Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cinque Terre

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,089 in Cinque Terre, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Cinque Terre, Italy
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Cinque Terre
🇮🇹 Italy
$2,089
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Cinque Terre

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,089 in Cinque Terre, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Cinque Terre $2,089

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,099 in Cinque Terre, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Cinque Terre $3,099

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,108 in Cinque Terre, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Cinque Terre $4,108

Playa del Carmen is about 42% cheaper than Cinque Terre, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Cinque Terre is 54% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$205
$22.47 €20.04
-51.40%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$813
$85.3 €76.1
-49.16%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$221
$12.19 €10.88
-3.36%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$71.4
$2.61 €2.32
45.98%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$24.03
$3.43 €3.06
-62.68%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.67
$1.67 €1.49
-53.29%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$59.3
$6.85 €6.11
-53.72%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$92.5
$6.79 €6.06
-27.39%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.35
$2.01 €1.79
-29.85%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.54
$3.27 €2.92
-32.11%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.56
$3.09 €2.76
-54.05%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$47.27
$4.52 €4.03
-44.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$136
$23.43 €20.91
-69.01%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$144
$12.82 €11.43
-39.94%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$238
$22.88 €20.41
-44.54%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$52.2
$2.86 €2.55
-2.80%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.64
$2.30 €2.05
-40.43%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.80
$2.54 €2.26
0.39%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.78
$3.70 €3.30
-42.70%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.32
$2.23 €1.99
-13.00%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$35.34
$2.09 €1.86
-9.57%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.49
$1.64 €1.46
-29.88%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$22.09
$0.59 €0.53
100.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$80.5
$6.98 €6.22
-38.40%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$186
$8.75 €7.81
13.71%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.67
$2.45 €2.18
-35.51%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$50.1
$2.38 €2.13
12.18%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.37
$1.54 €1.37
-64.29%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$499
$41.45 €36.98
-35.78%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$93.1
$9.46 €8.44
-47.46%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$62.4
$1.55 €1.38
114.84%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$100
$31.01 €27.67
-82.72%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$27.06
$2.09 €1.87
-31.10%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$387.3K
$36.3K €32.4K
-43.13%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$439.7K
$38.4K €34.2K
-38.84%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,589
$327 €292
-74.09%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$439
$14.22 €12.69
64.63%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$537
$30.24 €26.98
-5.22%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,069
$59.5 €53.1
-4.15%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$542
$22.57 €20.14
28.09%
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$96.3
$15.45 €13.78
-66.73%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,871
$897 €800
-76.97%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$73.6K
$10.0K €8,965
-60.92%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$812
$122 €109
-64.41%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$777
$46.11 €41.14
-10.13%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,390
$115 €103
-35.70%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,672
$165 €148
-46.06%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.4K
$832 €743
17.69%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,136
$643 €573
-40.75%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$32.0K
$1,073 €957
59.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$20.1K
$923 €823
16.52%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$73.9K
$2,558 €2,283
54.11%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$115.4K
$2,176 €1,942
182.95%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Cinque Terre
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.8K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
3.47
229.97%

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 Cinque Terre: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Cinque Terre
$643 68.8% $262
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Cinque Terre
$402 57.8% $147
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Cinque Terre
$316 56.1% $113
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Cinque Terre
$372 172% $235
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Cinque Terre
$202 80.8% $90
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Cinque Terre
$90 34.3% $23
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Cinque Terre
$65 28.5% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $832 in Cinque Terre. 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $85 in Cinque Terre. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $402 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇮🇹 Cinque Terre
🕒 Local time
09:31 9:31 AM
15:31 3:31 PM
6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
506
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Cinque Terre 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Cinque Terre

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 Cinque Terre: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Playa del Carmen and in Cinque Terre compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $2,089 in Cinque Terre – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 42% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.
What salary covers living expenses in Playa del Carmen compared to Cinque Terre?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,134 in Cinque Terre. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
How do rents compare between Playa del Carmen and Cinque Terre?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Cinque Terre, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $832 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Playa del Carmen and Cinque Terre?
Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $897 in Cinque Terre. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Groceries cost about 58% more in Cinque Terre, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Cinque Terre at $2,089. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cinque Terre it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Playa del Carmen and Cinque Terre?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $2,089 in Cinque Terre. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?