Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Paramaribo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Paramaribo: $1,002 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Paramaribo
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Paramaribo Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Paramaribo

🇸🇷 Suriname

$1,002

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,002 per month in Paramaribo vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Paramaribo $1,002
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,659 per month in Paramaribo vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Paramaribo $1,659
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $2,316 per month in Paramaribo vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Paramaribo $2,316
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Paramaribo is about 17% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Paramaribo and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Paramaribo 26% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.42 SRD 506

$10.76 MX$199

24.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.8 SRD 1,989

$43.03 MX$795

22.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.82 SRD 408

$11.79 MX$218

-8.23%

Cappuccino

$2.86 SRD 108

$3.87 MX$71.4

-26.10%

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

$1.41 SRD 53.3

$1.37 MX$25.29

2.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 SRD 32.98

$0.84 MX$15.44

4.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.66 SRD 100

$3.10 MX$57.3

-14.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.87 SRD 146

$5.07 MX$93.6

-23.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 SRD 65.8

$1.44 MX$26.55

21.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 SRD 53.1

$2.23 MX$41.23

-36.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 SRD 62.3

$1.47 MX$27.17

12.24%

Eggs

$3.12 SRD 118

$2.53 MX$46.71

23.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 SRD 444

$7.30 MX$135

61.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.13 SRD 231

$7.86 MX$145

-22.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 SRD 386

$12.79 MX$236

-19.94%

Apples (1kg)

$4.78 SRD 180

$2.90 MX$53.6

64.83%

Banana (1kg)

$3.01 SRD 113

$1.44 MX$26.53

109.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.67 SRD 138

$2.55 MX$47.07

43.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.01 SRD 226

$2.06 MX$38.03

191.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 SRD 49.65

$2.00 MX$36.97

-34.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 SRD 74.9

$2.01 MX$37.07

-1.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 SRD 57.7

$1.19 MX$22.02

28.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SRD 54.1

$1.26 MX$23.23

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.66 SRD 213

$4.40 MX$81.4

28.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.07 SRD 304

$9.59 MX$177

-15.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 SRD 78.8

$1.59 MX$29.41

31.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 SRD 142

$2.81 MX$51.9

34.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.78 SRD 29.23

$0.57 MX$10.47

36.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.15 SRD 81.0

$4.98 MX$92.1

-56.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 SRD 58.0

$3.50 MX$64.6

-56.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.19 SRD 271

$5.40 MX$99.8

33.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 SRD 44.76

$1.47 MX$27.08

-19.05%

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

$25.5K SRD 959.6K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

21.39%

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

$25.3K SRD 952.9K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

5.81%

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

$37.49 SRD 1,412

$84.2 MX$1,556

-55.48%

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

$25.86 SRD 974

$23.99 MX$443

7.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.23 SRD 1,139

$29.02 MX$536

4.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.51 SRD 509

$63.0 MX$1,164

-78.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.20 SRD 761

$29.14 MX$539

-30.68%

Cinema Ticket

$5.15 SRD 194

$4.94 MX$91.3

4.25%

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

$63.1 SRD 2,378

$204 MX$3,763

-68.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,777 SRD 66.9K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

-54.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.60 SRD 1,266

$43.60 MX$806

-22.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$20.88 SRD 787

$43.12 MX$797

-51.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.3 SRD 2,571

$75.8 MX$1,400

-9.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 SRD 3,873

$88.6 MX$1,637

16.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$480 SRD 18.1K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-52.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$266 SRD 10.0K

$374 MX$6,911

-28.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$939 SRD 35.4K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-45.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 SRD 18.8K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-54.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$461 SRD 17.3K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-88.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$396 SRD 14.9K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-93.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$282 SRD 10.6K

$754 MX$13.9K

-62.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

39.74%

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

Last update for Paramaribo: October 12, 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

Paramaribo

$300 29.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 13.7% $41

Accommodation & Living

Paramaribo

$266 26.6%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 40.6% $108

Eating Out

Paramaribo

$204 20.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 1% $2.1

Clothing & Footwear

Paramaribo

$102 10.1%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 11.3% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Paramaribo

$94 9.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 46.6% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Paramaribo

$24 2.4%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 206% $49

Getting Around

Paramaribo

$13 * 1.3%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 306% $40

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $480 in Paramaribo versus $1,008 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 167% higher in Playa del Carmen, 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 $53.0 in Paramaribo versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $300 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇷 Paramaribo

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

18:20 6:20 PM

16:20 4:20 PM

2 h behind Paramaribo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

242,946 Capital

149,923

💱 Currency

Surinamese Dollar SRD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 SRD = 2.65 USD

100 SRD = 2.36 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SRD – Surinamese Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇷 Surinamese Dollar ($)

Surinamese Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 37.67 SRD (100 SRD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 42.35 SRD (100 SRD = 2.36 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to SRD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Paramaribo Playa del Carmen 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Paramaribo
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

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

Playa del Carmen costs about 21% more than Paramaribo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,503 per month in Paramaribo and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Paramaribo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,002 in Paramaribo and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 21%.

Kindergarten costs $63.1 per month in Paramaribo and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Paramaribo, where all-in costs run around $1,002, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Paramaribo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Paramaribo costs $1,002 versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Paramaribo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.