Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Alamos, Sonora

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Alamos, Sonora: $1,202 and $1,195 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Alamos, Sonora
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Alamos, Sonora Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Alamos, Sonora

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,195

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Alamos, Sonora

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 Alamos, Sonora actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,195 in Alamos, Sonora, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Alamos, Sonora $1,195

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,875 in Alamos, Sonora, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Alamos, Sonora $1,875

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,555 in Alamos, Sonora, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Alamos, Sonora $2,555

Playa del Carmen and Alamos, Sonora have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Alamos, Sonora are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Alamos, Sonora 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$200

$10.64 MX$200

0.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$823

$42.90 MX$806

2.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$221

$8.53 MX$160

38.22%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.1

$3.57 MX$67.0

6.16%

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

$1.30 MX$24.36

$1.38 MX$25.87

-5.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.65

$1.01 MX$18.90

-17.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.1

$2.45 MX$46.10

28.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$4.06 MX$76.2

21.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.46

$1.57 MX$29.58

-10.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.23

$2.58 MX$48.44

-14.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.66

$1.64 MX$30.78

-10.37%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.89

$2.42 MX$45.44

3.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$7.96 MX$150

-8.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$149

$8.27 MX$155

-3.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$11.47 MX$215

12.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.4

$2.77 MX$52.0

4.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.98

$1.56 MX$29.32

-11.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.78

$1.87 MX$35.07

33.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.12

$1.75 MX$32.89

16.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.03

$2.05 MX$38.42

-1.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.74

$1.82 MX$34.26

4.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.49

$1.38 MX$25.97

-17.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.27

$1.06 MX$19.92

16.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.2

$4.27 MX$80.3

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$184

$10.13 MX$190

-3.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.78

$1.73 MX$32.46

-8.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.6

$3.03 MX$56.9

-9.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.67

$0.67 MX$12.60

-23.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$514

$30.33 MX$570

-9.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.4

$2.50 MX$46.99

90.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.0

$1.97 MX$36.96

64.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$10.56 MX$198

-48.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.70

$1.41 MX$26.44

8.51%

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

$21.2K MX$398.4K

$24.1K MX$451.9K

-11.84%

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

$23.3K MX$436.9K

$23.4K MX$439.9K

-0.68%

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

$83.5 MX$1,568

$57.5 MX$1,080

45.23%

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

$23.19 MX$435

$22.04 MX$414

5.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$519

$29.66 MX$557

-6.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,060

$32.33 MX$607

74.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$529

$19.77 MX$371

42.59%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.9

$5.17 MX$97.1

-3.29%

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

$207 MX$3,889

$217 MX$4,073

-4.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.2K

$4,458 MX$83.7K

17.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$816

$53.3 MX$1,000

-18.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$799

$39.50 MX$742

7.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,367

$99.0 MX$1,859

-26.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,660

$89.0 MX$1,671

-0.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$607 MX$11.4K

63.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,181

$428 MX$8,038

-10.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.4K

$1,040 MX$19.5K

61.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$765 MX$14.4K

41.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.4K

$1,885 MX$35.4K

107.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.3K

$1,142 MX$21.5K

437.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.31

1.24%

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 Alamos, Sonora: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Alamos, Sonora

$428 35.8% 11.9% $46

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Alamos, Sonora

$260 21.8% 1% $2.4

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Alamos, Sonora

$183 15.4% 8.4% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Alamos, Sonora

$109 9.1% 18.7% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Alamos, Sonora

$126 10.6% 13.6% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Alamos, Sonora

$43 3.6% 35.8% $24

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Alamos, Sonora

$45 3.8% 10.1% $5.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $607 in Alamos, Sonora. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $43 in Alamos, Sonora. Groceries tell a different story – $257 in Playa del Carmen vs $260 in Alamos, Sonora – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Alamos, Sonora

🕒 Local time

22:31 10:31 PM

20:31 8:31 PM

2 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

10,961

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Alamos, Sonora 2,330 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Alamos, Sonora

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 Alamos, Sonora: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,792 in Alamos, Sonora. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Alamos, Sonora, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $607 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $217 in Alamos, Sonora. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,195 in Alamos, Sonora, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,195 in Alamos, Sonora to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.