Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and La Romana Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and La Romana

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 24.7% more expensive than La Romana without rent, and 60.2% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 18.2% more expensive than La Romana without rent, and 48.6% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.85 MX$212
$8.35 DOP 499
41.92%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.16 MX$755
$51.5 DOP 3,076
-18.15%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.75 MX$192
$7.41 DOP 443
45.07%
Cappuccino
$3.47 MX$62.2
$2.61 DOP 156
32.95%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$26.01
$1.00 DOP 59.5
45.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$16.16
$0.40 DOP 23.62
125.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.05 MX$54.7
$2.57 DOP 153
18.68%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 MX$79.1
$4.98 DOP 298
-11.24%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 MX$24.51
$1.11 DOP 66.3
23.42%
White Bread (500g)
$1.87 MX$33.51
$1.75 DOP 104
6.86%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 MX$27.63
$1.50 DOP 89.4
2.67%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$44.81
$2.31 DOP 138
8.23%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$154
$6.94 DOP 415
24.06%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.63 MX$155
$5.01 DOP 299
72.26%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.02 MX$197
$4.98 DOP 298
121.29%
Apples (1kg)
$2.75 MX$49.22
$3.30 DOP 197
-16.67%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$25.56
$0.86 DOP 51.4
66.28%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.87 MX$33.52
$3.00 DOP 179
-37.67%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MX$38.80
$1.94 DOP 116
11.86%
Potato (1kg)
$1.88 MX$33.70
$2.52 DOP 151
-25.40%
Onion (1kg)
$2.25 MX$40.21
$2.36 DOP 141
-4.66%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$19.11
$1.13 DOP 67.3
-5.31%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.07 MX$19.22
$0.96 DOP 57.1
11.46%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.15 MX$74.4
$5.40 DOP 322
-23.15%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.34 MX$185
$11.54 DOP 689
-10.40%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 MX$30.06
$2.72 DOP 162
-38.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 MX$44.46
$3.19 DOP 191
-22.26%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$9.93
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.53 MX$475
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.22 MX$57.6
$3.33 DOP 199
-3.30%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.48 MX$44.42
$2.20 DOP 131
12.73%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$55.7
$6.10 DOP 364
-49.02%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.48
$1.33 DOP 79.5
-5.26%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K MX$548.8K
$26.7K DOP 1.6M
14.65%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$430.3K
$31.2K DOP 1.9M
-23.00%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$82.5 MX$1,476
$68.0 DOP 4,061
21.31%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.29 MX$399
$17.69 DOP 1,056
26.00%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.02 MX$537
$33.56 DOP 2,004
-10.55%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 MX$921
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.29 MX$327
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$4.98 MX$89.2
$6.87 DOP 410
-27.51%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,580
$269 DOP 16.1K
-25.76%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,304 MX$94.9K
$8,020 DOP 479.0K
-33.86%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.71 MX$639
$60.3 DOP 3,599
-40.75%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.56 MX$708
$51.3 DOP 3,063
-22.87%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.6 MX$1,442
$97.4 DOP 5,816
-17.29%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.3 MX$1,581
$114 DOP 6,809
-22.54%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$969 MX$17.4K
$204 DOP 12.2K
375.46%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,632
$135 DOP 8,041
258.14%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,595 MX$28.6K
$425 DOP 25.4K
275.04%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,184 MX$21.2K
$504 DOP 30.1K
134.79%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,050 MX$72.5K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,522 MX$116.7K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$756 MX$13.5K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
11.5
-0.70%

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 La Romana: 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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