Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Babahoyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Babahoyo: $797 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Babahoyo
Learn more

Babahoyo Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Babahoyo

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$797

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $797 in Babahoyo.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Babahoyo $797

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,299 in Babahoyo.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Babahoyo $1,299

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,801 in Babahoyo.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Babahoyo $1,801

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 51% more expensive than in Babahoyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Babahoyo 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$3.35 $3.35

225.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$37.80 $37.80

14.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$6.68 $6.68

76.35%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$2.87 $2.87

32.75%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.83 $0.83

54.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.82 $0.82

-4.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$2.83 $2.83

12.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$3.49 $3.49

41.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.06 $1.06

33.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.72 $1.72

29.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.55 $1.55

-8.39%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$1.94 $1.94

29.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$6.64 $6.64

9.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$4.80 $4.80

60.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$7.27 $7.27

74.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.14 $2.14

29.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.13 $1.13

21.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.37 $1.37

86.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.08 $1.08

96.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.40 $1.40

38.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.10 $1.10

71.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$0.78 $0.78

47.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$1.02 $1.02

15.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$5.82 $5.82

-26.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$7.38 $7.38

34.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.38 $1.38

14.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$2.85 $2.85

-6.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.30 $0.30

83.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.52 $1.52

226.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$1.12 $1.12

197.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$10.45 $10.45

-48.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$0.72 $0.72

100.00%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$22.7K $22.7K

-9.10%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$34.1K $34.1K

-31.29%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$33.73 $33.73

151.38%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$12.14 $12.14

92.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$26.59 $26.59

7.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$29.18 $29.18

95.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$16.29 $16.29

77.47%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$7.88 $7.88

-34.77%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$299 $299

-30.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$5,114 $5,114

-23.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$60.4 $60.4

-28.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$50.1 $50.1

-17.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$93.3 $93.3

-20.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$67.1 $67.1

33.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$395 $395

147.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$256 $256

49.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$772 $772

121.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$504 $504

113.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

10.09

13.48%

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 Babahoyo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Babahoyo

$256 32.1% 32.9% $125

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Babahoyo

$185 23.2% 27.4% $70

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Babahoyo

$109 13.7% 46.1% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Babahoyo

$72 9.1% 47% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Babahoyo

$122 15.3% 9.1% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Babahoyo

$45 5.6% 33.2% $22

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Babahoyo

$8.3 * 1% 83.5% $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 $980 in Playa del Carmen and $395 in Babahoyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $38 in Babahoyo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $185 per month, with Babahoyo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇪🇨 Babahoyo

🕒 Local time

18:13 6:13 PM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

84,164

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Babahoyo 2,630 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Babahoyo

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 Babahoyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Babahoyo wins on cost – living expenses run 34% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Babahoyo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $1,196 in Babahoyo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $395 in Babahoyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $299 in Babahoyo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Babahoyo – a meal for two runs $38 versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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.