Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Grand Falls-Windsor

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,327 in Grand Falls-Windsor, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
109

Cost of Living Index in Grand Falls-Windsor
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Grand Falls-Windsor Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Grand Falls-Windsor

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,327

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Grand Falls-Windsor

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 Grand Falls-Windsor actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,327 in Grand Falls-Windsor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Grand Falls-Windsor $2,327

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,355 in Grand Falls-Windsor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Grand Falls-Windsor $3,355

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,383 in Grand Falls-Windsor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Grand Falls-Windsor $4,383

Playa del Carmen is about 48% cheaper than Grand Falls-Windsor, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Grand Falls-Windsor is 72% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$19.73 CA$27.89

-44.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$74.0 CA$105

-40.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$9.10 CA$12.87

29.23%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$3.58 CA$5.06

2.79%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$2.07 CA$2.92

-35.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.73 CA$2.45

-52.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$4.70 CA$6.64

-34.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$6.26 CA$8.85

-21.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$2.09 CA$2.96

-29.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$2.89 CA$4.08

-23.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$2.95 CA$4.17

-49.83%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$3.30 CA$4.66

-24.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$8.98 CA$12.69

-16.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$10.97 CA$15.51

-27.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$16.05 CA$22.69

-21.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$3.53 CA$4.99

-21.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.38 CA$1.94

3.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$3.98 CA$5.62

-34.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$3.52 CA$4.97

-39.20%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$2.11 CA$2.98

-4.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$2.01 CA$2.85

-1.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$2.34 CA$3.31

-51.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$1.57 CA$2.21

-23.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$15.00 CA$21.20

-71.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$13.30 CA$18.80

-24.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$2.48 CA$3.50

-37.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$2.85 CA$4.03

-6.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$2.61 CA$3.69

-79.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$60.4 CA$85.4

-54.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$2.87 CA$4.06

70.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$1.49 CA$2.10

130.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$21.55 CA$30.47

-75.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.15 CA$1.63

26.09%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$26.3K CA$37.1K

-19.42%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$18.7K CA$26.4K

23.19%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$154 CA$218

-44.53%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$37.51 CA$53.0

-37.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$52.0 CA$73.5

-45.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$36.76 CA$52.0

69.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$18.26 CA$25.81

57.06%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$10.84 CA$15.33

-52.95%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$689 CA$974

-70.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$14.0K CA$19.7K

-71.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$58.4 CA$82.5

-23.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$40.94 CA$57.9

1.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$80.8 CA$114

-9.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$93.4 CA$132

-4.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$1,269 CA$1,794

-22.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$1,195 CA$1,689

-68.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$2,228 CA$3,149

-24.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$1,789 CA$2,529

-38.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$4,792 CA$6,774

-17.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$3,978 CA$5,624

54.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.67

145.18%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Grand Falls-Windsor: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$1.2K 51.3% 221% $822

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$347 14.9% 34.4% $89

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$279 12% 39.5% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$243 10.5% 77.3% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$123 5.3% 10.2% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$58 2.5% 19.3% $14

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Grand Falls-Windsor

$81 3.5% 56.9% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,269 in Grand Falls-Windsor. 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 $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $74.0 in Grand Falls-Windsor. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $347 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇦 Grand Falls-Windsor

🕒 Local time

02:18 2:18 AM

04:48 4:48 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

13,725

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Grand Falls-Windsor 4,200 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Grand Falls-Windsor

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 Grand Falls-Windsor: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Grand Falls-Windsor is pricier by about 93%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,491 in Grand Falls-Windsor. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 119% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $201 per month in Playa del Carmen and $689 in Grand Falls-Windsor. 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 Grand Falls-Windsor at $2,327. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Grand Falls-Windsor it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – 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 Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Grand Falls-Windsor makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.