Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Motril and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,480 in Motril, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Motril outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

72

Cost of Living Index in Motril
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Motril Living Index
58

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

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Motril

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,480

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,480 in Motril versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Motril $1,480
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,218 in Motril versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Motril $2,218
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,955 in Motril versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Motril $2,955
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Motril is roughly 23% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Motril is 9% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.71 €14.97

$10.92 MX$205

53.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.4 €50.5

$43.37 MX$814

29.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.69 €5.99

$11.78 MX$221

-43.21%

Cappuccino

$2.07 €1.85

$3.81 MX$71.5

-45.67%

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

$2.75 €2.46

$1.28 MX$24.07

114.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.99

$0.78 MX$14.70

41.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.62 €4.14

$3.17 MX$59.5

45.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 €5.10

$4.93 MX$92.7

15.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.41 MX$26.40

-18.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.83 €1.64

$2.22 MX$41.62

-17.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 €1.28

$1.42 MX$26.61

0.70%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$2.52 MX$47.36

59.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.49 €12.08

$7.26 MX$136

85.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.36 €3.91

$7.70 MX$144

-43.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.24 €14.54

$12.69 MX$238

27.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$2.78 MX$52.3

-21.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$1.37 MX$25.68

65.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.28 €2.04

$2.55 MX$47.89

-10.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 €2.56

$2.12 MX$39.86

34.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.59

$1.94 MX$36.39

-8.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.77 €2.48

$1.89 MX$35.41

46.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.64 €1.47

$1.15 MX$21.53

42.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 €0.66

$1.18 MX$22.13

-37.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.79 €6.08

$4.30 MX$80.6

57.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.14 €8.18

$9.95 MX$187

-8.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.58 MX$29.73

-3.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.02

$2.67 MX$50.1

-15.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 €1.48

$0.55 MX$10.39

200.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.16 €28.80

$26.62 MX$500

20.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 €1.79

$4.97 MX$93.3

-59.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.02

$3.33 MX$62.5

-65.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.86 €20.47

$5.36 MX$101

326.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.75 €1.57

$1.44 MX$27.11

21.53%

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

$25.9K €23.2K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

25.15%

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

$31.1K €27.9K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

32.64%

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

$79.3 €71.0

$84.8 MX$1,592

-6.50%

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

$15.89 €14.23

$23.41 MX$439

-32.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.80 €20.42

$28.66 MX$538

-20.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.89 €44.68

$57.1 MX$1,071

-12.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.54 €13.91

$28.91 MX$543

-46.25%

Cinema Ticket

$6.75 €6.05

$5.14 MX$96.5

31.32%

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

$252 €225

$207 MX$3,878

21.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K €12.0K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

241.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.82 €30.29

$43.35 MX$814

-21.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.08 €25.15

$41.44 MX$778

-32.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 €71.6

$74.2 MX$1,393

7.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$45.51 €40.76

$89.3 MX$1,676

-49.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$887 €794

$980 MX$18.4K

-9.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$672 €602

$381 MX$7,150

76.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,366 €1,223

$1,708 MX$32.1K

-20.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 €910

$1,075 MX$20.2K

-5.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,261 €2,920

$3,943 MX$74.0K

-17.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,245 €2,011

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-63.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,707 €1,529

$735 MX$13.8K

132.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-73.80%

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

Last update for Motril: 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

Motril

$672 45.4%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 43.4% $292

Groceries & Markets

Motril

$267 18.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 4.7% $13

Eating Out

Motril

$229 15.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 11.4% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Motril

$118 8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 16% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Motril

$84 5.7%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 32.5% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Motril

$63 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 6.2% $3.9

Getting Around

Motril

$46 3.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 8.6% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $887 in Motril and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Motril pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $56 in Motril vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Motril

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:35 4:35 PM

10:35 10:35 AM

6 h behind Motril

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,939

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Motril Playa del Carmen 8,100 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Motril
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

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

Playa del Carmen is about 19% cheaper overall, especially in eating out and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Motril is about 2.3 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: $887 in Motril 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 $56 in Motril. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,480 per month in Motril versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 19% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Motril on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.