Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Kien Giang

For one person, living is cheaper in Kien Giang: $748 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

60

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

Cost of Living Index in Kien Giang
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Kien Giang Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Kien Giang

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$748

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Kien Giang

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $748 in Kien Giang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Kien Giang $748

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,243 in Kien Giang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Kien Giang $1,243

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,739 in Kien Giang, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Kien Giang $1,739

Playa del Carmen costs about 62% more than Kien Giang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Kien Giang are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Kien Giang 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$200

$1.95 ₫50.5K

462.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$819

$22.70 ₫588.8K

97.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$218

$4.63 ₫120.1K

157.45%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.5

$1.84 ₫47.7K

106.52%

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

$1.31 MX$23.95

$0.48 ₫12.4K

172.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.63

$0.34 ₫8,884

152.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$58.6

$1.07 ₫27.7K

200.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$91.5

$1.76 ₫45.6K

184.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.62

$1.59 ₫41.2K

-8.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.48

$1.04 ₫27.0K

124.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.34

$0.59 ₫15.3K

144.07%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$44.94

$1.58 ₫40.9K

55.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$11.38 ₫295.2K

-32.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$144

$3.51 ₫91.1K

124.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$234

$10.27 ₫266.5K

24.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.3

$3.05 ₫79.0K

-4.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$25.96

$1.17 ₫30.3K

21.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$46.84

$1.06 ₫27.5K

142.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.02

$1.07 ₫27.6K

100.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.55

$1.18 ₫30.6K

65.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.35

$1.15 ₫29.8K

68.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.01

$0.72 ₫18.6K

59.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.29

$0.55 ₫14.3K

121.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$79.9

$1.25 ₫32.4K

250.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$180

$12.49 ₫324.0K

-21.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.07

$0.90 ₫23.5K

71.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.58

$1.52 ₫39.4K

78.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.58

$0.33 ₫8,625

57.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$501

$7.04 ₫182.7K

289.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$89.7

$0.68 ₫17.6K

622.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.3

$0.52 ₫13.5K

576.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$3.06 ₫79.3K

85.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.12

$0.91 ₫23.7K

69.23%

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

$21.2K MX$387.8K

$31.0K ₫803.2M

-31.42%

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

$24.5K MX$447.1K

$31.2K ₫809.3M

-21.53%

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

$83.6 MX$1,527

$30.32 ₫786.3K

175.76%

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

$24.03 MX$439

$5.78 ₫149.8K

315.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$536

$3.89 ₫100.8K

653.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,184

$21.86 ₫566.9K

196.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$538

$7.18 ₫186.1K

310.31%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$92.9

$3.18 ₫82.5K

60.06%

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

$208 MX$3,792

$159 ₫4.1M

30.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$73.9K

$23.5K ₫608.6M

-82.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$813

$51.5 ₫1.3M

-13.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$768

$34.13 ₫885.2K

23.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,379

$90.9 ₫2.4M

-16.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,668

$95.9 ₫2.5M

-4.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.0K

$404 ₫10.5M

144.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,033

$272 ₫7.1M

41.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.3K

$737 ₫19.1M

132.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.2K

$572 ₫14.8M

93.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.3K

$3,250 ₫84.3M

23.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.1K

$1,316 ₫34.1M

374.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.8K

$311 ₫8.1M

143.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.64

32.52%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Kien Giang: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Kien Giang

$272 37% 29.3% $113

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Kien Giang

$197 26.8% 24.2% $63

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Kien Giang

$64 8.7% 68.8% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Kien Giang

$40 5.4% 70.8% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Kien Giang

$123 16.7% 7.5% $8.5

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Kien Giang

$28 3.8% 62.4% $47

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Kien Giang

$12 1.6% 77.6% $40

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $404 in Kien Giang. 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 144% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $23.00 in Kien Giang. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $197 – making Kien Giang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇻🇳 Kien Giang

🕒 Local time

23:43 11:43 PM

11:43 11:43 AM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.48 USD

100 MXN = 4.89 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 18.26 MXN (100 MXN = 5.48 USD). 1 EUR = 20.46 MXN (100 MXN = 4.89 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 25,934 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,064 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Kien Giang 15,540 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Kien Giang

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 Kien Giang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 62%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,122 in Kien Giang. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 289% less in Kien Giang. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $208 per month in Playa del Carmen and $159 in Kien Giang. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kien Giang, where all-in costs run around $748, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In Kien Giang it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kien Giang – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Kien Giang. 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.