Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Chiayi Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Chiayi

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 8.3% more expensive than Chiayi without rent, and 7.2% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 23% cheaper than Chiayi without rent, and 9.1% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$6.71 NT$198
78.69%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$40.76 NT$1,202
4.20%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$5.65 NT$167
85.31%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.23 NT$65.9
61.43%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$1.17 NT$34.42
23.08%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.75 NT$22.11
18.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$1.82 NT$53.6
69.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$3.07 NT$90.6
49.19%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$3.1 NT$91.5
-55.48%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.9 NT$56
-2.63%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$3.15 NT$93
-50.16%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.92 NT$86.1
-12.67%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$20.27 NT$598
-57.52%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$10.14 NT$299
-15.78%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$20.1 NT$593
-45.37%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$5.2 NT$153
-47.69%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$2.99 NT$88.2
-49.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$2.88 NT$84.9
-34.72%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$4.23 NT$125
-48.23%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$2.91 NT$85.9
-35.74%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$2.18 NT$64.4
0.46%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.97 NT$58.3
-45.69%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$1.34 NT$39.42
-18.66%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$4.04 NT$119
-1.98%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$4.97 NT$147
78.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.74 NT$51.4
-1.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.43 NT$71.7
7.41%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.87 NT$25.6
-40.23%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$39.56 NT$1,167
-32.79%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$2.81 NT$82.8
15.30%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$0.45 NT$13.25
428.89%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$10.21 NT$301
-69.54%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1 NT$29.5
31.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$38.7K NT$1.1M
-21.77%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$27.8K NT$819.1K
-13.58%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$72.1 NT$2,126
16.90%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$19.19 NT$566
15.37%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$25.18 NT$743
19.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$37.77 NT$1,114
37.62%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$14.96 NT$441
25.13%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$11.8 NT$348
-57.03%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$634 NT$18.7K
-68.40%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$19K NT$559.1K
-71.86%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$57.5 NT$1,696
-37.84%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$33 NT$973
20.61%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$93.9 NT$2,770
-15.89%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$120 NT$3,552
-26.62%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$431 NT$12.7K
123.76%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$287 NT$8,471
65.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$1,018 NT$30K
62.28%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$724 NT$21.3K
66.12%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$7,081 NT$208.9K
-56.48%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$5,144 NT$151.7K
46.37%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$2,224 NT$65.6K
-64.40%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
2.19
421.46%

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 Chiayi: October 28, 2025

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