Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montijo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,874 in Montijo, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Montijo, Portugal
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Montijo
🇵🇹 Portugal
$1,874
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,874 per month in Montijo vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Montijo $1,874
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,630 per month in Montijo vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Montijo $2,630
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,386 per month in Montijo vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Montijo $3,386
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Montijo costs about 56% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Montijo sits 38% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.05 €10.79
$10.92 MX$205
10.35%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.53 €39.88
$43.37 MX$814
2.67%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.92 €7.99
$11.78 MX$221
-24.28%
Cappuccino
$2.49 €2.23
$3.81 MX$71.5
-34.65%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.16 €1.93
$1.28 MX$24.07
68.75%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.73 €1.55
$0.78 MX$14.70
121.79%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.40 €3.05
$3.17 MX$59.5
7.26%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.86 €3.45
$4.93 MX$92.7
-21.70%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.27 €1.13
$1.41 MX$26.40
-9.93%
White Bread (500g)
$2.13 €1.91
$2.22 MX$41.62
-4.05%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.10 €1.88
$1.42 MX$26.61
47.89%
Eggs
$3.45 €3.09
$2.52 MX$47.36
36.90%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.81 €9.68
$7.26 MX$136
48.90%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.88 €6.16
$7.70 MX$144
-10.65%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.31 €13.71
$12.69 MX$238
20.65%
Apples (1kg)
$2.77 €2.48
$2.78 MX$52.3
-0.36%
Banana (1kg)
$1.46 €1.31
$1.37 MX$25.68
6.57%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.84 €1.65
$2.55 MX$47.89
-27.84%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.68 €2.40
$2.12 MX$39.86
26.42%
Potato (1kg)
$1.56 €1.40
$1.94 MX$36.39
-19.59%
Onion (1kg)
$2.23 €1.99
$1.89 MX$35.41
17.99%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.65 €1.48
$1.15 MX$21.53
43.48%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.85 €0.77
$1.18 MX$22.13
-27.97%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.89 €5.27
$4.30 MX$80.6
36.98%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.59 €5.90
$9.95 MX$187
-33.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.91 €0.81
$1.58 MX$29.73
-42.41%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.52 €1.36
$2.67 MX$50.1
-43.07%
🚌 Getting Around
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.25 €2.02
$0.55 MX$10.39
309.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$45.08 €40.37
$26.62 MX$500
69.35%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.29 €2.05
$4.97 MX$93.3
-53.92%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.97 €0.87
$3.33 MX$62.5
-70.87%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$18.82 €16.86
$5.36 MX$101
251.12%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.05 €1.83
$1.44 MX$27.11
42.36%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.6K €30.1K
$20.7K MX$388.0K
62.44%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.5K €34.4K
$23.5K MX$440.5K
63.88%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$132 €118
$84.8 MX$1,592
55.64%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$20.91 €18.73
$23.41 MX$439
-10.68%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.7 €50.8
$28.66 MX$538
97.87%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$22.54 €20.19
$57.1 MX$1,071
-60.49%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.33 €15.52
$28.91 MX$543
-40.06%
Cinema Ticket
$7.77 €6.96
$5.14 MX$96.5
51.17%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$465 €416
$207 MX$3,878
124.98%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.4K €10.2K
$3,927 MX$73.7K
189.74%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$66.4 €59.5
$43.35 MX$814
53.13%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$37.83 €33.88
$41.44 MX$778
-8.71%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$71.4 €63.9
$74.2 MX$1,393
-3.83%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$95.8 €85.8
$89.3 MX$1,676
7.29%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,188 €1,064
$980 MX$18.4K
21.28%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$991 €887
$381 MX$7,150
160.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,687 €1,511
$1,708 MX$32.1K
-1.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,441 €1,290
$1,075 MX$20.2K
34.02%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,100 €2,776
$3,943 MX$74.0K
-21.39%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,351 €2,105
$6,158 MX$115.6K
-61.82%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Montijo
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,098 €983
$735 MX$13.8K
49.50%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.67
11.45
-67.95%

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

Last update for Montijo: 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
Montijo
$991
Playa del Carmen
$381 61.6% $610
Groceries & Markets
Montijo
$259
Playa del Carmen
$255 1.7% $4.3
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Montijo
$210
Playa del Carmen
$137 34.7% $73
Eating Out
Montijo
$193
Playa del Carmen
$202 4.7% $9.1
Clothing & Footwear
Montijo
$122
Playa del Carmen
$112 8.5% $10
Getting Around
Montijo
$61
Playa del Carmen
$50 17.6% $11
Sport & Entertainment
Montijo
$38
Playa del Carmen
$67 76.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,188 in Montijo 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 run about 50% higher in Montijo, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45 in Montijo versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $259 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇵🇹 Montijo
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
17:02 5:02 PM
12:02 12:02 PM
5 h behind Montijo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
55,689
149,923
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Montijo Playa del Carmen 7,590 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Montijo
  • 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
Montijo vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Montijo?
Yes – Montijo is pricier by about 56%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,811 per month in Montijo and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,188 in Montijo.
Is eating out cheaper in Montijo or in Playa del Carmen?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $45 in Montijo and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 41% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Montijo or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Montijo at $1,874. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montijo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Montijo or Playa del Carmen more family-friendly?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Montijo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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