Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Guiyang

For one person, living is cheaper in Guiyang: $716 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Guiyang
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Guiyang Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Guiyang

🇨🇳 China

$716

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $716 in Guiyang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Guiyang $716

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,134 in Guiyang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Guiyang $1,134

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,553 in Guiyang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Guiyang $1,553

Playa del Carmen costs about 69% more than Guiyang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Guiyang are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 10% lower, Guiyang 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$2.84 ¥18.97

278.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$21.82 ¥146

97.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$4.78 ¥31.98

146.65%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$2.95 ¥19.73

31.19%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$0.44 ¥2.92

211.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$0.29 ¥1.96

189.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$0.90 ¥6.01

244.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$2.07 ¥13.86

144.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$1.81 ¥12.10

-20.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$1.56 ¥10.43

42.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$0.97 ¥6.48

51.55%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$1.59 ¥10.65

59.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$12.62 ¥84.4

-42.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$3.28 ¥21.93

139.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$10.06 ¥67.3

27.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$1.82 ¥12.14

59.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$1.20 ¥8.00

20.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$1.49 ¥9.99

71.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$1.11 ¥7.39

85.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$0.69 ¥4.61

189.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$0.91 ¥6.06

120.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$0.56 ¥3.71

112.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$0.52 ¥3.48

142.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$3.16 ¥21.13

39.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$10.37 ¥69.3

-7.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$0.81 ¥5.40

96.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$1.63 ¥10.90

72.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$0.29 ¥1.95

96.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$16.97 ¥113

63.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$1.35 ¥9.03

268.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$0.35 ¥2.36

900.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$6.60 ¥44.10

-18.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$1.18 ¥7.90

24.58%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$19.2K ¥128.1K

9.54%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$17.1K ¥114.6K

39.49%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$45.97 ¥307

83.18%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$9.69 ¥64.8

147.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$11.79 ¥78.8

146.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$41.04 ¥274

53.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$13.92 ¥93.1

109.34%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$6.08 ¥40.65

-18.75%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$331 ¥2,211

-38.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$16.7K ¥111.6K

-76.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$44.28 ¥296

-1.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$30.65 ¥205

40.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$72.0 ¥481

5.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$70.7 ¥473

25.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$278 ¥1,862

262.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$195 ¥1,307

91.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$581 ¥3,888

193.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$367 ¥2,451

201.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$3,040 ¥20.3K

29.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$2,022 ¥13.5K

205.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.89

194.34%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Guiyang: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Guiyang

$195 27.3% 47.7% $179

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Guiyang

$197 27.5% 23.9% $62

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Guiyang

$84 11.7% 58.5% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Guiyang

$67 9.4% 50.8% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Guiyang

$98 13.7% 13.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Guiyang

$53 7.4% 27% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Guiyang

$21 3% 59.6% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $278 in Guiyang. 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 $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $22.00 in Guiyang. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $197 – making Guiyang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇳 Guiyang

🕒 Local time

00:31 12:31 AM

13:31 1:31 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

4,324,561

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Guiyang 14,550 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Guiyang

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 Guiyang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, $716 in Guiyang – roughly 69% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,074 in Guiyang. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $204 per month in Playa del Carmen and $331 in Guiyang. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 31% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Guiyang, where all-in costs run around $716, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Guiyang it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen 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 $716 in Guiyang to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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