Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Beppu

For one person, living is cheaper in Beppu: $979 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

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

Cost of Living Index in Beppu
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Beppu Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Beppu

🇯🇵 Japan

$979

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $979 in Beppu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Beppu $979

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,443 in Beppu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Beppu $1,443

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,907 in Beppu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Beppu $1,907

Playa del Carmen costs about 23% more than Beppu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Beppu are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Beppu 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$6.32 ¥999

71.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$23.30 ¥3,681

89.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$4.45 ¥703

164.27%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$3.03 ¥479

21.45%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$1.01 ¥160

32.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.77 ¥121

6.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$3.21 ¥507

-4.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$2.22 ¥351

122.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.45 ¥229

1.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.60 ¥253

38.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$4.42 ¥699

-66.52%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$1.53 ¥242

62.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$8.99 ¥1,421

-16.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$5.52 ¥871

44.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$9.95 ¥1,571

26.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$3.55 ¥561

-21.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.78 ¥281

-19.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$2.89 ¥457

-9.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$3.36 ¥531

-36.31%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$2.12 ¥335

-4.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$2.18 ¥345

-8.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.06 ¥168

7.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.94 ¥148

27.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$3.80 ¥600

12.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$6.42 ¥1,014

56.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.43 ¥225

7.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.74 ¥275

52.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$2.53 ¥400

-79.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$31.33 ¥4,949

-12.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$4.11 ¥650

19.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$2.30 ¥363

49.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$17.70 ¥2,797

-69.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.11 ¥175

30.63%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$11.3K ¥1.8M

87.58%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$15.2K ¥2.4M

51.71%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$149 ¥23.6K

-42.83%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$12.72 ¥2,010

84.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$28.21 ¥4,457

0.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$44.21 ¥6,985

40.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$3.10 ¥490

825.16%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$6.33 ¥1,000

-19.43%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$188 ¥29.8K

6.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$12.1K ¥1.9M

-67.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$27.92 ¥4,411

58.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$22.03 ¥3,481

87.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$66.0 ¥10.4K

10.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$38.27 ¥6,046

134.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$306 ¥48.3K

220.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$233 ¥36.7K

60.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$573 ¥90.5K

193.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$377 ¥59.6K

190.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$4,209 ¥665.0K

-6.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$1,559 ¥246.3K

293.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,360 ¥214.9K

-45.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

1.97

481.22%

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 Beppu: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Beppu

$233 23.8% 37.6% $140

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Beppu

$245 25% 5.1% $13

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Beppu

$128 13.1% 36.1% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Beppu

$190 19.4% 38.6% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Beppu

$69 7.1% 37.9% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Beppu

$57 5.8% 21.5% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Beppu

$57 5.8% 10.4% $5.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $306 in Beppu. 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 84% higher in Beppu, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $23.00 in Beppu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $245 – making Beppu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇯🇵 Beppu

🕒 Local time

22:52 10:52 PM

12:52 12:52 PM

14 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

115,321

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Beppu 12,760 km ≈ 16 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 Beppu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen costs about 23% more than Beppu, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,469 in Beppu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Beppu, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $979 in Beppu. That's a gap of about 23%.

Public transport costs about 14% less in Beppu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Beppu, where all-in costs run around $979, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Beppu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Beppu costs $979 versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Beppu. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.