Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Koh Samui

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Koh Samui: $1,204 and $1,221 a month, rent and utilities included.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Koh Samui
Learn more

Koh Samui Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Koh Samui

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,221

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Koh Samui

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,221 in Koh Samui, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Koh Samui $1,221

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,093 in Koh Samui, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Koh Samui $2,093

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,965 in Koh Samui, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Koh Samui $2,965

Playa del Carmen and Koh Samui have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Koh Samui are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Koh Samui 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$4.31 ฿146

153.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$32.28 ฿1,090

34.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$8.55 ฿289

37.78%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$2.75 ฿92.7

38.55%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.89 ฿30.03

43.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.49 ฿16.57

59.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$2.56 ฿86.4

23.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$3.61 ฿122

36.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.66 ฿56.0

-15.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.46 ฿49.34

52.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.58 ฿53.4

-10.13%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.16 ฿73.0

16.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$19.29 ฿651

-62.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$3.34 ฿113

130.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$10.86 ฿367

16.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.94 ฿99.3

-5.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.60 ฿54.2

-14.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.29 ฿77.2

11.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$2.05 ฿69.2

3.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.45 ฿48.83

33.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.37 ฿46.17

37.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.12 ฿37.70

2.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.55 ฿18.64

114.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$4.26 ฿144

0.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$18.41 ฿622

-45.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.82 ฿61.4

-13.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$2.85 ฿96.3

-6.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$1.53 ฿51.7

-64.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$58.1 ฿1,961

-54.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$3.15 ฿106

57.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$1.07 ฿36.16

211.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$4.08 ฿138

31.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.53 ฿51.7

-5.88%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$27.5K ฿929.7K

-24.93%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$27.7K ฿936.9K

-15.42%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$104 ฿3,496

-18.09%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$11.49 ฿388

103.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$18.05 ฿610

58.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$69.9 ฿2,360

-18.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$11.34 ฿383

154.94%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$8.14 ฿275

-36.86%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$509 ฿17.2K

-59.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$12.4K ฿417.2K

-68.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$62.9 ฿2,122

-31.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$29.10 ฿983

42.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$95.8 ฿3,234

-22.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$87.2 ฿2,945

2.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$607 ฿20.5K

61.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$420 ฿14.2K

-9.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,653 ฿55.8K

3.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$1,221 ฿41.2K

-11.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$3,583 ฿121.0K

10.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$2,588 ฿87.4K

137.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$405 ฿13.7K

81.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.57

105.57%

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 Koh Samui: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Koh Samui

$420 34.4% 10.3% $39

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Koh Samui

$267 21.9% 4.7% $12

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Koh Samui

$119 9.7% 41.4% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Koh Samui

$133 10.9% 2.8% $3.8

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Koh Samui

$124 10.1% 10.7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Koh Samui

$86 7.1% 28% $19

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Koh Samui

$73 6% 44.1% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $607 in Koh Samui. 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 81% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $32 in Koh Samui. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $267 in Koh Samui – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇭 Koh Samui

🕒 Local time

18:02 6:02 PM

06:02 6:02 AM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

62,110

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Koh Samui 16,580 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Koh Samui

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 Koh Samui: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,832 in Koh Samui. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Koh Samui, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $607 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $32 in Koh Samui. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 54% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,221 in Koh Samui, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $1,221 in Koh Samui. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.