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 19.1% cheaper than Chiayi without rent, and 9.5% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 0.5% more expensive than Chiayi without rent, and 12.1% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.85 MX$212
$6.91 NT$220
71.49%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.16 MX$755
$40.01 NT$1,275
5.37%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.75 MX$192
$5.82 NT$186
84.71%
Cappuccino
$3.47 MX$62.2
$2.18 NT$69.5
59.17%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$26.01
$1.13 NT$36.02
28.32%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$16.16
$0.75 NT$23.80
20.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.05 MX$54.7
$1.83 NT$58.4
66.67%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 MX$79.1
$3.13 NT$99.9
41.21%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 MX$24.51
$3.09 NT$98.6
-55.66%
White Bread (500g)
$1.87 MX$33.51
$1.92 NT$61.1
-2.60%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 MX$27.63
$3.02 NT$96.3
-49.01%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$44.81
$2.94 NT$93.8
-14.97%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$154
$19.78 NT$630
-56.47%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.63 MX$155
$10.11 NT$322
-14.64%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.02 MX$197
$20.59 NT$656
-46.48%
Apples (1kg)
$2.75 MX$49.22
$5.10 NT$163
-46.08%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$25.56
$2.84 NT$90.6
-49.65%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.87 MX$33.52
$2.84 NT$90.6
-34.15%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MX$38.80
$4.13 NT$132
-47.46%
Potato (1kg)
$1.88 MX$33.70
$2.90 NT$92.3
-35.17%
Onion (1kg)
$2.25 MX$40.21
$2.27 NT$72.4
-0.88%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$19.11
$1.89 NT$60.3
-43.39%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.07 MX$19.22
$1.37 NT$43.55
-21.90%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.15 MX$74.4
$4.00 NT$127
3.75%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.34 MX$185
$4.63 NT$148
123.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 MX$30.06
$1.74 NT$55.5
-3.45%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 MX$44.46
$2.33 NT$74.2
6.44%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$9.93
$0.87 NT$27.67
-36.78%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.53 MX$475
$38.82 NT$1,237
-31.66%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.22 MX$57.6
$2.89 NT$92.1
11.42%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.48 MX$44.42
$0.45 NT$14.25
451.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$55.7
$10.09 NT$322
-69.18%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.48
$1.03 NT$32.98
22.33%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K MX$548.8K
$38.2K NT$1.2M
-19.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$430.3K
$27.1K NT$863.0K
-11.23%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$82.5 MX$1,476
$71.2 NT$2,268
15.91%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.29 MX$399
$19.10 NT$609
16.70%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.02 MX$537
$25.46 NT$811
17.91%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 MX$921
$37.59 NT$1,198
36.84%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.29 MX$327
$15.41 NT$491
18.69%
Cinema Ticket
$4.98 MX$89.2
$11.87 NT$378
-58.05%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,580
$638 NT$20.3K
-68.66%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,304 MX$94.9K
$19.1K NT$607.7K
-72.18%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.71 MX$639
$59.6 NT$1,899
-40.08%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.56 MX$708
$33.03 NT$1,053
19.77%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.6 MX$1,442
$92.8 NT$2,958
-13.21%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.3 MX$1,581
$121 NT$3,848
-26.85%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$969 MX$17.4K
$428 NT$13.7K
126.29%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,632
$284 NT$9,055
69.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,595 MX$28.6K
$1,056 NT$33.6K
51.10%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,184 MX$21.2K
$715 NT$22.8K
65.60%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,050 MX$72.5K
$7,074 NT$225.5K
-42.75%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,522 MX$116.7K
$5,349 NT$170.5K
21.93%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Chiayi
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$756 MX$13.5K
$2,103 NT$67.0K
-64.04%
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: March 3, 2026

Last update for Chiayi: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities