Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cachoeirinha

For one person, living is cheaper in Cachoeirinha: $823 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 Cachoeirinha
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Cachoeirinha Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Cachoeirinha

🇧🇷 Brazil

$823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $823 in Cachoeirinha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Cachoeirinha $823

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,288 in Cachoeirinha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Cachoeirinha $1,288

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,754 in Cachoeirinha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Cachoeirinha $1,754

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

Both Playa del Carmen and Cachoeirinha are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Cachoeirinha 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$4.13 R$22.69

158.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$18.91 R$104

131.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$4.11 R$22.53

186.86%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$1.99 R$10.95

90.45%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$0.57 R$3.15

128.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$0.41 R$2.23

102.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$1.68 R$9.25

87.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$2.71 R$14.89

81.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$0.97 R$5.30

45.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$1.62 R$8.87

35.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$1.03 R$5.66

42.72%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$2.28 R$12.53

9.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$9.61 R$52.8

-24.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$4.60 R$25.24

72.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$9.52 R$52.3

35.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$2.23 R$12.25

30.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$1.35 R$7.43

2.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$1.33 R$7.28

87.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$1.55 R$8.51

30.97%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$1.14 R$6.24

77.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.01 R$5.53

88.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$0.80 R$4.40

42.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$0.81 R$4.44

53.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$2.26 R$12.41

88.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$7.55 R$41.42

29.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$1.05 R$5.75

51.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$2.02 R$11.06

36.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$0.93 R$5.09

-45.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

$41.72 R$229

-34.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$1.23 R$6.74

286.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$0.76 R$4.17

327.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$7.66 R$42.05

-29.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$1.23 R$6.75

24.39%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$21.5K R$118.2K

-1.52%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$32.6K R$178.8K

-28.60%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$72.7 R$399

14.86%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$11.56 R$63.4

100.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$20.14 R$111

37.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$23.86 R$131

136.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

$26.13 R$143

7.88%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$6.60 R$36.23

-24.24%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$259 R$1,420

-19.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$6,775 R$37.2K

-22.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$47.24 R$259

-8.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$55.0 R$302

-22.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$95.8 R$525

-24.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$72.9 R$400

21.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$334 R$1,836

197.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$227 R$1,246

68.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$639 R$3,507

162.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$446 R$2,446

142.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

$1,580 R$8,670

147.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$1,162 R$6,375

428.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$594 R$3,259

40.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.5

-0.43%

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 Cachoeirinha: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Cachoeirinha

$227 27.6% 40.6% $155

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Cachoeirinha

$195 23.7% 24.4% $63

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Cachoeirinha

$87 10.6% 56.5% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Cachoeirinha

$104 12.7% 22.3% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Cachoeirinha

$122 14.8% 9.6% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Cachoeirinha

$37 4.5% 44.2% $29

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Cachoeirinha

$50 6.1% 0% $0

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $334 in Cachoeirinha. 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 40% 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $19 in Cachoeirinha. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $195 – making Cachoeirinha the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Cachoeirinha

🕒 Local time

01:15 1:15 AM

03:15 3:15 AM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

136,258

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.163 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 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.05 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.14 BRL (1 BRL = 0.163 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Cachoeirinha 6,820 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Cachoeirinha

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 Cachoeirinha: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, $823 in Cachoeirinha – Cachoeirinha comes out roughly 32% 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 $1,234 in Cachoeirinha. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cachoeirinha, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $334 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $259 in Cachoeirinha. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 32% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Cachoeirinha, where all-in costs run around $823, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Cachoeirinha 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 $823 in Cachoeirinha to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Cachoeirinha. 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.