Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Barra do Garças

For one person, living is cheaper in Barra do Garças: $824 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Barra do Garças
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Barra do Garças Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Barra do Garças

🇧🇷 Brazil

$824

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Barra do Garças

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 Barra do Garças actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $824 in Barra do Garças, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Barra do Garças $824

A couple spends around $2,081 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,314 in Barra do Garças, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,081
Barra do Garças $1,314

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,804 in Barra do Garças, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Barra do Garças $1,804

Playa del Carmen costs about 46% more than Barra do Garças, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Barra do Garças are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Barra do Garças 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$198

$5.61 R$30.51

90.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$813

$30.36 R$165

44.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.22 R$39.25

63.30%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.3

$1.92 R$10.45

97.40%

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

$1.30 MX$24.09

$1.25 R$6.78

4.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.48

$0.70 R$3.81

18.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.4

$1.89 R$10.28

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.6

$2.77 R$15.08

77.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.16

$0.94 R$5.13

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.77

$1.55 R$8.42

41.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.35

$1.16 R$6.32

26.72%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.37

$2.06 R$11.19

21.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$135

$8.57 R$46.59

-14.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.97 R$21.58

100.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.75 R$42.11

65.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.8

$2.11 R$11.49

37.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.69

$1.19 R$6.49

15.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.26

$1.09 R$5.91

128.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.70

$1.46 R$7.94

39.04%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.61

$1.16 R$6.33

74.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.35

$1.01 R$5.49

88.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.25

$0.76 R$4.11

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.01

$0.77 R$4.19

61.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.3

$2.39 R$12.99

78.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$182

$7.58 R$41.23

29.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.45

$1.19 R$6.45

33.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.0

$1.89 R$10.28

45.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.56

$0.98 R$5.34

-47.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$509

$41.66 R$226

-34.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.4

$1.18 R$6.40

303.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.3

$0.81 R$4.38

301.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$7.47 R$40.64

-27.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.38

$1.21 R$6.58

26.45%

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

$21.2K MX$393.9K

$22.3K R$121.2K

-4.82%

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

$23.3K MX$432.0K

$31.2K R$169.7K

-25.48%

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

$83.5 MX$1,550

$70.5 R$383

18.43%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$11.40 R$62.0

103.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$513

$19.54 R$106

41.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,048

$24.36 R$132

131.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$524

$26.29 R$143

7.23%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$92.9

$6.84 R$37.19

-26.90%

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

$207 MX$3,846

$263 R$1,428

-21.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.1K

$6,573 R$35.7K

-20.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$807

$51.9 R$282

-16.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$790

$46.47 R$253

-8.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,351

$82.9 R$451

-12.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,641

$67.4 R$366

31.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$337 R$1,834

194.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,102

$231 R$1,256

65.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.1K

$629 R$3,419

166.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$454 R$2,469

137.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.6K

$1,583 R$8,608

146.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.0K

$1,133 R$6,160

441.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.09%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barra do Garças: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Barra do Garças

$231 28% 39.6% $151

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Barra do Garças

$179 21.7% 30.6% $79

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Barra do Garças

$112 13.6% 43.9% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Barra do Garças

$101 12.3% 24.5% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Barra do Garças

$112 13.6% 0.6% $0.7

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Barra do Garças

$38 4.6% 42.7% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Barra do Garças

$51 6.2% 0.7% $0.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $337 in Barra do Garças. 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 $30 in Barra do Garças. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $179 – making Barra do Garças the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Barra do Garças

🕒 Local time

06:31 6:31 AM

07:31 7:31 AM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

69,210

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 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

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Barra do Garças 5,560 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Barra do Garças

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 Barra do Garças: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, $824 in Barra do Garças – Barra do Garças comes out roughly 31% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,236 in Barra do Garças. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Barra do Garças, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $337 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Public transport costs about 36% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $263 in Barra do Garças. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Barra do Garças, where all-in costs run around $824, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Barra do Garças 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 $824 in Barra do Garças to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.