Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Castries

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,438 in Castries, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Castries
Learn more

Castries Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Castries

🇱🇨 Saint Lucia

$1,438

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,438 in Castries, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Castries $1,438

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,357 in Castries, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Castries $2,357

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,276 in Castries, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Castries $3,276

Playa del Carmen is about 16% cheaper than Castries, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Castries is 6% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$9.45 EC$25.52

14.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$73.8 EC$199

-40.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$8.56 EC$23.12

37.38%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$3.81 EC$10.29

-3.41%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$1.98 EC$5.34

-32.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.98 EC$2.65

-16.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$2.81 EC$7.58

8.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$3.24 EC$8.75

52.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$2.03 EC$5.48

-27.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.81 EC$4.88

22.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.65 EC$4.46

-10.30%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$4.74 EC$12.81

-47.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$11.00 EC$29.69

-31.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$9.06 EC$24.46

-12.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$14.50 EC$39.15

-13.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$8.79 EC$23.73

-68.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.61 EC$4.34

-11.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$8.28 EC$22.36

-68.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$14.53 EC$39.22

-85.27%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$3.45 EC$9.31

-41.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$1.99 EC$5.37

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$2.28 EC$6.16

-50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$1.28 EC$3.47

-6.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$9.17 EC$24.77

-53.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$10.99 EC$29.66

-8.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$2.21 EC$5.97

-30.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$5.40 EC$14.57

-50.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$1.08 EC$2.93

-50.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$9.47 EC$25.57

-48.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.56 EC$4.21

-7.05%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$26.0K EC$70.1K

-18.53%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$37.1K EC$100.2K

-37.99%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$121 EC$327

-29.50%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$87.8 EC$237

-73.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$49.26 EC$133

-42.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$41.19 EC$111

50.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$5.67 EC$15.30

-10.05%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$214 EC$579

-6.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$82.1 EC$222

-45.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$50.8 EC$137

-18.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$109 EC$294

-33.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$112 EC$301

-19.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$449 EC$1,212

118.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$347 EC$937

7.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$1,222 EC$3,300

37.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$707 EC$1,910

54.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$102 EC$274

3788.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$64.5 EC$174

9415.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,093 EC$2,952

-32.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

7.75

47.74%

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 Castries: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Castries

$347 24.2% 6.9% $26

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Castries

$428 29.7% 65.5% $169

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Castries

$179 12.5% 10.4% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Castries

$258 18% 88.1% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Castries

$159 11.1% 42.4% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Castries

$53 3.7% 27.5% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Castries

$14 * 1% 73.3% $38

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $449 in Castries. 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 48% higher in Castries, 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 $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $74.0 in Castries. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $428 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇨 Castries

🕒 Local time

00:07 12:07 AM

01:07 1:07 AM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

22,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

East Caribbean Dollar XCD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 XCD = 0.37 USD

1 XCD = 0.329 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XCD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

East Caribbean Dollar exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 2.7 XCD (1 XCD = 0.37 USD). 1 EUR = 3.04 XCD (1 XCD = 0.329 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Castries 2,860 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Castries

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 Castries: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Castries costs about 19% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,157 in Castries. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,438 in Castries. That's a gap of about 19%.

Kindergarten costs $201 per month in Playa del Carmen and $214 in Castries. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Castries at $1,438. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Castries it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $1,438 in Castries. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Castries makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.