Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Aguadulce

For one person, living is cheaper in Aguadulce: $955 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Aguadulce
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Aguadulce Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Aguadulce

🇵🇦 Panama

$955

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Aguadulce

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Aguadulce actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $955 in Aguadulce.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Aguadulce $955

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,528 in Aguadulce.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Aguadulce $1,528

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,100 in Aguadulce.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Aguadulce $2,100

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 26% more expensive than in Aguadulce, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Aguadulce 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$11.30 PAB 11.30

-5.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$46.77 PAB 46.77

-6.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.77 PAB 7.77

51.74%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$4.09 PAB 4.09

-7.33%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.92 PAB 1.92

-32.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$1.56 PAB 1.56

-46.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$3.20 PAB 3.20

-1.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.98 PAB 3.98

23.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.89 PAB 1.89

-25.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$2.54 PAB 2.54

-13.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$3.49 PAB 3.49

-57.88%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$2.79 PAB 2.79

-10.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$12.28 PAB 12.28

-40.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$6.85 PAB 6.85

16.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$10.62 PAB 10.62

21.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$4.10 PAB 4.10

-29.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.90 PAB 1.90

-27.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$4.02 PAB 4.02

-38.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$4.14 PAB 4.14

-50.97%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$3.47 PAB 3.47

-41.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$4.44 PAB 4.44

-57.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$2.40 PAB 2.40

-52.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.79 PAB 1.79

-30.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$5.89 PAB 5.89

-27.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$11.31 PAB 11.31

-13.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.40 PAB 1.40

13.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.72 PAB 2.72

1.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.26 PAB 0.26

96.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$2.48 PAB 2.48

91.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.86 PAB 1.86

74.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$22.34 PAB 22.34

-75.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.20 PAB 1.20

27.50%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$24.5K PAB 24.5K

-13.25%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$21.0K PAB 21.0K

10.81%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$129 PAB 129

-35.47%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$27.74 PAB 27.74

-16.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$49.65 PAB 49.65

-44.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$46.22 PAB 46.22

22.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$8.40 PAB 8.40

-40.48%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$553 PAB 553

-62.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$9,536 PAB 9,536

-45.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$67.5 PAB 67.5

-35.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$47.25 PAB 47.25

-9.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$95.4 PAB 95.4

-23.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$113 PAB 113

-21.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.39

79.19%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Aguadulce: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Aguadulce

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Aguadulce

$327 34.2% 26.9% $69

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Aguadulce

$201 21% 0.2% $0.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Aguadulce

$207 21.6% 54% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Aguadulce

$146 15.2% 30.9% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Aguadulce

$63 6.6% 5.1% $3.4

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Aguadulce

$13 * 1.3% 74.5% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $47 in Aguadulce for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $327 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇦 Aguadulce

🕒 Local time

18:50 6:50 PM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

8,501

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Panamanian Balboa PAB B/.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 PAB = 1 USD

1 PAB = 0.888 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PAB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Panamanian Balboa exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1 PAB (1 PAB = 1 USD). 1 EUR = 1.13 PAB (1 PAB = 0.888 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Aguadulce 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Aguadulce

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

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

Aguadulce wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Aguadulce the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,804 in Playa del Carmen and $1,433 in Aguadulce 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.

Shoppers in Playa del Carmen pay roughly 21% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $955 in Aguadulce – Aguadulce is about 21% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Aguadulce is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.