Cost of Living Comparison Between Penang and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Penang and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Penang is 29.7% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 31.4% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Penang is 9.6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 39.5% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.11 MYR 12.61

$11.88 MX$210

-73.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.15 MYR 85.9

$41.90 MX$740

-49.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.33 MYR 17.57

$10.55 MX$186

-58.96%

Cappuccino

$2.86 MYR 11.63

$3.60 MX$63.5

-20.56%

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

$0.73 MYR 2.96

$1.50 MX$26.45

-51.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.48

$0.91 MX$16.09

-60.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.29 MYR 17.41

$3.08 MX$54.4

39.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 MYR 17.73

$4.47 MX$78.8

-2.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 MYR 7.63

$1.39 MX$24.54

35.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 MYR 4.06

$1.90 MX$33.47

-47.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.99 MYR 8.07

$1.60 MX$28.27

24.37%

Eggs

$2.05 MYR 8.33

$2.60 MX$45.97

-21.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.99 MYR 69.0

$8.36 MX$148

103.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.18 MYR 21.02

$8.64 MX$152

-40.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.97 MYR 60.8

$10.91 MX$192

37.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.77 MYR 11.26

$2.61 MX$45.98

6.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MYR 5.87

$1.44 MX$25.46

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 MYR 10.96

$1.96 MX$34.55

37.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 MYR 8.47

$2.12 MX$37.34

-1.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 MYR 4.60

$1.86 MX$32.87

-39.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 MYR 4.97

$2.22 MX$39.20

-45.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 MYR 3.84

$1.02 MX$17.99

-6.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.82

$1.04 MX$18.36

-56.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.22 MYR 17.12

$4.05 MX$71.5

4.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.31 MYR 78.4

$10.18 MX$180

89.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 MYR 10.63

$1.69 MX$29.79

55.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 MYR 14.21

$2.62 MX$46.25

33.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 MYR 1.85

$0.51 MX$9.09

-9.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.42 MYR 70.7

$26.52 MX$468

-34.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 MYR 2.83

$3.15 MX$55.7

-77.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.50 MYR 2.03

$2.46 MX$43.49

-79.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.23 MYR 29.33

$3.26 MX$57.5

121.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.88

$1.32 MX$23.36

-65.15%

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

$33.9K MYR 137.6K

$30.1K MX$531.0K

12.62%

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

$27.7K MYR 112.3K

$23.8K MX$419.3K

16.40%

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

$38.60 MYR 157

$83.5 MX$1,474

-53.79%

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

$10.03 MYR 40.71

$22.86 MX$404

-56.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.91 MYR 125

$30.04 MX$530

2.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.64 MYR 133

$51.9 MX$916

-37.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.52 MYR 22.40

$18.30 MX$323

-69.84%

Cinema Ticket

$4.90 MYR 19.88

$5.12 MX$90.4

-4.30%

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

$238 MYR 968

$201 MX$3,541

18.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,150 MYR 25.0K

$5,318 MX$93.9K

15.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.6 MYR 226

$35.73 MX$631

55.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.29 MYR 119

$40.27 MX$711

-27.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.4 MYR 245

$79.2 MX$1,398

-23.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.8 MYR 214

$89.3 MX$1,576

-40.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$380 MYR 1,543

$947 MX$16.7K

-59.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$227 MYR 920

$483 MX$8,525

-53.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$649 MYR 2,636

$1,599 MX$28.2K

-59.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 MYR 2,113

$1,211 MX$21.4K

-57.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,235 MYR 9,072

$3,996 MX$70.5K

-44.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,156 MYR 4,693

$6,402 MX$113.0K

-81.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$988 MYR 4,012

$730 MX$12.9K

35.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.16

11.42

-63.57%

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

Last update for Penang: January 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: January 13, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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