Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pétion-Ville and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,178 in Pétion-Ville, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Pétion-Ville
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Pétion-Ville Living Index
59

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

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Pétion-Ville

🇭🇹 Haiti

$2,178

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,178 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $2,178
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $3,589 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $3,589
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $4,999 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $4,999
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Pétion-Ville costs about 80% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Pétion-Ville sits 61% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.74 HTG 1,919

$10.76 MX$199

36.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.0 HTG 11.7K

$43.03 MX$795

109.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.26 HTG 1,466

$11.79 MX$218

-4.50%

Cappuccino

$3.74 HTG 486

$3.87 MX$71.4

-3.36%

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

$3.00 HTG 390

$1.37 MX$25.29

118.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 HTG 202

$0.84 MX$15.44

84.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.42 HTG 967

$3.10 MX$57.3

139.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.10 HTG 1,186

$5.07 MX$93.6

79.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 HTG 274

$1.44 MX$26.55

45.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.58 HTG 336

$2.23 MX$41.23

15.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 HTG 402

$1.47 MX$27.17

110.20%

Eggs

$3.71 HTG 483

$2.53 MX$46.71

46.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.91 HTG 900

$7.30 MX$135

-5.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.14 HTG 799

$7.86 MX$145

-21.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.96 HTG 1,167

$12.79 MX$236

-29.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.91 HTG 509

$2.90 MX$53.6

34.83%

Banana (1kg)

$0.88 HTG 114

$1.44 MX$26.53

-38.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.77 HTG 101

$2.55 MX$47.07

-69.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 HTG 298

$2.06 MX$38.03

11.17%

Potato (1kg)

$7.33 HTG 955

$2.00 MX$36.97

266.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 HTG 290

$2.01 MX$37.07

10.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 HTG 146

$1.19 MX$22.02

-5.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 HTG 132

$1.26 MX$23.23

-19.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.63 HTG 603

$4.40 MX$81.4

5.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.61 HTG 1,512

$9.59 MX$177

21.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 HTG 192

$1.59 MX$29.41

-6.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 HTG 289

$2.81 MX$51.9

-21.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 HTG 47.44

$0.57 MX$10.47

-36.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.51 HTG 5,016

$27.82 MX$514

38.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.37 HTG 47.57

$4.98 MX$92.1

-92.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 HTG 51.5

$3.50 MX$64.6

-88.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.65 HTG 1,777

$5.40 MX$99.8

152.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 HTG 181

$1.47 MX$27.08

-5.44%

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

$34.8K HTG 4.5M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

65.70%

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

$24.8K HTG 3.2M

$23.9K MX$441.8K

3.82%

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

$166 HTG 21.7K

$84.2 MX$1,556

97.41%

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

$44.99 HTG 5,859

$23.99 MX$443

87.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$232 HTG 30.2K

$29.02 MX$536

698.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.50 HTG 2,018

$29.14 MX$539

-46.81%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

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

$204 MX$3,763

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.0 HTG 11.7K

$43.60 MX$806

106.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$76.6 HTG 9,975

$43.12 MX$797

77.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$150 HTG 19.5K

$75.8 MX$1,400

98.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$190 HTG 24.7K

$88.6 MX$1,637

114.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 HTG 150.4K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

14.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$925 HTG 120.5K

$374 MX$6,911

147.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,263 HTG 425.0K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

91.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 HTG 299.7K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

108.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,525 HTG 328.8K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-35.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,842 HTG 239.9K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-70.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$750 HTG 97.6K

$754 MX$13.9K

-0.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

57.21%

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

Last update for Pétion-Ville: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Pétion-Ville

$925 42.5%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 59.6% $551

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pétion-Ville

$443 20.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 69% $306

Eating Out

Pétion-Ville

$270 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 25.1% $68

Groceries & Markets

Pétion-Ville

$270 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 4.2% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Pétion-Ville

$228 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 50.4% $115

Getting Around

Pétion-Ville

$42 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 24.2% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Pétion-Ville

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,155 in Pétion-Ville 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 1% higher in Playa del Carmen, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $90.0 in Pétion-Ville versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $270 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇹 Pétion-Ville

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:49 3:49 AM

02:49 2:49 AM

1 h behind Pétion-Ville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,400

149,923

💱 Currency

Haitian Gourde HTG G

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HTG = 7.68 USD

1,000 HTG = 6.83 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to HTG – Haitian Gourde Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇹 Haitian Gourde (G)

Haitian Gourde exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 130 HTG (1,000 HTG = 7.68 USD). 1 EUR = 146 HTG (1,000 HTG = 6.83 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to HTG in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Pétion-Ville Playa del Carmen 1,570 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Pétion-Ville
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,178 in Pétion-Ville, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 80% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,267 per month in Pétion-Ville 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 38% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Groceries cost about 4% more in Pétion-Ville, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Pétion-Ville at $2,178. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Pétion-Ville it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,210 in Playa del Carmen to $2,178 in Pétion-Ville. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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