Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Apia Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Apia

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 14.6% cheaper than Apia without rent, and 28.5% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 28.8% cheaper than Apia without rent, and 25.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.85 MX$211
$53.0 WST 142
-77.62%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.16 MX$750
$36.29 WST 97.6
16.18%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.75 MX$191
$13.57 WST 36.50
-20.78%
Cappuccino
$3.47 MX$61.8
$2.52 WST 6.78
37.70%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$25.85
$2.10 WST 5.64
-30.95%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$16.06
$1.27 WST 3.40
-29.13%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.05 MX$54.3
$4.37 WST 11.75
-30.21%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 MX$78.6
$3.45 WST 9.27
28.12%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 MX$24.36
$1.77 WST 4.77
-22.60%
White Bread (500g)
$1.87 MX$33.31
$0.83 WST 2.25
125.30%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 MX$27.46
$1.83 WST 4.92
-15.85%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$44.53
$4.13 WST 11.10
-39.47%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$153
$0.87 WST 2.34
889.66%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.63 MX$154
$3.61 WST 9.71
139.06%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.02 MX$196
$7.99 WST 21.50
37.92%
Apples (1kg)
$2.75 MX$48.91
$5.10 WST 13.72
-46.08%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$25.41
$1.75 WST 4.70
-18.29%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.87 MX$33.32
$1.74 WST 4.68
7.47%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MX$38.56
$4.36 WST 11.72
-50.23%
Potato (1kg)
$1.88 MX$33.50
$3.53 WST 9.51
-46.74%
Onion (1kg)
$2.25 MX$39.96
$1.09 WST 2.94
106.42%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$18.99
-
-
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.07 MX$19.10
$1.15 WST 3.09
-6.96%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.15 MX$73.9
$6.16 WST 16.58
-32.63%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.34 MX$184
$16.82 WST 45.26
-38.53%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 MX$29.87
$1.84 WST 4.94
-8.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 MX$44.19
$3.59 WST 9.65
-30.92%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$9.87
$3.59 WST 9.66
-84.68%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.53 MX$472
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.22 MX$57.2
$5.27 WST 14.19
-38.90%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.48 MX$44.15
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$55.3
$21.40 WST 57.6
-85.47%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.34
$1.04 WST 2.81
21.15%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K MX$545.4K
-
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$427.6K
-
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$82.5 MX$1,467
$17.87 WST 48.08
361.56%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.29 MX$396
$17.82 WST 47.93
25.08%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.02 MX$534
$35.63 WST 95.9
-15.75%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 MX$915
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.29 MX$325
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$4.98 MX$88.7
-
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,558
-
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,304 MX$94.4K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.71 MX$635
$49.58 WST 133
-27.97%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.56 MX$704
$40.12 WST 108
-1.40%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.6 MX$1,433
$75.3 WST 203
6.99%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.3 MX$1,571
$101 WST 271
-12.21%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$969 MX$17.2K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,579
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,595 MX$28.4K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,184 MX$21.1K
$1,804 WST 4,854
-34.40%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,050 MX$72.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,522 MX$116.0K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Apia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$756 MX$13.5K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
0
-

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

Last update for Apia: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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