Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Gharb

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,217 in Gharb, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Gharb
Learn more

Gharb Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Gharb

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,217

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,217 in Gharb, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Gharb $2,217

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,242 in Gharb, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Gharb $3,242

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,267 in Gharb, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Gharb $4,267

Playa del Carmen is about 46% cheaper than Gharb, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Gharb is 63% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$22.16 €19.77

-50.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$813

$89.5 €79.9

-51.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$13.17 €11.75

-10.55%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.4

$3.26 €2.91

16.87%

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

$1.28 MX$24.03

$2.34 €2.09

-45.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.67

$1.92 €1.72

-59.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.3

$5.55 €4.95

-42.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.5

$6.59 €5.88

-25.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.35

$1.32 €1.17

6.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.54

$1.41 €1.26

57.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.56

$3.51 €3.13

-59.54%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.27

$4.38 €3.90

-42.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$10.14 €9.04

-28.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$12.11 €10.80

-36.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$18.36 €16.38

-30.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.2

$3.68 €3.28

-24.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.64

$2.73 €2.43

-49.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.80

$3.79 €3.38

-32.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.78

$3.81 €3.40

-44.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.32

$1.83 €1.64

6.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.34

$3.33 €2.97

-43.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.49

$2.28 €2.04

-49.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.09

$1.48 €1.32

-20.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.5

$6.29 €5.61

-31.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$186

$6.05 €5.40

64.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.67

$2.43 €2.16

-34.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.38 €2.13

12.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

$2.21 €1.97

-75.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.1

$3.82 €3.41

30.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.4

$1.81 €1.62

83.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

$32.93 €29.38

-83.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.06

$1.52 €1.36

-5.26%

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

$20.7K MX$387.3K

$27.6K €24.6K

-25.06%

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

$23.5K MX$439.7K

$38.7K €34.5K

-39.39%

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

$84.8 MX$1,589

$154 €137

-44.87%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$30.85 €27.53

-24.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$537

$29.18 €26.03

-1.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,069

$69.5 €62.0

-17.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.3

$11.14 €9.94

-53.86%

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

$207 MX$3,871

$283 €252

-26.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.6K

$12.4K €11.1K

-68.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$812

$56.4 €50.3

-23.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$777

$69.1 €61.7

-40.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,390

$112 €99.7

-33.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,672

$128 €115

-30.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$975 €870

0.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,136

$1,070 €954

-64.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.0K

$1,644 €1,467

3.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

$1,532 €1,367

-29.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

$4,033 €3,598

-2.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.4K

$3,039 €2,711

102.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.05

182.72%

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 Gharb: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Gharb

$1.1K 48.2% 181% $689

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Gharb

$342 15.4% 34.2% $87

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Gharb

$314 14.2% 55.1% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Gharb

$214 9.6% 56.3% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Gharb

$165 7.4% 47.3% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Gharb

$92 4.1% 36.3% $24

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Gharb

$22 * 1% 56.9% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $975 in Gharb. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $90 in Gharb. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $342 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇹 Gharb

🕒 Local time

15:08 3:08 PM

21:08 9:08 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

1,500

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Gharb 9,630 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Gharb

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 Gharb: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gharb costs about 84% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,326 in Gharb. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $980 in Playa del Carmen and $975 in Gharb. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $2,217 in Gharb. That makes Playa del Carmen about 46% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $283 in Gharb. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Gharb at $2,217. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Gharb 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 $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $2,217 in Gharb. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.