Cost of Living Comparison Between Montego Bay and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Montego Bay and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Montego Bay is 9.5% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 4.4% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Montego Bay is 11.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 26.5% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.73 JMD 1,210
$11.85 MX$211
-34.77%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$50.6 JMD 7,924
$42.16 MX$750
20.09%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.63 JMD 1,195
$10.75 MX$191
-29.02%
Cappuccino
$4.22 JMD 660
$3.47 MX$61.8
21.61%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.32 JMD 206
$1.45 MX$25.85
-8.97%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.70 JMD 109
$0.90 MX$16.06
-22.22%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.44 JMD 383
$3.05 MX$54.3
-20.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.21 JMD 502
$4.42 MX$78.6
-27.38%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.47 JMD 387
$1.37 MX$24.36
80.29%
White Bread (500g)
$2.69 JMD 421
$1.87 MX$33.31
43.85%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.55 JMD 242
$1.54 MX$27.46
0.65%
Eggs
$3.56 JMD 556
$2.50 MX$44.53
42.40%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.91 JMD 1,708
$8.61 MX$153
26.71%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.20 JMD 971
$8.63 MX$154
-28.16%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.66 JMD 1,198
$11.02 MX$196
-30.49%
Apples (1kg)
$3.37 JMD 528
$2.75 MX$48.91
22.55%
Banana (1kg)
$3.12 JMD 488
$1.43 MX$25.41
118.18%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.71 JMD 424
$1.87 MX$33.32
44.92%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.83 JMD 286
$2.17 MX$38.56
-15.67%
Potato (1kg)
$2.07 JMD 324
$1.88 MX$33.50
10.11%
Onion (1kg)
$1.13 JMD 177
$2.25 MX$39.96
-49.78%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.92 JMD 301
$1.07 MX$18.99
79.44%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.00 JMD 156
$1.07 MX$19.10
-6.54%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$8.51 JMD 1,332
$4.15 MX$73.9
105.06%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.55 JMD 1,808
$10.34 MX$184
11.70%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.22 JMD 348
$1.68 MX$29.87
32.14%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.19 JMD 500
$2.48 MX$44.19
28.63%
🚌 Getting Around
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.90 JMD 140
$0.55 MX$9.87
63.64%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.53 MX$472
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.91 JMD 142
$3.22 MX$57.2
-71.74%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.26 JMD 510
$2.48 MX$44.15
31.45%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$6.31 JMD 988
$3.11 MX$55.3
102.89%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.23 JMD 193
$1.26 MX$22.34
-2.38%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$43.0K JMD 6.7M
$30.7K MX$545.4K
40.32%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.3K JMD 5.2M
$24.0K MX$427.6K
38.58%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$165 JMD 25.9K
$82.5 MX$1,467
100.41%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.13 JMD 3,307
$22.29 MX$396
-5.20%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$47.07 JMD 7,367
$30.02 MX$534
56.80%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$38.11 JMD 5,964
$51.4 MX$915
-25.91%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.29 MX$325
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.38 JMD 1,155
$4.98 MX$88.7
48.19%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$63.7 JMD 9,965
$200 MX$3,558
-68.17%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$1,889 JMD 295.7K
$5,304 MX$94.4K
-64.38%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$25.68 JMD 4,019
$35.71 MX$635
-28.09%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$19.89 JMD 3,113
$39.56 MX$704
-49.72%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$66.3 JMD 10.4K
$80.6 MX$1,433
-17.65%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$76.2 JMD 11.9K
$88.3 MX$1,571
-13.69%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$260 JMD 40.7K
$969 MX$17.2K
-73.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$454 JMD 71.0K
$482 MX$8,579
-5.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$671 JMD 105.0K
$1,595 MX$28.4K
-57.96%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$438 JMD 68.5K
$1,184 MX$21.1K
-63.01%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,050 MX$72.1K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,522 MX$116.0K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Montego Bay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$553 JMD 86.6K
$756 MX$13.5K
-26.86%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
8
11.42
-29.95%

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

Last update for Montego Bay: March 2, 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

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