Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Calbayog

For one person, living is cheaper in Calbayog: $739 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Calbayog
Learn more

Calbayog Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Calbayog

🇵🇭 Philippines

$739

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $739 in Calbayog, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Calbayog $739

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,112 in Calbayog, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Calbayog $1,112

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,486 in Calbayog, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Calbayog $1,486

Playa del Carmen costs about 63% more than Calbayog, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Calbayog are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Calbayog 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$3.94 ₱252

177.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$16.45 ₱1,053

163.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$2.49 ₱159

373.09%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$2.30 ₱147

65.65%

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

$1.28 MX$23.89

$0.57 ₱36.64

124.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.58

$0.30 ₱19.37

160.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.28 ₱82.1

147.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.9

$1.78 ₱114

176.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.20

$1.50 ₱95.8

-6.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.30

$1.17 ₱75.2

89.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.40

$0.91 ₱58.5

56.04%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.00

$2.08 ₱133

21.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$5.21 ₱333

39.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$3.80 ₱243

102.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$6.32 ₱404

100.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.52 ₱161

10.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.49

$1.46 ₱93.3

-6.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.52

$2.48 ₱158

2.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.55

$1.08 ₱69.2

96.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.11

$1.86 ₱119

4.30%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.13

$2.13 ₱136

-11.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.36

$1.13 ₱72.0

1.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.96

$0.57 ₱36.58

107.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.0

$2.85 ₱183

50.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$7.97 ₱510

24.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.50

$1.02 ₱65.3

54.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.76

$2.05 ₱131

30.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.26 ₱16.86

111.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$10.60 ₱678

151.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$0.78 ₱50.1

537.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.24 ₱15.29

1287.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$1.94 ₱124

176.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.90

$1.28 ₱81.7

12.50%

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

$20.7K MX$385.0K

$18.2K ₱1.2M

13.75%

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

$23.5K MX$437.2K

$16.3K ₱1.0M

44.19%

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

$84.8 MX$1,580

$135 ₱8,614

-37.01%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$14.04 ₱898

66.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$23.69 ₱1,516

20.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$30.92 ₱1,979

84.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$4.83 ₱309

498.55%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.7

$4.88 ₱312

5.33%

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

$207 MX$3,848

$126 ₱8,086

63.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$7,047 ₱451.0K

-44.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$30.57 ₱1,956

41.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$17.67 ₱1,131

134.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,382

$60.3 ₱3,857

23.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,663

$57.7 ₱3,694

54.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$284 ₱18.2K

244.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,095

$182 ₱11.6K

109.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$523 ₱33.5K

226.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$369 ₱23.6K

191.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,324 ₱148.7K

69.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.7K

$1,159 ₱74.2K

431.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$147 ₱9,436

398.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.92

65.46%

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 Calbayog: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Calbayog

$182 24.6% 52.2% $199

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Calbayog

$175 23.7% 31.2% $80

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Calbayog

$80 10.8% 60.4% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Calbayog

$172 23.3% 25.9% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Calbayog

$75 10.1% 33% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Calbayog

$41 5.5% 39.6% $27

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Calbayog

$14 1.9% 73% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $284 in Calbayog. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $16 in Calbayog. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $175 – making Calbayog the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 Calbayog

🕒 Local time

01:29 1:29 AM

14:29 2:29 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

183,851

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 PHP = 1.56 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 63.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.56 USD). 1 EUR = 71.24 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Calbayog 14,990 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Calbayog

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 Calbayog: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 63%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,108 in Calbayog. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Calbayog, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $284 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Groceries cost about 45% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $16 in Calbayog. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Calbayog, where all-in costs run around $739, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Calbayog it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Calbayog – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Calbayog. 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.