Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Chios

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,453 in Chios, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Chios
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Chios Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Chios

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,453 in Chios, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Chios $1,453

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,179 in Chios, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Chios $2,179

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,905 in Chios, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Chios $2,905

Playa del Carmen is about 17% cheaper than Chios, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Chios is 7% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$198

$13.73 €12.23

-22.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$813

$44.37 €39.53

-1.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$14.11 €12.57

-16.44%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.3

$3.72 €3.31

1.88%

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

$1.30 MX$24.07

$2.36 €2.10

-44.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.47

$0.97 €0.87

-14.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.4

$4.54 €4.04

-30.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.6

$4.42 €3.93

11.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.14

$1.61 €1.43

-12.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.75

$1.46 €1.30

50.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.33

$2.71 €2.41

-45.76%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.34

$4.52 €4.03

-44.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$135

$13.44 €11.97

-45.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$10.02 €8.93

-20.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$14.98 €13.34

-14.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.8

$2.22 €1.98

30.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.67

$2.06 €1.84

-33.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.23

$1.36 €1.21

83.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.67

$2.12 €1.89

-4.25%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.58

$1.18 €1.05

71.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.32

$1.09 €0.97

74.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.24

$1.08 €0.96

5.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$22.99

$0.80 €0.71

55.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.3

$5.21 €4.64

-18.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$182

$7.28 €6.48

34.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.43

$2.08 €1.86

-23.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.0

$2.50 €2.23

10.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.56

$1.40 €1.25

-63.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$508

$49.56 €44.15

-44.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.4

$4.24 €3.78

12.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.3

$1.09 €0.97

198.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$16.99 €15.13

-68.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.36

$2.07 €1.84

-26.09%

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

$21.2K MX$393.7K

$27.9K €24.9K

-23.97%

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

$23.3K MX$431.7K

$25.8K €22.9K

-9.66%

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

$83.5 MX$1,549

$201 €179

-58.47%

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

$23.19 MX$430

$22.65 €20.17

2.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$512

$30.64 €27.29

-9.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,047

$51.1 €45.54

10.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$523

$24.74 €22.04

13.95%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$92.8

$8.81 €7.85

-43.25%

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

$207 MX$3,843

$413 €368

-49.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.1K

$8,939 €7,963

-41.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$806

$90.1 €80.3

-51.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$789

$39.75 €35.41

7.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,350

$94.2 €83.9

-22.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,640

$124 €111

-28.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$487 €433

104.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,097

$382 €341

-0.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.1K

$745 €663

124.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$617 €549

75.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.5K

$2,496 €2,224

56.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$113.9K

$1,940 €1,728

216.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.48

155.58%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chios: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Chios

$382 26.3% 0% $0

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Chios

$284 19.6% 10.3% $27

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Chios

$242 16.6% 20.6% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Chios

$254 17.5% 89.4% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Chios

$157 10.8% 41% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Chios

$69 4.7% 3.5% $2.3

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Chios

$65 4.5% 28.6% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $487 in Chios. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $44 in Chios. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $284 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇷 Chios

🕒 Local time

00:45 12:45 AM

07:45 7:45 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

53,408

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.39 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.56 MXN (100 MXN = 5.39 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Chios 10,450 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Chios

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 Chios: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chios costs about 21% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,179 in Chios. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chios, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $487 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,453 in Chios. That makes Playa del Carmen about 17% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $413 in Chios. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,453 in Chios. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.