Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Fajardo

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,241 in Fajardo, rent and utilities included – about $440 less a year. The total is higher in Fajardo despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Fajardo
Learn more

Fajardo Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Fajardo

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,241

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,241 in Fajardo.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Fajardo $1,241

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,954 in Fajardo.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Fajardo $1,954

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,667 in Fajardo.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Fajardo $2,667

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 3% less than in Fajardo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Fajardo 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$9.80 $9.80

11.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$813

$82.1 $82.1

-47.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$9.44 $9.44

24.79%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.4

$3.66 $3.66

4.10%

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

$1.28 MX$24.04

$1.93 $1.93

-33.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.68

$1.51 $1.51

-48.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.4

$2.97 $2.97

6.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.5

$5.11 $5.11

-3.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.37

$2.11 $2.11

-33.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.57

$3.69 $3.69

-39.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.57

$2.45 $2.45

-42.04%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.30

$7.46 $7.46

-66.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$12.35 $12.35

-41.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$9.45 $9.45

-18.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$13.26 $13.26

-4.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.2

$5.09 $5.09

-45.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.65

$2.58 $2.58

-46.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.83

$4.75 $4.75

-46.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.81

$4.70 $4.70

-54.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.34

$3.71 $3.71

-47.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.36

$3.91 $3.91

-51.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.50

$3.40 $3.40

-66.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.11

$1.61 $1.61

-26.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.5

$11.33 $11.33

-62.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$15.50 $15.50

-35.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.69

$3.09 $3.09

-48.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$4.04 $4.04

-33.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.2

$2.47 $2.47

101.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$1.52 $1.52

119.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

$41.58 $41.58

-87.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.07

$1.24 $1.24

16.13%

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

$20.7K MX$387.5K

$34.6K $34.6K

-40.26%

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

$23.5K MX$440.0K

$28.3K $28.3K

-17.07%

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

$84.8 MX$1,590

$316 $316

-73.18%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$70.6 $70.6

-66.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$537

$70.0 $70.0

-59.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,070

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.4

$10.47 $10.47

-50.91%

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

$207 MX$3,873

$835 $835

-75.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.6K

$12.6K $12.6K

-68.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$813

$55.5 $55.5

-21.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$777

$61.8 $61.8

-32.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,391

$107 $107

-30.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,673

$115 $115

-22.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$1,007 $1,007

-2.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,140

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.55

74.81%

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 Fajardo: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Fajardo

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Fajardo

$412 33.2% 61.5% $157

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Fajardo

$189 15.3% 6.4% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Fajardo

$457 36.8% 234% $320

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Fajardo

$152 12.3% 36.5% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Fajardo

$21 * 1.7% 68.9% $46

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Fajardo

$10 * 0.8% 80.1% $40

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $1,007 in Fajardo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $82 in Fajardo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $412 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇷 Fajardo

🕒 Local time

13:21 1:21 PM

14:21 2:21 PM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

11,647

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.75 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.92 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Fajardo 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Fajardo

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 Fajardo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Fajardo. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $1,862 in Fajardo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,007 in Fajardo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Fajardo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $1,241 in Fajardo – Playa del Carmen is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Playa del Carmen gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.