Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cabarete

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Cabarete: $1,204 and $1,191 a month, rent and utilities included.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Cabarete
Learn more

Cabarete Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Cabarete

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,191

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,191 in Cabarete.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Cabarete $1,191

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,800 in Cabarete.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Cabarete $1,800

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,409 in Cabarete.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Cabarete $2,409

Monthly costs are close between Playa del Carmen and Cabarete; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$7.60 DOP 459

43.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$50.1 DOP 3,024

-13.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$6.53 DOP 394

80.40%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$2.01 DOP 121

89.55%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$1.06 DOP 63.8

20.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.58 DOP 34.95

34.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.39 DOP 145

32.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$3.15 DOP 190

56.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.40 DOP 84.8

0.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$1.52 DOP 91.6

46.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$1.62 DOP 97.7

-12.35%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.30 DOP 139

9.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$7.10 DOP 429

2.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$5.34 DOP 323

44.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$6.72 DOP 406

88.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$2.91 DOP 176

-4.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$0.79 DOP 47.72

73.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$2.70 DOP 163

-5.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.84 DOP 111

15.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$2.04 DOP 123

-4.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$2.22 DOP 134

-14.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.97 DOP 58.7

18.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.85 DOP 51.6

38.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$4.10 DOP 248

4.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$10.24 DOP 619

-2.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$2.56 DOP 155

-38.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.42 DOP 146

10.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$1.03 DOP 62.2

-46.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$3.30 DOP 200

50.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$2.24 DOP 135

48.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$5.67 DOP 343

-5.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.22 DOP 73.9

18.03%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$26.8K DOP 1.6M

-22.94%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$33.6K DOP 2.0M

-30.19%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$90.2 DOP 5,451

-6.01%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$31.17 DOP 1,883

-24.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$36.44 DOP 2,202

-21.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$24.37 DOP 1,472

134.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$7.29 DOP 440

-29.49%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$246 DOP 14.9K

-16.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$7,266 DOP 439.0K

-45.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$45.08 DOP 2,724

-3.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$45.53 DOP 2,751

-8.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$86.5 DOP 5,225

-14.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$123 DOP 7,402

-27.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$713 DOP 43.1K

37.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$497 DOP 30.0K

-23.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$1,219 DOP 73.7K

40.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$809 DOP 48.8K

32.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$293 DOP 17.7K

2001.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

13.56

-15.56%

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 Cabarete: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Cabarete

$497 41.7% 30.5% $116

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Cabarete

$215 18.1% 15.5% $40

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Cabarete

$129 10.9% 36.1% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Cabarete

$158 13.3% 15.3% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Cabarete

$135 11.3% 20.7% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Cabarete

$39 3.3% 42.1% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Cabarete

$19 * 1.6% 63.2% $32

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 $713 in Cabarete. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $50 in Cabarete. Groceries flip the comparison at $255 vs $215, with Cabarete cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇩🇴 Cabarete

🕒 Local time

07:32 7:32 AM

08:32 8:32 AM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

4,094

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 DOP = 1.66 USD

100 DOP = 1.48 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DOP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 60.42 DOP (100 DOP = 1.66 USD). 1 EUR = 67.46 DOP (100 DOP = 1.48 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Cabarete 1,740 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Cabarete

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 Cabarete: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $1,787 in Cabarete 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 $713 in Cabarete. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $50 in Cabarete. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cabarete is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cabarete delivers better value at $1,191 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cabarete hard to pass up.