Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lipa

For one person, living is cheaper in Lipa: $596 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
29

Cost of Living Index in Lipa
Learn more

Lipa Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Lipa

🇵🇭 Philippines

$596

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $596 in Lipa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Lipa $596

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $924 in Lipa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Lipa $924

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,252 in Lipa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Lipa $1,252

Playa del Carmen costs about 102% more than Lipa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Lipa are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Lipa 56% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$3.12 ₱199

250.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$15.87 ₱1,011

173.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$2.78 ₱177

323.74%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$1.83 ₱117

108.20%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$0.42 ₱26.59

204.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.31 ₱19.53

151.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.02 ₱65.2

210.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$1.52 ₱96.8

224.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.51 ₱96.5

-6.62%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$1.10 ₱70.1

101.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$0.83 ₱52.6

71.08%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$1.72 ₱109

46.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$5.13 ₱327

41.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$3.26 ₱208

136.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$7.81 ₱498

62.48%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$2.28 ₱145

21.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.57 ₱99.8

-12.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$2.28 ₱145

11.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.01 ₱64.3

109.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$1.67 ₱106

16.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.70 ₱109

11.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.60 ₱38.38

91.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.49 ₱31.12

140.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$2.91 ₱186

47.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$8.39 ₱535

18.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$0.89 ₱56.9

77.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$1.94 ₱124

37.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.27 ₱17.24

103.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$4.80 ₱306

454.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$0.68 ₱43.30

630.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.24 ₱15.33

1287.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$1.87 ₱119

186.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.10 ₱70.0

30.91%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$20.8K ₱1.3M

-0.69%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$15.4K ₱983.0K

52.11%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$135 ₱8,608

-37.24%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$17.10 ₱1,089

36.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$22.80 ₱1,453

25.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$31.49 ₱2,006

81.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$3.83 ₱244

654.83%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$5.06 ₱323

1.58%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$132 ₱8,379

57.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$10.6K ₱676.2K

-62.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$28.79 ₱1,834

50.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$19.29 ₱1,229

114.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$71.7 ₱4,567

3.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$55.7 ₱3,546

60.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$79.1 ₱5,041

1138.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$58.6 ₱3,731

550.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$241 ₱15.4K

608.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$177 ₱11.3K

508.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$222 ₱14.1K

231.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

90.83%

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 Lipa: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Lipa

$59 9.8% 84.6% $322

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Lipa

$168 28.2% 34% $87

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Lipa

$66 11.1% 67.2% $136

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Lipa

$175 29.3% 27.9% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Lipa

$79 13.2% 29.3% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Lipa

$42 7% 38.2% $26

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Lipa

$7.8 1.3% 84.6% $43

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $79 in Lipa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 3.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $16 in Lipa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $168 – making Lipa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 Lipa

🕒 Local time

03:32 3:32 AM

16:32 4:32 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

332,386

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.11 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Lipa 15,090 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Lipa

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 Lipa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $596 in Lipa – Lipa comes out roughly 50% 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 $894 in Lipa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lipa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $79 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Public transport costs about 82% less in Lipa. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $132 in Lipa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Lipa, where all-in costs run around $596, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Lipa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Lipa. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.