Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Jambi

For one person, living is cheaper in Jambi: $621 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Jambi
Learn more

Jambi Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Jambi

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $621 in Jambi.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Jambi $621

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $981 in Jambi.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Jambi $981

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,340 in Jambi.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Jambi $1,340

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 94% more expensive than in Jambi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Jambi 54% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$1.54 Rp 28.0K

592.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$12.35 Rp 224.0K

254.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$2.82 Rp 51.1K

318.09%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.32 Rp 23.9K

187.12%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.44 Rp 7,956

195.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.18 Rp 3,218

361.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.88 Rp 34.1K

67.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.50 Rp 63.6K

40.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.11 Rp 20.1K

27.03%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.06 Rp 19.2K

107.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.80 Rp 14.5K

83.75%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.46 Rp 26.5K

71.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$7.63 Rp 138.4K

-4.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.36 Rp 60.9K

136.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$8.11 Rp 147.2K

58.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.25 Rp 40.8K

28.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.23 Rp 22.4K

12.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$1.51 Rp 27.5K

64.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.25 Rp 22.6K

62.40%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.20 Rp 21.7K

68.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.98 Rp 35.9K

-4.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.71 Rp 12.9K

60.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.39 Rp 7,093

217.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.58 Rp 46.7K

65.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$22.49 Rp 407.9K

-56.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.85 Rp 33.6K

-14.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$3.04 Rp 55.1K

-9.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.24 Rp 4,289

112.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$11.48 Rp 208.3K

138.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.46 Rp 8,265

934.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.31 Rp 5,599

948.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$2.47 Rp 44.9K

118.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.03 Rp 18.6K

48.54%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$24.4K Rp 442.1M

-12.96%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$36.7K Rp 666.6M

-36.69%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$66.3 Rp 1.2M

25.85%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$4.46 Rp 80.9K

419.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$20.87 Rp 378.5K

32.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$14.88 Rp 269.9K

279.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$9.02 Rp 163.7K

212.53%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$2.74 Rp 49.7K

82.48%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$79.2 Rp 1.4M

161.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$11.7K Rp 212.3M

-55.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$46.10 Rp 836.3K

-5.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$28.86 Rp 523.4K

47.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$69.3 Rp 1.3M

4.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$75.9 Rp 1.4M

16.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$235 Rp 4.3M

322.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$139 Rp 2.5M

175.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$631 Rp 11.4M

165.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$339 Rp 6.1M

218.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$1,193 Rp 21.6M

227.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$875 Rp 15.9M

601.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$205 Rp 3.7M

305.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

9.45

21.16%

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 Jambi: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Jambi

$139 22.4% 63.7% $243

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Jambi

$201 32.4% 21.9% $56

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Jambi

$56 8.9% 72.3% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Jambi

$92 14.8% 31.7% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Jambi

$99 16% 10.9% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Jambi

$20 3.3% 69.4% $46

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Jambi

$14 2.3% 71.4% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $235 in Jambi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $12 in Jambi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $201 per month, with Jambi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇩 Jambi

🕒 Local time

17:43 5:43 PM

05:43 5:43 AM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

750,857

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18,140 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,286 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Jambi 17,600 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Jambi

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 Jambi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $621 in Jambi, so Jambi is about 48% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Playa del Carmen is about 4.1 times higher, 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 $235 in Jambi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $621 in Jambi – Jambi is about 48% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Jambi runs roughly 58% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $621 in Jambi versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Jambi but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Jambi 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.

Expats usually find Jambi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.