Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nogales and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Nogales and in Playa del Carmen: $1,207 and $1,202 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Nogales
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Nogales Living Index
57

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

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Nogales

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,207

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Nogales versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Nogales $1,207
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,877 in Nogales versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Nogales $1,877
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,547 in Nogales versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Nogales $2,547
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Monthly costs are close between Nogales and Playa del Carmen; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities sit below the global median: Nogales 11% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.57 MX$198

$10.67 MX$200

-0.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.20 MX$808

$43.80 MX$819

-1.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.57 MX$160

$11.79 MX$220

-27.31%

Cappuccino

$3.44 MX$64.4

$3.79 MX$70.8

-9.23%

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

$1.35 MX$25.16

$1.30 MX$24.26

3.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 MX$19.59

$0.83 MX$15.59

26.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.46 MX$46.08

$3.15 MX$58.9

-21.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.96 MX$74.2

$4.93 MX$92.3

-19.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 MX$29.94

$1.41 MX$26.35

13.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.54 MX$47.54

$2.20 MX$41.07

15.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 MX$30.70

$1.47 MX$27.54

11.56%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$46.47

$2.50 MX$46.70

-0.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.14 MX$152

$7.29 MX$136

11.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.37 MX$157

$7.95 MX$149

5.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.40 MX$213

$12.86 MX$241

-11.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 MX$50.1

$2.90 MX$54.2

-7.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$28.08

$1.38 MX$25.87

8.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 MX$35.87

$2.49 MX$46.59

-22.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$34.28

$2.03 MX$37.97

-9.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.29

$2.02 MX$37.88

-3.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$34.07

$1.90 MX$35.60

-4.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 MX$25.76

$1.14 MX$21.41

21.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 MX$19.81

$1.24 MX$23.17

-14.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.28 MX$80.0

$4.27 MX$79.9

0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.12 MX$189

$9.81 MX$184

3.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 MX$31.97

$1.59 MX$29.66

7.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 MX$58.7

$2.75 MX$51.3

14.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MX$11.72

$0.51 MX$9.63

23.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.70 MX$555

$27.39 MX$512

8.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 MX$48.98

$4.76 MX$89.1

-44.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.99 MX$37.22

$3.25 MX$60.8

-38.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.94 MX$205

$5.39 MX$101

102.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.53 MX$28.58

-3.27%

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

$23.6K MX$440.7K

$21.2K MX$396.8K

11.06%

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

$23.5K MX$439.6K

$23.3K MX$435.1K

1.03%

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

$56.7 MX$1,061

$83.5 MX$1,562

-32.04%

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

$22.57 MX$422

$23.19 MX$434

-2.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.55 MX$553

$27.61 MX$516

7.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.41 MX$606

$56.4 MX$1,056

-42.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.71 MX$369

$28.19 MX$527

-30.08%

Cinema Ticket

$5.25 MX$98.2

$5.00 MX$93.5

5.00%

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

$218 MX$4,084

$207 MX$3,873

5.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,499 MX$84.1K

$5,231 MX$97.8K

-14.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 MX$1,006

$43.45 MX$813

23.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.92 MX$747

$42.54 MX$796

-6.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.6 MX$1,826

$72.8 MX$1,361

34.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.3 MX$1,633

$88.4 MX$1,653

-1.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$587 MX$11.0K

$995 MX$18.6K

-40.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$443 MX$8,291

$382 MX$7,152

15.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,029 MX$19.2K

$1,674 MX$31.3K

-38.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$760 MX$14.2K

$1,081 MX$20.2K

-29.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,910 MX$35.7K

$3,909 MX$73.1K

-51.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,136 MX$21.3K

$6,138 MX$114.8K

-81.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.31

11.45

-1.22%

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

Last update for Nogales: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Nogales

$443 36.7%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 13.7% $61

Groceries & Markets

Nogales

$260 21.6%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 1.1% $3

Eating Out

Nogales

$181 15%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 10.4% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Nogales

$125 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 11.3% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nogales

$109 9%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 23.4% $25

Getting Around

Nogales

$45 3.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 12.7% $5.7

Sport & Entertainment

Nogales

$43 3.6%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 54.8% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $587 in Nogales and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Nogales vs $44 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $260 vs $257, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Nogales

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

05:38 5:38 AM

07:38 7:38 AM

2 h ahead of Nogales

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

261,137

149,923

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Nogales Playa del Carmen 2,660 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Nogales
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

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

You’d need roughly $1,810 in Nogales and $1,804 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $587 in Nogales versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $218 in Nogales versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 8% less than in Nogales. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Playa del Carmen gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.