Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pagadian and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Pagadian: $717 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Pagadian
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Pagadian Living Index
59

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

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Pagadian

🇵🇭 Philippines

$717

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $717 in Pagadian versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Pagadian $717
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,100 in Pagadian versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Pagadian $1,100
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,483 in Pagadian versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Pagadian $1,483
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Pagadian costs roughly 41% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Pagadian 47% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.81 ₱240

$10.76 MX$199

-64.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.55 ₱1,042

$43.03 MX$795

-61.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.77 ₱174

$11.79 MX$218

-76.51%

Cappuccino

$1.93 ₱121

$3.87 MX$71.4

-50.13%

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

$0.87 ₱54.7

$1.37 MX$25.29

-36.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 ₱14.39

$0.84 MX$15.44

-72.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.42 ₱89.3

$3.10 MX$57.3

-54.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₱125

$5.07 MX$93.6

-60.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 ₱107

$1.44 MX$26.55

18.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 ₱65.8

$2.23 MX$41.23

-52.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.93 ₱58.5

$1.47 MX$27.17

-36.73%

Eggs

$1.63 ₱102

$2.53 MX$46.71

-35.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.93 ₱310

$7.30 MX$135

-32.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.10 ₱258

$7.86 MX$145

-47.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.05 ₱381

$12.79 MX$236

-52.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 ₱163

$2.90 MX$53.6

-10.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 ₱90.8

$1.44 MX$26.53

Oranges (1kg)

$2.53 ₱159

$2.55 MX$47.07

-0.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.00 ₱62.8

$2.06 MX$38.03

-51.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 ₱111

$2.00 MX$36.97

-11.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 ₱123

$2.01 MX$37.07

-2.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.90 ₱56.7

$1.19 MX$22.02

-24.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.64 ₱40.28

$1.26 MX$23.23

-49.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.12 ₱197

$4.40 MX$81.4

-29.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.03 ₱506

$9.59 MX$177

-16.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 ₱64.2

$1.59 MX$29.41

-35.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₱107

$2.81 MX$51.9

-39.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₱16.36

$0.57 MX$10.47

-54.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.91 ₱687

$27.82 MX$514

-60.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₱46.09

$4.98 MX$92.1

-85.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.71

$3.50 MX$64.6

-92.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 ₱119

$5.40 MX$99.8

-65.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₱66.9

$1.47 MX$27.08

-27.89%

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

$19.0K ₱1.2M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-9.51%

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

$17.9K ₱1.1M

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-25.29%

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

$122 ₱7,687

$84.2 MX$1,556

44.99%

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

$15.52 ₱977

$23.99 MX$443

-35.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.08 ₱1,516

$29.02 MX$536

-17.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.90 ₱2,260

$63.0 MX$1,164

-43.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.29 ₱270

$29.14 MX$539

-85.28%

Cinema Ticket

$5.59 ₱352

$4.94 MX$91.3

13.16%

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

$129 ₱8,114

$204 MX$3,763

-36.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,823 ₱429.6K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

73.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$34.11 ₱2,148

$43.60 MX$806

-21.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.27 ₱1,088

$43.12 MX$797

-59.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.9 ₱4,719

$75.8 MX$1,400

-1.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$56.0 ₱3,527

$88.6 MX$1,637

-36.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$263 ₱16.5K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-73.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$161 ₱10.2K

$374 MX$6,911

-56.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$509 ₱32.0K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-70.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$358 ₱22.5K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-67.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,576 ₱162.2K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-34.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$989 ₱62.2K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-83.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

11.45

-40.70%

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

Last update for Pagadian: October 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Pagadian

$173 24.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 49.5% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pagadian

$162 22.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 15.1% $24

Accommodation & Living

Pagadian

$161 22.5%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 132% $213

Clothing & Footwear

Pagadian

$82 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 37.7% $31

Eating Out

Pagadian

$77 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 162% $125

Sport & Entertainment

Pagadian

$47 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 54.8% $26

Getting Around

Pagadian

$14 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 278% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $263 in Pagadian and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $17.00 in Pagadian vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $173 vs $258 per month, with Pagadian cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Pagadian

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

06:39 6:39 AM

17:39 5:39 PM

13 h behind Pagadian

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

199,060

149,923

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Pagadian Playa del Carmen 15,420 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Pagadian
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

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

Pagadian and Playa del Carmen differ by about 69% in total monthly costs ($717 vs $1,210 including rent). Pagadian is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,075 in Pagadian and $1,816 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: $263 in Pagadian versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Pagadian – a meal for two runs $17.00 versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $717 per month in Pagadian versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – a 69% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $717 in Pagadian versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Pagadian but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Pagadian the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Pagadian gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.