Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Carrefour

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,801 in Carrefour, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Carrefour
🇭🇹 Haiti
$1,801
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,801 in Carrefour.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Carrefour $1,801

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,698 in Carrefour.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,102
  • Carrefour $2,698

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,595 in Carrefour.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,000
  • Carrefour $3,595

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 33% less than in Carrefour, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Carrefour is 33% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.86 MX$201
$14.82 HTG 1,930
-26.72%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.21 MX$817
$91.5 HTG 11.9K
-51.70%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.76 MX$217
$6.93 HTG 902
69.70%
Cappuccino
$3.68 MX$68.0
$1.68 HTG 218
119.05%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.34 MX$24.79
$1.52 HTG 198
-11.84%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 MX$15.24
$1.49 HTG 194
-44.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.06 MX$56.6
$5.12 HTG 666
-40.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.94 MX$91.2
$7.19 HTG 937
-31.29%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$1.54 HTG 201
-4.55%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$40.95
$2.34 HTG 305
-5.13%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$27.32
$3.14 HTG 408
-52.87%
Eggs
$2.49 MX$45.99
$2.72 HTG 354
-8.46%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.52 MX$139
$7.83 HTG 1,020
-3.96%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.96 MX$147
$5.93 HTG 773
34.23%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.57 MX$232
$11.94 HTG 1,555
5.28%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.3
$1.81 HTG 235
53.59%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$26.37
$2.46 HTG 320
-41.87%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.62 MX$48.37
$0.96 HTG 126
172.92%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.49
$2.35 HTG 306
-8.94%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.38
$6.02 HTG 784
-66.45%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 MX$36.74
$0.97 HTG 127
105.15%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.01
$0.68 HTG 89.0
67.65%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 MX$22.18
$0.99 HTG 129
21.21%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 MX$78.7
$3.95 HTG 514
7.85%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.02 MX$185
$11.56 HTG 1,506
-13.32%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.41
$0.92 HTG 120
67.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.66 MX$49.17
$1.54 HTG 201
72.73%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.73
$0.18 HTG 23.95
194.44%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.51 MX$508
$19.93 HTG 2,596
38.03%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.90 MX$90.6
$0.36 HTG 47.27
1261.11%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.43 MX$63.5
$0.42 HTG 54.3
716.67%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.38 MX$99.4
$20.16 HTG 2,626
-73.31%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$26.76
$1.29 HTG 168
12.40%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$391.0K
$40.5K HTG 5.3M
-47.73%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.0K MX$425.3K
$44.5K HTG 5.8M
-48.33%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$85.4 MX$1,577
$100 HTG 13.0K
-14.81%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.46 MX$434
$50.3 HTG 6,556
-53.40%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.43 MX$525
$163 HTG 21.2K
-82.52%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.2 MX$1,149
$69.5 HTG 9,046
-10.45%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.68 MX$530
$19.74 HTG 2,571
45.29%
Cinema Ticket
$5.10 MX$94.3
$10.13 HTG 1,319
-49.65%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,715
$101 HTG 13.1K
99.57%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,947 MX$72.9K
$7,117 HTG 926.9K
-44.54%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.39 MX$820
$80.2 HTG 10.4K
-44.66%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.35 MX$764
$74.8 HTG 9,736
-44.68%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.7 MX$1,344
$118 HTG 15.4K
-38.37%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.6 MX$1,656
$153 HTG 19.9K
-41.27%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$979 MX$18.1K
$868 HTG 113.1K
12.80%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$373 MX$6,887
$716 HTG 93.3K
-47.96%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,681 MX$31.1K
$1,278 HTG 166.4K
31.57%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,095 MX$20.2K
$1,084 HTG 141.2K
1.01%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,949 MX$73.0K
$765 HTG 99.7K
415.87%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,137 MX$113.4K
$604 HTG 78.7K
915.23%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Carrefour
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$738 MX$13.6K
$1,402 HTG 182.5K
-47.38%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
15
-23.67%

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 Carrefour: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$373
Carrefour
$716 92.1% $343
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Carrefour
$256 0.9% $2.3
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Carrefour
$211 5.6% $11
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Carrefour
$313 128% $176
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Carrefour
$192 71.5% $80
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$72
Carrefour
$90 23.9% $17
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Carrefour
$23 55.3% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $868 in Carrefour. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Carrefour pays 90% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $92.0 in Carrefour. Groceries flip the comparison at $258 vs $256, with Carrefour cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇭🇹 Carrefour
🕒 Local time
13:01 1:01 PM
14:01 2:01 PM
1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
511,345
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

HTG, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Haitian Gourde exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 130 HTG (1,000 HTG = 7.68 USD). 1 EUR = 146 HTG (1,000 HTG = 6.83 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Carrefour 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Carrefour

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 Carrefour: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Playa del Carmen and in Carrefour?
Playa del Carmen and Carrefour differ by about 50% in total monthly costs ($1,204 vs $1,801 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 90% lower in Carrefour. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Playa del Carmen and in Carrefour?
Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $868 in Carrefour. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Playa del Carmen and Carrefour?
Childcare runs $201 in Playa del Carmen versus $101 in Carrefour. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Shoppers in Carrefour pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,801 in Carrefour, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Carrefour. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Playa del Carmen and Carrefour?
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.
Where should expats move: Playa del Carmen or Carrefour?
Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Carrefour. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?