Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and El Viejo Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and El Viejo

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 38% more expensive than El Viejo without rent, and 79.6% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 21.5% more expensive than El Viejo without rent, and 91.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$4.9 NIO 179
144.69%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$35.26 NIO 1,291
20.45%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$6.94 NIO 254
50.86%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.47 NIO 90.3
45.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$0.84 NIO 30.65
71.43%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.75 NIO 27.41
18.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$1.27 NIO 46.57
143.31%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$1.96 NIO 71.7
133.67%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.27 NIO 46.46
8.66%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$2.39 NIO 87.4
-22.59%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.8 NIO 65.8
-12.78%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.23 NIO 81.5
14.35%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$11 NIO 403
-21.73%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$6.51 NIO 239
31.18%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$7.79 NIO 285
40.95%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$3.88 NIO 142
-29.90%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$0.89 NIO 32.47
69.66%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.76 NIO 64.3
6.82%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$2.28 NIO 83.5
-3.95%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$3.9 NIO 143
-52.05%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$2.23 NIO 81.6
-1.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.06 NIO 38.99
0.94%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$1.01 NIO 37.05
7.92%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$2.61 NIO 95.6
51.72%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$14.94 NIO 547
-40.70%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.45 NIO 53.1
18.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.28 NIO 83.6
14.47%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$1.47 NIO 53.8
120.41%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$6.89 NIO 252
-54.86%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.35 NIO 49.5
-2.96%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$22.8K NIO 834.2K
33.07%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$26.4K NIO 968.2K
-9.24%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$97.2 NIO 3,558
-13.29%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$16.79 NIO 615
31.86%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$36.55 NIO 1,339
-17.54%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$7.93 NIO 291
-36.07%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$123 NIO 4,514
62.50%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$5,947 NIO 217.8K
-10.33%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$78.5 NIO 2,874
-54.45%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$72.9 NIO 2,669
-45.38%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$133 NIO 4,865
-40.55%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$107 NIO 3,925
-17.53%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
El Viejo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
10.25
11.41%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for El Viejo: October 28, 2025

Similar cities

Join the CityCost newsletter – low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.