Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lija

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,974 in Lija, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Lija
Learn more

Lija Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Lija

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,974

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,974 in Lija, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Lija $1,974

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,101 in Lija, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Lija $3,101

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,228 in Lija, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Lija $4,228

Playa del Carmen is about 39% cheaper than Lija, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Lija is 45% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$22.47 €20.05

-51.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$813

$90.7 €80.9

-52.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$13.33 €11.89

-11.63%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.4

$3.20 €2.86

19.06%

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

$1.28 MX$24.03

$2.34 €2.08

-45.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.67

$1.92 €1.71

-59.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.3

$5.71 €5.10

-44.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.5

$6.78 €6.05

-27.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.35

$1.32 €1.18

6.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.54

$1.46 €1.30

52.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.56

$3.42 €3.05

-58.48%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.27

$4.23 €3.78

-40.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$10.29 €9.18

-29.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$11.83 €10.55

-34.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$18.44 €16.46

-31.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.2

$3.75 €3.35

-25.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.64

$2.80 €2.50

-51.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.80

$3.96 €3.54

-35.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.78

$3.84 €3.42

-44.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.32

$1.86 €1.66

4.30%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.34

$3.36 €3.00

-43.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.49

$2.21 €1.97

-47.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.09

$1.49 €1.33

-20.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.5

$6.18 €5.52

-30.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$186

$5.85 €5.22

70.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.67

$2.39 €2.13

-33.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.28 €2.04

17.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

$2.45 €2.18

-77.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.1

$3.98 €3.55

24.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.4

$1.76 €1.57

89.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

$32.80 €29.26

-83.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.06

$1.52 €1.36

-5.26%

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

$20.7K MX$387.3K

$28.2K €25.1K

-26.60%

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

$23.5K MX$439.7K

$38.9K €34.8K

-39.75%

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

$84.8 MX$1,589

$157 €140

-46.03%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$31.50 €28.10

-25.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$537

$28.99 €25.87

-1.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,069

$56.7 €50.6

0.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.3

$11.33 €10.11

-54.63%

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

$207 MX$3,871

$272 €243

-24.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.6K

$12.3K €11.0K

-68.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$812

$57.7 €51.5

-24.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$777

$67.6 €60.3

-38.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,390

$111 €99.0

-33.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,672

$131 €117

-31.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$1,205 €1,075

-18.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,136

$830 €741

-54.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.0K

$1,528 €1,363

11.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

$1,497 €1,336

-28.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

$4,448 €3,969

-11.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.4K

$2,958 €2,639

108.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.05

182.72%

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 Lija: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Lija

$830 42.1% 118% $449

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Lija

$341 17.3% 34% $87

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Lija

$317 16.1% 56.8% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Lija

$218 11% 59% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Lija

$165 8.4% 48% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Lija

$79 4% 17.8% $12

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Lija

$23 * 1.1% 55.3% $28

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,205 in Lija. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $91 in Lija. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $341 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇹 Lija

🕒 Local time

16:01 4:01 PM

22:01 10:01 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

3,200

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Lija 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Lija

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 Lija: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $1,974 in Lija – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 39% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,961 in Lija. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,205 in Lija.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,974 in Lija. That makes Playa del Carmen about 39% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $272 in Lija. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Lija at $1,974. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lija it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.