Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Jaco Beach

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,445 in Jaco Beach, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 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
70

Cost of Living Index in Jaco Beach
Learn more

Jaco Beach Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Jaco Beach

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,445

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Jaco Beach

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,445 in Jaco Beach.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Jaco Beach $1,445

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,296 in Jaco Beach.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Jaco Beach $2,296

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,147 in Jaco Beach.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Jaco Beach $3,147

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 17% less than in Jaco Beach, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Jaco Beach is 6% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$11.32 ₡5,108

-3.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$813

$43.14 ₡19.5K

0.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$10.22 ₡4,615

15.26%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.4

$3.99 ₡1,800

-4.51%

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

$1.28 MX$24.03

$2.40 ₡1,085

-46.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.67

$1.87 ₡844

-58.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.3

$3.19 ₡1,442

-0.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.5

$4.33 ₡1,955

13.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.35

$1.98 ₡892

-28.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.54

$2.19 ₡989

1.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.56

$2.39 ₡1,079

-40.59%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.27

$2.60 ₡1,175

-3.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$10.78 ₡4,868

-32.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$8.88 ₡4,010

-13.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$12.11 ₡5,468

4.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.2

$4.95 ₡2,234

-43.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.64

$1.66 ₡749

-17.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.80

$4.75 ₡2,142

-46.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.78

$3.42 ₡1,545

-38.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.32

$1.50 ₡676

29.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.34

$1.42 ₡641

33.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.49

$0.99 ₡447

16.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.09

$1.99 ₡900

-40.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.5

$6.01 ₡2,712

-28.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$186

$13.81 ₡6,234

-27.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.67

$2.64 ₡1,192

-40.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.18 ₡986

22.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.1

$2.49 ₡1,125

99.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.4

$1.63 ₡735

104.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

$8.53 ₡3,850

-37.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.06

$1.57 ₡707

-8.28%

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

$20.7K MX$387.3K

$33.9K ₡15.3M

-39.02%

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

$23.5K MX$439.7K

$42.6K ₡19.2M

-44.94%

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

$84.8 MX$1,589

$79.6 ₡35.9K

6.59%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$23.88 ₡10.8K

-1.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$537

$47.69 ₡21.5K

-39.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,069

$52.0 ₡23.5K

9.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.3

$7.72 ₡3,485

-33.42%

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

$207 MX$3,871

$479 ₡216.4K

-56.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.6K

$7,442 ₡3.4M

-47.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$812

$25.50 ₡11.5K

70.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$777

$56.2 ₡25.4K

-26.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,390

$127 ₡57.3K

-41.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,672

$133 ₡59.9K

-32.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$748 ₡337.8K

30.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,136

$526 ₡237.3K

-27.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.0K

$1,984 ₡895.8K

-13.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

$1,099 ₡496.1K

-2.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$402 ₡181.4K

82.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.62

32.83%

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 Jaco Beach: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Jaco Beach

$526 36.4% 38% $145

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Jaco Beach

$326 22.6% 27.9% $71

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Jaco Beach

$211 14.6% 4.1% $8.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Jaco Beach

$151 10.5% 10.4% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Jaco Beach

$154 10.6% 37.4% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Jaco Beach

$67 4.7% 0.1% $0.1

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Jaco Beach

$11 * 0.7% 78.9% $40

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $748 in Jaco Beach. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 83% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $43 in Jaco Beach for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $326 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇷 Jaco Beach

🕒 Local time

09:30 9:30 AM

08:30 8:30 AM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Jaco Beach 1,250 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Jaco Beach

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 Jaco Beach: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is about 17% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 83% 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $748 in Jaco Beach. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 28% higher in Jaco Beach. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $479 in Jaco Beach. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value at $1,204 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.