.5

117.90%

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

$348 CA$486

$207 MX$3,878

68.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K CA$14.9K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

170.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.44 CA$60.7

$43.35 MX$814

0.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.35 CA$53.6

$41.44 MX$778

-7.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.2 CA$122

$74.2 MX$1,393

17.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$148

$89.3 MX$1,676

18.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,686 CA$2,356

$980 MX$18.4K

72.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,460 CA$2,040

$381 MX$7,150

283.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,533 CA$3,539

$1,708 MX$32.1K

48.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,305 CA$3,220

$1,075 MX$20.2K

114.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,138 CA$9,973

$3,943 MX$74.0K

81.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,422 CA$7,576

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-11.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,244 CA$4,533

$735 MX$13.8K

341.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

11.45

-60.26%

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

Last update for Mississauga: 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

Mississauga

$1.5K 56.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 73.9% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Mississauga

$353 13.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 27.9% $99

Eating Out

Mississauga

$261 10.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 22.4% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mississauga

$219 8.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 37.5% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Mississauga

$124 4.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 9.6% $12

Getting Around

Mississauga

$121 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 58.2% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Mississauga

$59 2.3%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 14.4% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,686 in Mississauga and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mississauga pays about 4.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $71 in Mississauga vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $353 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Mississauga

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

10:13 10:13 AM

Same time as Mississauga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

721,599

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

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

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Mississauga Playa del Carmen 2,640 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mississauga
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,596 in Mississauga and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Mississauga is about 4.4 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: $1,686 in Mississauga versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $71 in Mississauga. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,596 per month in Mississauga versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,596 in Mississauga, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Mississauga. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Mississauga. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.