Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Granada, Nicaragua

Name: Granada
Address: Granada, NI

For one person, living is cheaper in Granada: $924 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Granada
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Granada Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Granada

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $924 in Granada, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Granada $924

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,288 in Granada, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Granada $1,288

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,652 in Granada, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Granada $1,652

Playa del Carmen costs about 30% more than Granada, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Granada are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Granada 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$4.30 NIO 157

148.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$23.84 NIO 873

83.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$6.81 NIO 250

73.13%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.76 NIO 64.6

115.34%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.87 NIO 31.78

49.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.68 NIO 24.87

22.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.33 NIO 48.60

136.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.05 NIO 74.9

140.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.21 NIO 44.33

16.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.54 NIO 56.5

42.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.54 NIO 19.74

172.22%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$1.18 NIO 43.28

111.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$5.01 NIO 184

45.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$4.94 NIO 181

60.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.92 NIO 290

62.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$4.08 NIO 149

-28.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.63 NIO 22.97

119.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$1.81 NIO 66.4

37.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$0.98 NIO 36.07

107.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$2.84 NIO 104

-28.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.02 NIO 37.46

86.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.02 NIO 37.20

11.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.05 NIO 38.62

18.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.76 NIO 101

54.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$10.18 NIO 373

-3.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.49 NIO 54.5

6.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.77 NIO 64.8

55.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.11 NIO 4.07

363.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$3.92 NIO 144

598.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.62 NIO 22.71

667.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.58 NIO 58.0

105.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$6.93 NIO 254

-22.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.29 NIO 47.30

18.60%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$22.9K NIO 837.4K

-7.22%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$26.3K NIO 964.4K

-11.66%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$149 NIO 5,439

-43.79%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$19.89 NIO 728

16.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$32.03 NIO 1,173

-13.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$8.95 NIO 328

-44.13%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$235 NIO 8,599

-11.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$6,063 NIO 222.1K

-13.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$14.82 NIO 543

193.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$30.25 NIO 1,108

40.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$34.31 NIO 1,256

112.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$35.30 NIO 1,293

150.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$421 NIO 15.4K

136.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$355 NIO 13.0K

7.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$791 NIO 29.0K

111.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$517 NIO 18.9K

108.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$134 NIO 4,892

523.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.92

-3.94%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Granada: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Granada

$355 38.4% 7.2% $27

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Granada

$193 20.9% 25.1% $65

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Granada

$93 10.1% 53.6% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Granada

$200 21.7% 49.3% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Granada

$52 5.6% 53.6% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Granada

$18 * 1.9% 73.1% $49

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Granada

$13 1.4% 74.4% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $421 in Granada. 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 6.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $24 in Granada. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $193 – making Granada the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇮 Granada

🕒 Local time

17:03 5:03 PM

16:03 4:03 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

128,937

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NIO, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.23 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Granada 970 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Granada

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 Granada: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, $924 in Granada – Granada comes out roughly 23% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,385 in Granada. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Granada, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $421 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Public transport costs about 86% less in Granada. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $235 in Granada. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Granada, where all-in costs run around $924, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Granada it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Granada costs $924 versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Granada. 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.