Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Bra

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,549 in Bra, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Bra
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Bra Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Bra

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,549 in Bra.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Bra $1,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,248 in Bra.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Bra $2,248

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,948 in Bra.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Bra $2,948

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 22% less than in Bra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Bra is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$22.77 €20.46

-52.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$39.40 €35.40

10.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$11.40 €10.24

3.33%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.74 €1.56

118.97%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$3.79 €3.40

-66.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$1.65 €1.49

-52.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$5.43 €4.88

-41.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$4.41 €3.96

11.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.58 €1.42

-10.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$2.58 €2.32

-13.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$2.66 €2.39

-46.62%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.21 €2.88

-21.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$12.98 €11.66

-44.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$11.54 €10.37

-33.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$19.11 €17.17

-33.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.27 €2.04

22.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$2.11 €1.89

-35.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.25 €2.02

13.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$3.34 €3.00

-36.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.71 €1.54

13.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.67 €1.50

13.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.14 €1.03

0.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.57 €0.52

107.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$6.68 €6.00

-35.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$6.10 €5.48

63.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.64 €1.47

-3.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$2.21 €1.99

20.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$1.63 €1.47

-66.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$46.35 €41.64

-42.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$8.04 €7.22

-38.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$2.27 €2.04

46.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$11.21 €10.07

-52.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$2.07 €1.86

-30.43%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$27.3K €24.5K

-24.37%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$29.5K €26.5K

-20.44%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$112 €101

-24.57%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$10.21 €9.17

129.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$28.26 €25.39

1.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$77.9 €70.0

-26.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$9.15 €8.22

-43.83%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$111 €100

85.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$19.0K €17.0K

-79.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$102 €91.3

-57.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$50.2 €45.06

-17.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$114 €102

-34.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$134 €121

-33.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$669 €601

46.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$441 €396

-13.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$562 €504

204.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$505 €453

113.07%

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

3.1

269.35%

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 Bra: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Bra

$441 28.5% 15.8% $60

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Bra

$314 20.2% 23.1% $59

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Bra

$295 19.1% 45.8% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Bra

$151 9.7% 10.3% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Bra

$180 11.6% 61.1% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Bra

$96 6.2% 42.9% $29

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Bra

$72 4.7% 43.3% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $669 in Bra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $39 in Bra. Groceries flip the comparison at $255 vs $314, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇹 Bra

🕒 Local time

17:12 5:12 PM

23:12 11:12 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

30,224

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

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

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Bra 8,790 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Bra

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 Bra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 22% lower than in Bra. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $2,323 in Bra 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 $669 in Bra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $111 in Bra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Bra. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,549 in Bra, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Bra. 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.