Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Catamarca

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Catamarca: $1,204 and $1,241 a month, rent and utilities included.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Catamarca
Learn more

Catamarca Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Catamarca

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,241

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,241 in Catamarca.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Catamarca $1,241

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,080 in Catamarca.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Catamarca $2,080

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,920 in Catamarca.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Catamarca $2,920

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 3% less than in Catamarca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Catamarca 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$16.82 ARS 25.9K

-35.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$63.6 ARS 97.9K

-31.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$11.26 ARS 17.3K

4.62%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$3.52 ARS 5,411

8.24%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$2.30 ARS 3,534

-44.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$1.97 ARS 3,038

-60.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$4.23 ARS 6,510

-25.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$3.50 ARS 5,391

40.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.21 ARS 1,859

16.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$2.07 ARS 3,183

7.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.96 ARS 3,012

-27.55%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.79 ARS 4,294

-9.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$13.21 ARS 20.3K

-45.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$8.42 ARS 12.9K

-8.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$10.69 ARS 16.4K

18.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.26 ARS 3,471

23.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.95 ARS 3,000

-29.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.38 ARS 2,124

84.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$2.30 ARS 3,542

-7.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.09 ARS 1,674

77.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.00 ARS 1,541

89.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$1.32 ARS 2,030

-10.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$3.18 ARS 4,889

35.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$5.58 ARS 8,583

78.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.90 ARS 2,920

-16.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$3.37 ARS 5,182

-20.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.90 ARS 1,384

-38.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.73 ARS 2,665

187.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.33 ARS 2,044

8.27%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$27.4K ARS 42.1M

-24.54%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$34.2K ARS 52.6M

-31.40%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$135 ARS 207.0K

-36.99%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$14.59 ARS 22.4K

60.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$25.50 ARS 39.2K

12.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$35.94 ARS 55.3K

58.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$17.93 ARS 27.6K

61.24%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$8.10 ARS 12.5K

-36.54%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$216 ARS 331.6K

-4.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$4,300 ARS 6.6M

-8.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$122 ARS 187.2K

-64.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$82.1 ARS 126.2K

-49.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$120 ARS 185.3K

-38.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$98.7 ARS 151.9K

-9.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$473 ARS 727.0K

107.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$309 ARS 474.9K

23.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,173 ARS 1.8M

45.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$749 ARS 1.2M

43.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$1,292 ARS 2.0M

376.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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 Catamarca: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Catamarca

$309 24.9% 18.9% $72

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Catamarca

$254 * 20.5% 0.3% $0.7

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Catamarca

$256 20.6% 26.4% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Catamarca

$175 14.1% 27.6% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Catamarca

$190 15.3% 70.4% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Catamarca

$52 4.2% 22.5% $15

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Catamarca

$5.3 * 0.4% 89.4% $45

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 $473 in Catamarca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $64 in Catamarca. Groceries flip the comparison at $255 vs $254, with Catamarca cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇷 Catamarca

🕒 Local time

12:48 12:48 PM

14:48 2:48 PM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

160,058

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,538 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,712 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Catamarca 5,920 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Catamarca

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 Catamarca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Catamarca. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $1,862 in Catamarca 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 $473 in Catamarca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $1,241 in Catamarca – a 3% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $64 in Catamarca. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Playa del Carmen gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.