Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Petaling Jaya and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Petaling Jaya is 37% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 28% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Petaling Jaya is 21.6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 42% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.47 MYR 14.63
$11.99 MX$227
-71.06%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$18.92 MYR 79.8
$42.47 MX$803
-55.45%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.6 MYR 19.4
$10.47 MX$198
-56.06%
Cappuccino
$2.72 MYR 11.47
$3.6 MX$68.2
-24.44%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 MYR 3.07
$1.44 MX$27.16
-49.31%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.39 MYR 1.66
$0.89 MX$16.79
-56.18%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.47 MYR 14.62
$3.09 MX$58.5
12.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.92 MYR 20.75
$4.58 MX$86.6
7.42%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.87 MYR 7.89
$1.38 MX$26.04
35.51%
White Bread (500g)
$0.95 MYR 4.01
$1.85 MX$34.9
-48.65%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.72 MYR 7.24
$1.57 MX$29.68
9.55%
Eggs
$2.18 MYR 9.18
$2.55 MX$48.3
-14.51%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.64 MYR 44.87
$8.61 MX$163
23.58%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.39 MYR 14.3
$8.54 MX$161
-60.30%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.19 MYR 34.54
$10.98 MX$208
-25.41%
Apples (1kg)
$2.79 MYR 11.76
$2.72 MX$51.4
2.57%
Banana (1kg)
$1.75 MYR 7.37
$1.51 MX$28.57
15.89%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.53 MYR 10.68
$1.88 MX$35.63
34.57%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.25 MYR 5.27
$2.19 MX$41.42
-42.92%
Potato (1kg)
$1.13 MYR 4.75
$1.87 MX$35.3
-39.57%
Onion (1kg)
$1.4 MYR 5.89
$2.19 MX$41.37
-36.07%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.96 MYR 4.04
$1.07 MX$20.23
-10.28%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.58 MYR 2.45
$1.09 MX$20.64
-46.79%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.27 MYR 18.01
$3.96 MX$74.9
7.83%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.88 MYR 79.6
$8.86 MX$167
113.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.68 MYR 11.31
$1.72 MX$32.53
55.81%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.83 MYR 16.16
$2.61 MX$49.37
46.74%
🚌 Getting Around
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.71 MYR 2.99
$0.52 MX$9.74
36.54%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.75 MYR 49.57
$26.59 MX$503
-55.81%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.03 MYR 4.33
$3.24 MX$61.2
-68.21%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.35 MYR 1.49
$2.38 MX$44.94
-85.29%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.36 MYR 39.46
$3.11 MX$58.7
200.96%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.49 MYR 2.07
$1.31 MX$24.85
-62.60%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$31.3K MYR 132.2K
$30.3K MX$573K
3.42%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$28K MYR 118.2K
$24K MX$453.6K
16.85%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$41.58 MYR 175
$84.2 MX$1,592
-50.64%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$8.89 MYR 37.47
$22.14 MX$419
-59.85%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$22.97 MYR 96.9
$30.14 MX$570
-23.79%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.26 MYR 157
$52 MX$983
-28.32%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$7.23 MYR 30.5
$18.72 MX$354
-61.38%
Cinema Ticket
$5.08 MYR 21.43
$5.07 MX$95.9
0.20%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$210 MYR 887
$200 MX$3,787
5.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,001 MYR 33.7K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
50.04%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.01 MYR 207
$35.74 MX$676
37.13%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.16 MYR 144
$39.8 MX$753
-14.17%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$55.2 MYR 233
$79 MX$1,493
-30.13%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$48.06 MYR 203
$88.4 MX$1,671
-45.62%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$455 MYR 1,917
$965 MX$18.3K
-52.92%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$349 MYR 1,471
$474 MX$8,968
-26.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$823 MYR 3,471
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-50.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$542 MYR 2,287
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-54.88%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,404 MYR 10.1K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-22.00%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$821 MYR 3,463
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-89.09%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Petaling Jaya
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,668 MYR 7,036
$792 MX$15K
110.72%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.49
11.42
-60.68%

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

Last update for Petaling Jaya: October 27, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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