Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Durban

For one person, living is cheaper in Durban: $1,130 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $890 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Durban
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Durban Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Durban

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,130

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,130 in Durban, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Durban $1,130

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,748 in Durban, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Durban $1,748

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,366 in Durban, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Durban $2,366

Playa del Carmen costs about 7% more than Durban, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Durban are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Durban 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$7.93 R 132

37.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$39.14 R 652

10.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$6.15 R 103

91.54%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$2.73 R 45.52

39.56%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$1.12 R 18.58

14.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.91 R 15.22

-14.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$2.43 R 40.48

30.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$2.48 R 41.39

98.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.17 R 19.51

20.51%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.01 R 16.75

119.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.50 R 24.96

-5.33%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.43 R 40.49

3.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$8.22 R 137

-11.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$5.32 R 88.6

44.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$7.28 R 121

74.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.95 R 32.45

42.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.95 R 32.45

-29.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.94 R 32.35

31.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.65 R 27.42

28.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.55 R 25.81

25.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.46 R 24.32

29.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.17 R 19.41

-1.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$1.14 R 18.96

3.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$3.64 R 60.7

18.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$4.73 R 78.9

110.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.41 R 23.42

12.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$1.89 R 31.57

41.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$1.79 R 29.78

-69.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$21.32 R 355

24.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$0.41 R 6.78

1112.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.76 R 12.59

338.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$7.72 R 129

-30.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.49 R 24.83

-3.36%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$35.5K R 591.4K

-41.77%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$32.3K R 538.6K

-27.40%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$148 R 2,460

-42.57%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$35.49 R 591

-34.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$39.45 R 657

-27.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$31.01 R 517

83.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$8.61 R 143

235.77%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$7.39 R 123

-30.45%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$317 R 5,274

-34.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$7,714 R 128.5K

-49.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$53.2 R 887

-18.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$30.50 R 508

35.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$99.1 R 1,651

-25.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$85.0 R 1,417

4.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$445 R 7,414

120.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$374 R 6,240

1.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$814 R 13.6K

109.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$744 R 12.4K

44.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$820 R 13.7K

380.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$565 R 9,419

989.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$1,280 R 21.3K

-42.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.78

-2.80%

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 Durban: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Durban

$374 33.1% 1.7% $6.4

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Durban

$194 17.2% 23.8% $61

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Durban

$140 12.4% 30.9% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Durban

$223 19.7% 62.6% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Durban

$121 10.7% 7.9% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Durban

$46 4.1% 32% $22

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Durban

$33 2.9% 35.3% $18

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $445 in Durban. 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 74% higher in Durban, 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $39 in Durban. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $194 – making Durban the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇿🇦 Durban

🕒 Local time

19:14 7:14 PM

02:14 2:14 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

3,442,361

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Durban 13,780 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Durban

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 Durban: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 7%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,695 in Durban. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Durban, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $445 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,130 in Durban. That makes Durban about 6% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 20% less in Durban. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,130 in Durban, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,130 in Durban to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Durban is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 6% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.