Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Itapetininga

For one person, living is cheaper in Itapetininga: $744 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Itapetininga
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Itapetininga Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Itapetininga

🇧🇷 Brazil

$744

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $744 in Itapetininga.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Itapetininga $744

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,057 in Itapetininga.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Itapetininga $1,057

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,371 in Itapetininga.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Itapetininga $1,371

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 62% more expensive than in Itapetininga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Itapetininga 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$2.67 R$14.57

299.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$11.88 R$64.9

268.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$8.12 R$44.35

45.20%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.46 R$7.97

159.59%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.48 R$2.64

170.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.46 R$2.49

80.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$0.76 R$4.13

314.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.64 R$19.89

35.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.93 R$5.09

51.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.69 R$9.25

30.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.06 R$5.81

38.68%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.49 R$8.15

67.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$4.99 R$27.26

46.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.08 R$16.84

158.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$5.77 R$31.48

122.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.62 R$8.83

79.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.96 R$5.27

43.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$0.97 R$5.32

156.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.02 R$5.57

99.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.75 R$4.11

169.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.70 R$3.84

171.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.69 R$3.78

65.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.52 R$2.85

138.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.32 R$12.69

84.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$5.64 R$30.80

73.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$0.97 R$5.28

63.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.31 R$12.59

19.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$1.00 R$5.43

-49.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$41.33 R$226

-33.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.86 R$4.71

453.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.78 R$4.23

316.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$5.68 R$31.04

-5.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.07 R$5.87

42.99%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$22.2K R$121.1K

-4.37%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$31.7K R$173.3K

-26.68%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$97.7 R$534

-14.58%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$8.45 R$46.14

174.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$21.18 R$116

30.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$21.45 R$117

163.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$25.79 R$141

9.31%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.43 R$24.19

12.87%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$130 R$708

59.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$10.4K R$57.1K

-49.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$27.45 R$150

58.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$21.72 R$119

95.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$77.6 R$423

-6.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$28.23 R$154

213.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$326 R$1,782

204.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$248 R$1,355

54.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$616 R$3,364

171.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$361 R$1,972

199.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$1,556 R$8,499

151.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,151 R$6,283

433.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$524 R$2,861

58.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.54

-0.78%

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 Itapetininga: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Itapetininga

$248 33.3% 35.1% $134

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Itapetininga

$140 18.9% 45.4% $117

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Itapetininga

$78 10.5% 61% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Itapetininga

$127 17.1% 5.2% $6.9

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Itapetininga

$70 9.4% 37.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Itapetininga

$30 4.1% 54.4% $36

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Itapetininga

$50 6.7% 0.8% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $326 in Itapetininga. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 59% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $12 in Itapetininga for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $140 per month, with Itapetininga cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Itapetininga

🕒 Local time

17:24 5:24 PM

19:24 7:24 PM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

157,790

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.11 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Itapetininga 6,480 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Itapetininga

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 Itapetininga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $744 in Itapetininga, so Itapetininga is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 59% higher in Playa del Carmen, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $326 in Itapetininga. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Itapetininga – a meal for two runs $12 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $744 in Itapetininga – Itapetininga is about 38% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $744 in Itapetininga versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Itapetininga but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Itapetininga the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Itapetininga wins on affordability, Playa del Carmen on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.