Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cha-am Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cha-am

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 63.2% more expensive than Cha-am without rent, and 33.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 34.2% more expensive than Cha-am without rent, and 60.8% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$3.13 ฿101
283.07%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$21.82 ฿706
94.64%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$8.82 ฿285
18.71%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.09 ฿67.6
72.25%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$0.64 ฿20.57
125.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.41 ฿13.3
117.07%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$2.44 ฿79.1
26.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$3.59 ฿116
27.58%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.7 ฿54.9
-18.82%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.4 ฿45.41
32.14%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.26 ฿40.93
24.60%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$1.83 ฿59.4
39.34%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$13.23 ฿428
-34.92%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$3.33 ฿108
156.46%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$11 ฿356
-0.18%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$3.15 ฿102
-13.65%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$1.3 ฿42.06
16.15%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.81 ฿58.5
3.87%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.58 ฿51
38.61%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.67 ฿54.1
11.98%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.25 ฿40.46
75.20%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.22 ฿39.32
-12.30%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.46 ฿14.82
136.96%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$4.55 ฿147
-12.97%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$18.31 ฿592
-51.61%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.8 ฿58.4
-4.44%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$3.49 ฿113
-25.21%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.93 ฿30.22
-44.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$1.11 ฿35.82
191.89%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$0.75 ฿24.36
217.33%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$3.32 ฿107
-6.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.32 ฿42.75
-0.76%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$20.3K ฿656.8K
49.34%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$20.8K ฿674.4K
15.13%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$72.8 ฿2,355
15.75%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$13.19 ฿427
67.85%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$18.33 ฿593
64.43%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$24.36 ฿788
113.38%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$11.97 ฿387
56.39%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$7.62 ฿247
-33.46%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$139 ฿4,512
43.65%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$9,390 ฿303.9K
-43.21%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$30.23 ฿978
18.23%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$19.73 ฿638
101.72%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$60.9 ฿1,971
29.67%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$43.79 ฿1,417
101.80%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$468 ฿15.2K
106.21%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$375 ฿12.1K
26.46%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$758 ฿24.5K
118.01%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$668 ฿21.6K
79.89%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$2,477 ฿80.2K
24.38%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$1,976 ฿63.9K
281.12%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Cha-am
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$377 ฿12.2K
110.28%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
5.45
109.54%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Cha-am: October 29, 2025

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