Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Antipolo

For one person, living is cheaper in Antipolo: $632 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Antipolo
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Antipolo Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Antipolo

🇵🇭 Philippines

$632

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $632 in Antipolo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Antipolo $632

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,004 in Antipolo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Antipolo $1,004

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,376 in Antipolo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Antipolo $1,376

Playa del Carmen costs about 91% more than Antipolo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Antipolo are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Antipolo 54% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$5.35 ₱341

104.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$19.02 ₱1,211

128.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$2.67 ₱170

341.20%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$1.76 ₱112

116.48%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.67 ₱42.77

91.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.54 ₱34.09

44.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.02 ₱65.2

210.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$1.53 ₱97.7

222.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.66 ₱106

-15.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$1.09 ₱69.5

103.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$1.03 ₱65.5

37.86%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$2.03 ₱129

24.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$5.14 ₱327

41.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$3.38 ₱215

127.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$6.86 ₱437

84.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$3.26 ₱207

-14.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.51 ₱95.9

-9.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$2.26 ₱144

12.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$1.01 ₱64.2

109.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.66 ₱106

16.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$1.74 ₱111

8.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$0.61 ₱39.12

88.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.51 ₱32.74

131.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$2.85 ₱181

50.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$8.85 ₱563

12.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$0.95 ₱60.6

66.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$1.95 ₱124

36.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$0.71 ₱44.93

600.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.21 ₱13.33

1485.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$1.92 ₱123

179.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.23 ₱78.6

17.07%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$20.7K ₱1.3M

-0.38%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$19.2K ₱1.2M

22.00%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$120 ₱7,664

-29.54%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$15.61 ₱994

49.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$22.97 ₱1,463

24.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$46.14 ₱2,938

23.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$5.04 ₱321

1.98%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$129 ₱8,242

59.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$8,775 ₱558.9K

-55.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$28.15 ₱1,793

54.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$18.98 ₱1,209

118.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$69.2 ₱4,408

7.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$55.1 ₱3,506

62.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$155 ₱9,898

530.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$77.7 ₱4,947

390.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$316 ₱20.1K

441.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$237 ₱15.1K

354.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$2,874 ₱183.0K

37.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$1,226 ₱78.1K

402.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$423 ₱26.9K

73.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.75

69.63%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Antipolo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Antipolo

$78 12.3% 79.6% $303

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Antipolo

$176 27.8% 31.1% $79

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Antipolo

$85 13.4% 58% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Antipolo

$159 25.1% 16.1% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Antipolo

$77 12.2% 31% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Antipolo

$56 8.9% 16.5% $11

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Antipolo

$1.8 * 0.3% 96.5% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $155 in Antipolo. 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 74% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $19 in Antipolo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $176 – making Antipolo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 Antipolo

🕒 Local time

04:21 4:21 AM

17:21 5:21 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

887,399

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.08 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Antipolo 15,030 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Antipolo

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 Antipolo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen costs about 91% more than Antipolo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $948 in Antipolo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Antipolo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $155 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $632 in Antipolo. That makes Antipolo about 48% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $129 in Antipolo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Antipolo, where all-in costs run around $632, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Antipolo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Antipolo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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