Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Linstead

For one person, living is cheaper in Linstead: $1,011 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Linstead
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Linstead Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Linstead

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,011

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,011 in Linstead, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Linstead $1,011

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,671 in Linstead, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Linstead $1,671

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,330 in Linstead, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Linstead $2,330

Playa del Carmen costs about 19% more than Linstead, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Playa del Carmen and Linstead are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Linstead 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$13.70 JMD 2,165

-20.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$813

$74.7 JMD 11.8K

-41.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$8.02 JMD 1,267

46.88%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.4

$5.25 JMD 829

-27.43%

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

$1.28 MX$24.03

$1.15 JMD 182

11.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.67

$0.68 JMD 108

14.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.3

$2.23 JMD 353

42.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.5

$3.21 JMD 507

53.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.35

$4.24 JMD 670

-66.75%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.54

$3.87 JMD 611

-42.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.56

$1.58 JMD 250

-10.13%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.27

$3.62 JMD 572

-30.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$11.23 JMD 1,774

-35.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$6.48 JMD 1,024

18.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$10.17 JMD 1,607

24.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.2

$6.10 JMD 963

-54.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.64

$4.00 JMD 632

-65.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.80

$7.25 JMD 1,145

-64.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.78

$3.08 JMD 487

-31.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.32

$3.30 JMD 521

-41.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.34

$2.58 JMD 407

-26.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.49

$3.10 JMD 490

-62.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.09

$1.49 JMD 236

-20.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.5

$9.37 JMD 1,480

-54.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$186

$11.22 JMD 1,772

-11.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.67

$2.84 JMD 448

-44.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$3.88 JMD 612

-31.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.37

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$499

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.1

$1.28 JMD 202

288.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.4

$3.11 JMD 491

7.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

$6.19 JMD 977

-13.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.06

$1.40 JMD 220

2.86%

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

$20.7K MX$387.3K

$43.3K JMD 6.8M

-52.33%

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

$23.5K MX$439.7K

$32.8K JMD 5.2M

-28.50%

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

$84.8 MX$1,589

$171 JMD 27.0K

-50.30%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$29.95 JMD 4,732

-21.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$537

$53.4 JMD 8,435

-46.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,069

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$542

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.3

$13.12 JMD 2,073

-60.82%

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

$207 MX$3,871

$363 JMD 57.4K

-43.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.6K

$8,207 JMD 1.3M

-52.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$812

$23.22 JMD 3,669

86.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$777

$31.14 JMD 4,920

33.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,390

$78.9 JMD 12.5K

-5.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,672

$101 JMD 16.0K

-11.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,136

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

9.45

21.16%

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 Linstead: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Linstead

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Linstead

$387 38.3% 52% $132

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Linstead

$222 21.9% 9.5% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Linstead

$254 25.1% 85.6% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Linstead

$105 10.4% 5.6% $6.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Linstead

$26 * 2.6% 61% $41

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Linstead

$17 * 1.7% 66.6% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $75 in Linstead. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $387 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇯🇲 Linstead

🕒 Local time

08:45 8:45 AM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

20,660

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR 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 = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Linstead 1,090 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Linstead

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 Linstead: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen costs about 19% more than Linstead, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,517 in Linstead. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $75 in Linstead. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 34% cheaper in Playa del Carmen – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,011 in Linstead. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,011 in Linstead to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.