Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Balti

For one person, living is cheaper in Balti: $974 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Balti
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Balti Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Balti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$974

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $974 in Balti, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Balti $974

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,414 in Balti, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Balti $1,414

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,854 in Balti, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Balti $1,854

Playa del Carmen costs about 24% more than Balti, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Balti are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Balti 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$8.51 MDL 152

28.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$22.53 MDL 403

92.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$10.35 MDL 185

13.82%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.74 MDL 31.14

118.97%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$1.06 MDL 19.00

20.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.65 MDL 11.70

20.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.12 MDL 20.09

183.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$1.38 MDL 24.61

257.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.20 MDL 21.54

17.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$0.45 MDL 8.03

393.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.54 MDL 27.47

-7.79%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.15 MDL 38.48

17.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$6.78 MDL 121

7.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$4.70 MDL 84.1

63.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$6.18 MDL 111

105.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$0.99 MDL 17.68

180.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$2.29 MDL 41.03

-40.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.88 MDL 33.65

35.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$2.29 MDL 40.87

-7.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$0.71 MDL 12.77

173.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$0.52 MDL 9.21

263.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$0.43 MDL 7.71

167.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.54 MDL 9.73

118.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$3.27 MDL 58.5

31.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$4.34 MDL 77.6

129.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.35 MDL 24.21

17.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$1.99 MDL 35.67

34.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.34 MDL 6.15

61.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$16.78 MDL 300

58.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$2.76 MDL 49.41

80.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.24 MDL 4.25

1287.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$5.45 MDL 97.4

-1.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.62 MDL 29.00

-11.11%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$33.4K MDL 597.1K

-38.12%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$24.1K MDL 430.5K

-2.54%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$220 MDL 3,942

-61.54%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$7.74 MDL 138

202.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$11.03 MDL 197

159.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$36.85 MDL 659

54.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$15.34 MDL 274

88.46%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$7.61 MDL 136

-32.46%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$113 MDL 2,012

83.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$5,113 MDL 91.4K

-23.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$44.39 MDL 794

-2.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$33.84 MDL 605

22.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$55.6 MDL 994

33.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$50.9 MDL 910

75.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$397 MDL 7,093

146.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$280 MDL 5,004

36.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$657 MDL 11.7K

159.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$495 MDL 8,859

116.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$1,399 MDL 25.0K

181.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$992 MDL 17.7K

520.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$606 MDL 10.8K

21.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

43.12%

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 Balti: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Balti

$280 28.7% 26.5% $101

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Balti

$162 16.7% 36.3% $93

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Balti

$135 13.9% 33.1% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Balti

$239 24.6% 74.8% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Balti

$83 8.5% 25.6% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Balti

$52 5.4% 22.7% $15

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Balti

$22 2.3% 56.2% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $397 in Balti. 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 21% 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 $23 in Balti. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $162 – making Balti the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇩 Balti

🕒 Local time

16:21 4:21 PM

23:21 11:21 PM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

144,800

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 MDL = 5.59 USD

100 MDL = 5.02 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, 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).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 17.88 MDL (100 MDL = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 19.9 MDL (100 MDL = 5.02 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Balti 10,040 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Balti

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 Balti: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $974 in Balti – Balti comes out roughly 19% 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 $1,461 in Balti. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Balti, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $113 in Balti. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 57% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Balti, where all-in costs run around $974, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Balti it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Balti – 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 Balti. 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.