Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Old Harbour and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Old Harbour: $1,005 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

48

Cost of Living Index in Old Harbour
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Old Harbour Living Index
58

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

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Old Harbour

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,005

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,005 in Old Harbour versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Old Harbour $1,005
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,664 in Old Harbour versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Old Harbour $1,664
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,322 in Old Harbour versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Old Harbour $2,322
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Old Harbour costs roughly 17% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Old Harbour 26% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.35 JMD 2,105

$10.92 MX$204

22.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.0 JMD 11.8K

$43.37 MX$810

72.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.40 JMD 1,324

$11.78 MX$220

-28.69%

Cappuccino

$5.23 JMD 824

$3.81 MX$71.2

37.27%

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

$1.14 JMD 179

$1.28 MX$23.96

-10.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 JMD 115

$0.78 MX$14.63

-6.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 JMD 345

$3.17 MX$59.2

-30.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 JMD 508

$4.93 MX$92.2

-34.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.24 JMD 668

$1.41 MX$26.28

200.71%

White Bread (500g)

$3.83 JMD 604

$2.22 MX$41.43

72.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 JMD 245

$1.42 MX$26.48

9.86%

Eggs

$3.47 JMD 548

$2.52 MX$47.14

37.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.44 JMD 1,804

$7.26 MX$136

57.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.34 JMD 1,000

$7.70 MX$144

-17.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.13 JMD 1,598

$12.69 MX$237

-20.17%

Apples (1kg)

$6.06 JMD 956

$2.78 MX$52.0

117.99%

Banana (1kg)

$4.00 JMD 631

$1.37 MX$25.56

191.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.38 JMD 1,163

$2.55 MX$47.66

189.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.01 JMD 474

$2.12 MX$39.67

41.98%

Potato (1kg)

$3.23 JMD 509

$1.94 MX$36.22

66.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 JMD 411

$1.89 MX$35.24

37.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.02 JMD 477

$1.15 MX$21.42

162.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 JMD 236

$1.18 MX$22.03

27.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.31 JMD 1,467

$4.30 MX$80.3

116.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.26 JMD 1,776

$9.95 MX$186

13.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.85 JMD 449

$1.58 MX$29.59

80.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.93 JMD 620

$2.67 MX$49.91

47.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.34

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$497

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 JMD 202

$4.97 MX$92.9

-74.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.23 JMD 509

$3.33 MX$62.2

-3.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.45 JMD 1,018

$5.36 MX$100

20.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 JMD 231

$1.44 MX$26.98

1.39%

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

$43.9K JMD 6.9M

$20.7K MX$386.2K

112.49%

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

$32.4K JMD 5.1M

$23.5K MX$438.5K

37.91%

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

$165 JMD 26.0K

$84.8 MX$1,584

94.75%

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

$29.91 JMD 4,716

$23.41 MX$437

27.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.8 JMD 8,485

$28.66 MX$535

87.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,066

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$540

Cinema Ticket

$13.48 JMD 2,126

$5.14 MX$96.0

162.26%

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

$358 JMD 56.5K

$207 MX$3,860

73.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,285 JMD 1.3M

$3,927 MX$73.4K

110.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.81 JMD 3,755

$43.35 MX$810

-45.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.92 JMD 5,034

$41.44 MX$774

-22.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.5 JMD 12.4K

$74.2 MX$1,386

5.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 JMD 16.1K

$89.3 MX$1,668

14.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,116

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

11.45

-17.47%

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

Last update for Old Harbour: October 24, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Old Harbour

$386 38.4%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 33.9% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Old Harbour

$249 24.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 45% $112

Eating Out

Old Harbour

$220 21.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 7.8% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Old Harbour

$106 10.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 5.1% $5.4

Sport & Entertainment

Old Harbour

$27 * 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 150% $40

Getting Around

Old Harbour

$17 * 1.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 190% $33

Accommodation & Living

Old Harbour

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $75 in Old Harbour vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $386 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Old Harbour

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

06:06 6:06 AM

Same time as Old Harbour

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

26,024

149,923

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.7 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.7 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Old Harbour Playa del Carmen 1,090 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Old Harbour
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

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

Old Harbour and Playa del Carmen differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($1,005 vs $1,204 including rent). Old Harbour is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,507 in Old Harbour and $1,806 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.

Childcare runs $358 in Old Harbour versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $75 in Old Harbour. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Old Harbour 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.