Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Honiara

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,719 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,719

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,719 in Honiara, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Honiara $1,719

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,828 in Honiara, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Honiara $2,828

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,936 in Honiara, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Honiara $3,936

Playa del Carmen is about 30% cheaper than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Honiara is 26% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$6.79 SBD 54.7

60.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$61.7 SBD 497

-29.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$12.30 SBD 99.1

-4.23%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$3.48 SBD 28.00

9.48%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$1.56 SBD 12.58

-17.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$1.10 SBD 8.83

-29.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.53 SBD 20.40

25.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$5.55 SBD 44.74

-11.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$2.52 SBD 20.34

-44.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$1.54 SBD 12.37

44.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$1.59 SBD 12.78

-10.69%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$5.66 SBD 45.57

-55.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$6.42 SBD 51.7

13.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$8.36 SBD 67.4

-7.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$15.30 SBD 123

-17.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$6.21 SBD 50.0

-55.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$2.69 SBD 21.70

-49.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$8.72 SBD 70.2

-70.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$3.65 SBD 29.36

-41.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.95 SBD 15.70

-0.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$3.43 SBD 27.60

-44.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.44 SBD 11.57

-20.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$1.08 SBD 8.68

9.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$4.03 SBD 32.47

6.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$10.41 SBD 83.8

-4.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$1.72 SBD 13.84

-8.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$3.37 SBD 27.18

-20.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.35 SBD 2.85

57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$25.21 SBD 203

5.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$1.22 SBD 9.79

307.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.22 SBD 9.79

172.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$12.28 SBD 99.0

-56.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.33 SBD 10.72

8.27%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$18.5K SBD 149.3K

11.51%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$34.2K SBD 275.3K

-31.34%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$437 SBD 3,517

-80.58%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$26.84 SBD 216

-12.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$88.8 SBD 715

-67.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$36.66 SBD 295

55.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$9.06 SBD 73.0

219.09%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$4.29 SBD 34.58

19.81%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$98.9 SBD 796

108.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$2,868 SBD 23.1K

36.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$27.51 SBD 222

57.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$93.1 SBD 750

-55.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$99.0 SBD 798

-25.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$101 SBD 817

-12.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$890 SBD 7,169

10.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$432 SBD 3,479

-11.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$1,812 SBD 14.6K

-5.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$1,409 SBD 11.3K

-23.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$85.8K SBD 691.2K

-95.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$62.0K SBD 499.2K

-90.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$437 SBD 3,519

68.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

15.67

-26.93%

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 Honiara: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Honiara

$432 25.1% 13.4% $51

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Honiara

$344 20% 35.2% $90

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Honiara

$167 9.7% 17.3% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Honiara

$552 32.1% 304% $415

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Honiara

$144 8.4% 29.3% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Honiara

$45 2.6% 32.8% $22

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Honiara

$34 2% 32.7% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $890 in Honiara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 68% higher in Playa del Carmen, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $62 in Honiara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $344 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

03:32 3:32 AM

19:32 7:32 PM

16 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.111 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 8.99 SBD (1 SBD = 0.111 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Honiara 12,750 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Honiara

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 Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $1,719 in Honiara – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 30% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,579 in Honiara. 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 $890 in Honiara. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Groceries cost about 35% more in Honiara, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $62 in Honiara. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap 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 Honiara at $1,719. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara 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 $1,719 in Honiara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.