Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Deva

For one person, living is cheaper in Deva: $862 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Deva
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Deva Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Deva

🇷🇴 Romania

$862

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $862 in Deva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Deva $862

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,338 in Deva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Deva $1,338

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,814 in Deva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Deva $1,814

Playa del Carmen costs about 40% more than Deva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Deva are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Deva 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$6.81 RON 32.20

59.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$21.08 RON 99.7

109.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$7.28 RON 34.46

61.54%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$1.71 RON 8.10

115.20%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$2.09 RON 9.89

-35.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.20 RON 5.68

-31.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$1.29 RON 6.13

137.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$2.09 RON 9.90

136.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.56 RON 7.39

-5.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.27 RON 6.03

74.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.10 RON 5.21

34.55%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$3.18 RON 15.03

-21.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$7.80 RON 36.91

-3.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$5.29 RON 25.05

50.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$8.12 RON 38.42

54.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$1.37 RON 6.49

102.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.38 RON 6.52

3.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$1.53 RON 7.23

71.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$2.12 RON 10.05

0.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$0.71 RON 3.37

184.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$0.96 RON 4.54

107.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$0.85 RON 4.04

34.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.86 RON 4.05

39.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$5.34 RON 25.26

-20.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$7.39 RON 34.98

35.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.07 RON 5.06

43.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.75 RON 8.28

52.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$0.57 RON 2.67

-7.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$32.18 RON 152

-14.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$0.79 RON 3.74

520.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$0.66 RON 3.12

419.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$8.58 RON 40.59

-37.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.62 RON 7.68

-10.49%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$28.8K RON 136.1K

-26.44%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$24.7K RON 116.8K

-6.78%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$133 RON 631

-36.04%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$8.71 RON 41.23

169.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$9.54 RON 45.15

198.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$39.18 RON 185

58.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$53.0 RON 251

-45.91%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$6.28 RON 29.70

-18.79%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$577 RON 2,731

-65.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$9,789 RON 46.3K

-59.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$69.0 RON 326

-35.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$44.86 RON 212

-7.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$84.9 RON 402

-14.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$74.1 RON 351

20.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$237 RON 1,122

313.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$184 RON 871

102.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$400 RON 1,892

320.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$353 RON 1,672

209.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$4,841 RON 22.9K

-18.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$3,476 RON 16.4K

76.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,154 RON 5,458

-36.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.65

72.18%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Deva: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Deva

$184 21.3% 50.6% $189

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Deva

$193 22.4% 25.3% $65

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Deva

$121 14% 39.7% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Deva

$152 17.6% 10.6% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Deva

$123 14.2% 10% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Deva

$52 6% 28.5% $21

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Deva

$39 4.5% 25.5% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $237 in Deva. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 56% higher in Deva, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $21.00 in Deva. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $193 – making Deva the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇷🇴 Deva

🕒 Local time

07:29 7:29 AM

15:29 3:29 PM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

61,123

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Deva 9,810 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Deva

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 Deva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $862 in Deva – roughly 40% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,294 in Deva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Deva, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 34% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen and $21.00 in Deva. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Deva, where all-in costs run around $862, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Deva it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $862 in Deva to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Deva. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.