Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Arapiraca

For one person, living is cheaper in Arapiraca: $883 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Arapiraca
Learn more

Arapiraca Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Arapiraca

🇧🇷 Brazil

$883

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $883 in Arapiraca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Arapiraca $883

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,384 in Arapiraca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Arapiraca $1,384

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,885 in Arapiraca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Arapiraca $1,885

Playa del Carmen costs about 36% more than Arapiraca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Arapiraca are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Arapiraca 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$5.24 R$28.50

108.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$805

$35.66 R$194

21.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$9.47 R$51.5

24.39%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.7

$2.43 R$13.23

56.79%

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

$1.28 MX$23.81

$1.02 R$5.54

25.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.54

$0.60 R$3.26

30.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$58.8

$1.52 R$8.24

108.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.7

$3.02 R$16.41

63.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.12

$1.35 R$7.33

4.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.17

$1.50 R$8.14

48.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.32

$1.54 R$8.36

-7.79%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.85

$1.75 R$9.50

44.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$6.70 R$36.41

8.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$4.11 R$22.36

87.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$7.36 R$40.00

72.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.7

$1.33 R$7.23

109.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.41

$1.24 R$6.75

10.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.37

$0.74 R$4.01

244.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$1.19 R$6.48

78.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.00

$1.33 R$7.24

45.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.02

$1.00 R$5.43

89.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.29

$0.45 R$2.43

155.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.89

$0.83 R$4.50

42.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$79.8

$1.65 R$8.98

160.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$7.55 R$41.07

31.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.41

$1.09 R$5.93

44.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.60

$1.47 R$7.98

81.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.28

$0.82 R$4.46

-32.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$494

$43.60 R$237

-38.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.3

$1.14 R$6.18

335.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$61.9

$0.73 R$3.95

356.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.5

$3.19 R$17.35

68.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.82

$1.26 R$6.83

14.29%

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

$20.7K MX$383.8K

$21.8K R$118.6K

-5.31%

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

$23.5K MX$435.8K

$31.9K R$173.4K

-26.42%

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

$84.8 MX$1,575

$109 R$593

-22.20%

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

$23.41 MX$435

$12.43 R$67.6

88.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$532

$16.63 R$90.4

72.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,059

$23.87 R$130

139.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

$21.95 R$119

31.71%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.4

$6.64 R$36.08

-22.59%

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

$207 MX$3,836

$257 R$1,396

-19.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$72.9K

$11.0K R$59.6K

-64.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$805

$42.31 R$230

2.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$770

$47.42 R$258

-12.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,378

$70.5 R$383

5.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,657

$76.1 R$414

17.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$293 R$1,592

234.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,072

$262 R$1,425

45.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.7K

$636 R$3,457

168.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$499 R$2,715

115.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.2K

$1,800 R$9,788

118.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.4K

$1,158 R$6,293

431.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.75

-2.55%

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 Arapiraca: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Arapiraca

$262 29.7% 31.2% $119

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Arapiraca

$169 19.1% 33.8% $86

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Arapiraca

$120 13.5% 40.9% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Arapiraca

$138 15.6% 0.9% $1.2

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Arapiraca

$106 12% 4.8% $5.4

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Arapiraca

$37 4.2% 44.8% $30

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Arapiraca

$52 5.9% 2.4% $1.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $293 in Arapiraca. 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $36 in Arapiraca. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $169 – making Arapiraca the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Arapiraca

🕒 Local time

23:49 11:49 PM

01:49 1:49 AM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

234,696

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.09 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Arapiraca 6,460 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Arapiraca

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 Arapiraca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $883 in Arapiraca – Arapiraca comes out roughly 27% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,325 in Arapiraca. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arapiraca, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $293 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $257 in Arapiraca. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 51% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Arapiraca, where all-in costs run around $883, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Arapiraca it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen 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 $883 in Arapiraca to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.