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 29.3% more expensive than La Romana without rent, and 58.6% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 13% more expensive than La Romana without rent, and 49.7% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$8.25 DOP 486
45.33%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$51.8 DOP 3,050
-18.03%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$7.34 DOP 432
42.64%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.74 DOP 161
31.39%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$0.99 DOP 58.1
45.45%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.4 DOP 23.43
122.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$2.48 DOP 146
24.60%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$5.23 DOP 308
-12.43%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.07 DOP 63.1
28.97%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.71 DOP 101
8.19%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.56 DOP 91.8
0.64%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.21 DOP 130
15.38%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$7.11 DOP 418
21.10%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$5.14 DOP 303
66.15%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$5.03 DOP 296
118.29%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$3.28 DOP 193
-17.07%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$0.87 DOP 51.4
73.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$2.9 DOP 170
-35.17%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.92 DOP 113
14.06%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$2.56 DOP 150
-26.95%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$2.31 DOP 136
-5.19%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.1 DOP 64.5
-2.73%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.96 DOP 56.3
13.54%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$5.41 DOP 319
-26.80%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$11.9 DOP 701
-25.55%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$2.66 DOP 157
-35.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$3.24 DOP 191
-19.44%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$3.44 DOP 202
-5.81%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$2.11 DOP 124
12.80%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$5.95 DOP 350
-47.73%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.28 DOP 75.4
2.34%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$26.3K DOP 1.5M
15.45%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$31.3K DOP 1.8M
-23.40%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$68.7 DOP 4,047
22.55%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$17.54 DOP 1,032
26.23%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$33.32 DOP 1,961
-9.54%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$6.8 DOP 400
-25.44%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$267 DOP 15.7K
-24.84%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$8,191 DOP 482.2K
-34.90%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$60.7 DOP 3,572
-41.09%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$51.8 DOP 3,052
-23.23%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$97.8 DOP 5,756
-19.23%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$116 DOP 6,816
-23.67%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$203 DOP 12K
375.13%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$133 DOP 7,837
256.31%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$417 DOP 24.5K
296.69%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$511 DOP 30.1K
135.31%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
La Romana
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$280 DOP 16.5K
182.69%
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: October 28, 2025

Last update for La Romana: October 29, 2025

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