Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Labuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Labuan: $969 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Labuan
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Labuan Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Labuan

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$969

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Labuan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $969 in Labuan.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Labuan $969

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,507 in Labuan.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Labuan $1,507

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,045 in Labuan.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Labuan $2,045

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 24% more expensive than in Labuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Labuan 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$5.45 MYR 22.13

95.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$24.74 MYR 100

77.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$6.91 MYR 28.06

70.62%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$3.96 MYR 16.06

-4.29%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.07 MYR 4.33

21.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.41 MYR 1.67

102.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$3.82 MYR 15.53

-17.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$4.63 MYR 18.79

6.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.77 MYR 7.18

-20.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.05 MYR 4.25

109.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.44 MYR 5.86

2.08%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$2.26 MYR 9.17

10.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$16.79 MYR 68.2

-56.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$4.54 MYR 18.42

75.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$9.39 MYR 38.14

36.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.28 MYR 13.31

-11.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.67 MYR 6.80

-17.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$2.52 MYR 10.23

-1.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.58 MYR 6.41

28.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.21 MYR 4.93

66.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.38 MYR 5.58

37.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.18 MYR 4.81

-3.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.52 MYR 2.10

138.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$4.30 MYR 17.44

-0.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$19.07 MYR 77.5

-48.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$2.98 MYR 12.09

-46.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$4.44 MYR 18.02

-38.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.70 MYR 2.84

-27.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$12.19 MYR 49.50

124.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.20 MYR 4.88

296.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.58 MYR 2.34

460.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$7.38 MYR 29.96

-26.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.77 MYR 3.15

98.70%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$44.4K MYR 180.4K

-52.24%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$35.9K MYR 145.8K

-35.21%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$48.90 MYR 199

70.74%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$9.66 MYR 39.23

140.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$28.73 MYR 117

-3.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$37.51 MYR 152

50.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$6.74 MYR 27.35

318.25%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.39 MYR 17.82

13.90%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$241 MYR 979

-14.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$6,912 MYR 28.1K

-24.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$55.2 MYR 224

-21.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$34.25 MYR 139

24.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$81.9 MYR 333

-11.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$76.3 MYR 310

15.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$409 MYR 1,661

143.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$291 MYR 1,181

31.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$732 MYR 2,972

128.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$557 MYR 2,261

94.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$1,970 MYR 8,002

98.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,191 MYR 4,839

415.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$362 MYR 1,471

129.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.06

182.02%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Labuan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Labuan

$291 30% 24% $92

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Labuan

$268 27.6% 4% $10

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Labuan

$146 15.1% 27.1% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Labuan

$87 9% 35% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Labuan

$111 11.5% 0.2% $0.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Labuan

$46 4.8% 30.3% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Labuan

$19 2% 62.2% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $409 in Labuan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $25 in Labuan. Groceries flip the comparison at $257 vs $268, with Playa del Carmen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Labuan

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

15:54 3:54 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

95,120

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.56 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Labuan 16,240 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Labuan

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 Labuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Labuan is about 19% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Playa del Carmen is about 2.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $409 in Labuan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $241 in Labuan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Playa del Carmen pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Labuan wins on affordability, Playa del Carmen on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.