Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Aruba

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,350 in Aruba, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Aruba outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
141

Cost of Living Index in Aruba
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Aruba Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Aruba

🇦🇼 Aruba

$2,350

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,350 in Aruba.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Aruba $2,350

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,243 in Aruba.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Aruba $4,243

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $6,135 in Aruba.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Aruba $6,135

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 49% less than in Aruba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Aruba is 73% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$14.68 AWG 26.27

-26.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$90.1 AWG 161

-50.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$10.54 AWG 18.87

11.57%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$5.26 AWG 9.42

-30.04%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$2.42 AWG 4.34

-44.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$2.19 AWG 3.93

-62.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$5.24 AWG 9.37

-41.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$7.09 AWG 12.69

-30.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.64 AWG 2.94

-10.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$2.84 AWG 5.09

-21.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$2.96 AWG 5.29

-50.00%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$3.72 AWG 6.66

-33.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$14.23 AWG 25.47

-47.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$4.19 AWG 7.50

89.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$2.03 AWG 3.63

-29.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$2.54 AWG 4.54

-79.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$2.47 AWG 4.42

-41.30%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$239 AWG 428

-64.28%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$132 AWG 237

-82.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$84.7 AWG 151

-66.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

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

$201 MX$3,715

$298 AWG 533

-32.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$17.8K AWG 31.8K

-77.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$66.1 AWG 118

-37.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$120 AWG 215

-39.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$656 AWG 1,174

49.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$1,382 AWG 2,472

-73.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$3,142 AWG 5,623

-46.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$3,992 AWG 7,145

-72.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,873 AWG 3,352

-60.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Aruba: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Aruba

$1.4K 58.8% 271% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Aruba

$147 * 6.3% 43% $111

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Aruba

$271 11.5% 35.4% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Aruba

$456 19.4% 232% $319

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Aruba

$84 * 3.6% 24.9% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Aruba

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Aruba

$10 * 0.4% 80.4% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $656 in Aruba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aruba pays 154% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $90.0 in Aruba. Groceries flip the comparison at $258 vs $147, with Aruba cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇼 Aruba

🕒 Local time

06:40 6:40 AM

07:40 7:40 AM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

15,236

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Aruban Florin AWG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 AWG = 0.559 USD

1 AWG = 0.497 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AWG, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Aruban Florin exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 AWG (1 AWG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 AWG (1 AWG = 0.497 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Aruba 2,030 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

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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 Aruba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen and Aruba differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($1,204 vs $2,350 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 154% lower in Aruba. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $656 in Aruba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Aruba pay roughly 75% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $2,350 in Aruba – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,350 in Aruba, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Aruba. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Playa del Carmen and Aruba are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Aruba. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.