Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Gafsa

For one person, living is cheaper in Gafsa: $585 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Gafsa
Learn more

Gafsa Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Gafsa

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $585 in Gafsa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Gafsa $585

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $900 in Gafsa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Gafsa $900

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,215 in Gafsa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Gafsa $1,215

Playa del Carmen costs about 106% more than Gafsa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Gafsa are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Gafsa 57% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$3.75 TND 11.29

191.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$9.96 TND 30.01

335.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$2.57 TND 7.73

358.37%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$0.61 TND 1.83

524.59%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.52 TND 1.57

146.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.24 TND 0.72

225.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.71 TND 5.16

85.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$1.64 TND 4.94

200.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.44 TND 1.32

220.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$0.14 TND 0.42

1485.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.64 TND 4.95

-13.41%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$1.06 TND 3.19

137.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$12.84 TND 38.67

-43.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.03 TND 18.17

27.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$11.62 TND 34.99

9.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.40 TND 4.21

98.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$3.12 TND 9.39

-56.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$0.87 TND 2.62

193.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$0.88 TND 2.64

140.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$0.74 TND 2.23

162.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$0.47 TND 1.42

302.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$0.46 TND 1.38

150.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.27 TND 0.81

337.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$2.53 TND 7.63

69.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$4.94 TND 14.88

101.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.23 TND 3.69

28.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$1.33 TND 4.00

100.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.33 TND 0.98

66.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$10.97 TND 33.03

142.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$0.29 TND 0.87

1613.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.25 TND 0.76

1232.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$3.95 TND 11.89

35.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$0.89 TND 2.67

61.80%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$38.6K TND 116.2K

-46.42%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$31.4K TND 94.6K

-25.30%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$39.77 TND 120

113.20%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$8.37 TND 25.20

179.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$19.37 TND 58.4

47.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$15.20 TND 45.79

275.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$12.34 TND 37.19

134.28%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$3.33 TND 10.04

54.35%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$61.2 TND 184

237.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$987 TND 2,974

297.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$39.95 TND 120

8.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$51.9 TND 156

-20.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$104 TND 315

-28.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$114 TND 344

-21.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$143 TND 432

583.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$102 TND 306

274.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$206 TND 621

728.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$149 TND 450

620.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$959 TND 2,888

311.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$348 TND 1,047

1671.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$304 TND 916

141.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.88

28.94%

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 Gafsa: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Gafsa

$102 17.4% 73.3% $279

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Gafsa

$181 30.9% 29.1% $74

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Gafsa

$60 10.2% 70.4% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Gafsa

$68 11.5% 50.7% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Gafsa

$140 23.9% 25.1% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Gafsa

$22 3.7% 67.5% $45

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Gafsa

$14 2.4% 72.6% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $143 in Gafsa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $10 in Gafsa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $181 – making Gafsa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇳 Gafsa

🕒 Local time

18:05 6:05 PM

00:05 12:05 AM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

111,170

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 TND = 0.332 USD

1 TND = 0.298 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.01 TND (1 TND = 0.332 USD). 1 EUR = 3.35 TND (1 TND = 0.298 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Gafsa 9,240 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Gafsa

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 Gafsa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 106%, 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 $878 in Gafsa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gafsa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $143 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $61 in Gafsa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 41% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Gafsa, where all-in costs run around $585, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Gafsa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Gafsa – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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