Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Kota Kinabalu Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Kota Kinabalu

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 19.6% more expensive than Kota Kinabalu without rent, and 43.5% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 38.9% more expensive than Kota Kinabalu without rent, and 63.6% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.85 MX$209

$3.51 MYR 13.85

237.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.16 MX$744

$18.61 MYR 73.3

126.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 MX$190

$4.70 MYR 18.52

128.72%

Cappuccino

$3.47 MX$61.3

$2.61 MYR 10.30

32.95%

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

$1.45 MX$25.65

$0.64 MYR 2.53

126.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MX$15.93

$0.36 MYR 1.43

150.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 MX$53.9

$2.33 MYR 9.16

30.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 MX$77.9

$3.56 MYR 14.01

24.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 MX$24.17

$1.68 MYR 6.61

-18.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 MX$33.05

$1.24 MYR 4.90

50.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$27.25

$1.67 MYR 6.56

-7.78%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$44.18

$2.93 MYR 11.54

-14.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 MX$152

$26.42 MYR 104

-67.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.63 MX$152

$3.45 MYR 13.59

150.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 MX$195

$7.14 MYR 28.15

54.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 MX$48.53

$2.66 MYR 10.47

3.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$25.21

$1.13 MYR 4.44

26.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MX$33.05

$3.20 MYR 12.60

-41.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 MX$38.26

$1.98 MYR 7.82

9.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.23

$1.47 MYR 5.78

27.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 MX$39.65

$1.75 MYR 6.89

28.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MX$18.85

$1.12 MYR 4.41

-4.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 MX$18.95

$0.48 MYR 1.88

122.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MX$73.3

$4.15 MYR 16.36

Wine (Bottle)

$10.34 MX$182

$27.15 MYR 107

-61.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 MX$29.64

$1.91 MYR 7.51

-12.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 MX$43.84

$1.63 MYR 6.40

52.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$9.80

$1.54 MYR 6.08

-64.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.53 MX$468

$40.82 MYR 161

-35.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 MX$56.8

$1.86 MYR 7.32

73.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$43.80

$0.46 MYR 1.82

439.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 MX$54.9

$5.79 MYR 22.83

-46.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 MX$22.16

$0.49 MYR 1.95

157.14%

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

$30.7K MX$541.1K

$29.8K MYR 117.4K

2.85%

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

$24.0K MX$424.3K

$27.9K MYR 109.9K

-13.82%

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

$82.5 MX$1,456

$51.8 MYR 204

59.29%

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

$22.29 MX$393

$9.14 MYR 35.99

143.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 MX$530

$33.16 MYR 131

-9.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 MX$908

$42.77 MYR 169

20.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 MX$323

$2.96 MYR 11.66

517.91%

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 MX$88.0

$4.57 MYR 18.00

8.97%

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

$200 MX$3,530

$132 MYR 519

51.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,304 MX$93.6K

$4,466 MYR 17.6K

18.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.71 MX$630

$59.8 MYR 236

-40.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.56 MX$698

$22.69 MYR 89.4

74.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 MX$1,422

$70.6 MYR 278

14.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.3 MX$1,559

$92.5 MYR 364

-4.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 MX$17.1K

$382 MYR 1,506

153.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MX$8,511

$166 MYR 652

191.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 MX$28.2K

$656 MYR 2,585

143.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 MX$20.9K

$367 MYR 1,446

222.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$71.5K

$1,910 MYR 7,524

112.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,522 MX$115.1K

$1,123 MYR 4,426

480.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$756 MX$13.4K

$609 MYR 2,401

24.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

3.8

200.53%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

Last update for Kota Kinabalu: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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