Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Luanda

For one person, living is cheaper in Luanda: $999 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Luanda
Learn more

Luanda Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Luanda

🇦🇴 Angola

$999

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $999 in Luanda.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Luanda $999

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,896 in Luanda.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Luanda $1,896

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,793 in Luanda.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Luanda $2,793

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 21% more expensive than in Luanda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Luanda 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$5.49 AOA 5,014

97.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$37.38 AOA 34.1K

18.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$6.59 AOA 6,013

78.45%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$2.66 AOA 2,427

38.35%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$1.34 AOA 1,226

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.15 AOA 1,052

-28.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$1.60 AOA 1,461

91.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$1.60 AOA 1,463

208.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.97 AOA 1,798

-25.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$0.91 AOA 831

143.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.62 AOA 1,477

-8.64%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$1.83 AOA 1,672

36.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$9.68 AOA 8,839

-22.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$3.35 AOA 3,057

137.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$7.72 AOA 7,043

62.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$2.29 AOA 2,093

21.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$0.96 AOA 874

48.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$2.71 AOA 2,475

-3.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$1.82 AOA 1,662

17.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$1.59 AOA 1,450

27.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$1.54 AOA 1,401

29.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.69 AOA 1,542

-32.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.37 AOA 338

224.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$1.66 AOA 1,514

156.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$5.95 AOA 5,430

68.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$0.42 AOA 383

266.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$0.87 AOA 791

205.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$0.34 AOA 313

55.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$32.68 AOA 29.8K

-15.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$1.07 AOA 976

357.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$0.90 AOA 824

281.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$5.56 AOA 5,071

-3.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$0.32 AOA 290

353.12%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$14.4K AOA 13.1M

46.96%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$22.5K AOA 20.6M

2.11%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$99.9 AOA 91.2K

-14.53%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$17.83 AOA 16.3K

31.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$76.8 AOA 70.1K

-62.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$45.15 AOA 41.2K

37.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$15.28 AOA 14.0K

87.70%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$3.51 AOA 3,200

45.30%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$760 AOA 694.1K

-73.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$13.1K AOA 12.0M

-69.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$109 AOA 99.8K

-59.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$61.8 AOA 56.4K

-33.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$95.3 AOA 87.0K

-23.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$203 AOA 185.5K

-55.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$390 AOA 355.6K

151.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$201 AOA 183.1K

85.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$2,162 AOA 2.0M

-22.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$1,063 AOA 970.4K

3.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$12.1K AOA 11.0M

-67.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$889 AOA 811.4K

590.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,379 AOA 1.3M

-46.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-45.48%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Luanda: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Luanda

$201 20.1% 46.2% $172

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Luanda

$183 18.4% 29% $75

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Luanda

$117 11.7% 41.7% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Luanda

$195 19.5% 41.7% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Luanda

$211 21.2% 89.3% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Luanda

$52 5.2% 28% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Luanda

$40 4% 23.3% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $390 in Luanda. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Luanda pays 87% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $37.00 in Luanda for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $183 per month, with Luanda cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇴 Luanda

🕒 Local time

16:34 4:34 PM

22:34 10:34 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

2,600,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Angolan Kwanza AOA Kz

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 AOA = 10.96 USD

10,000 AOA = 9.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AOA, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Angolan Kwanza exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 913 AOA (1,000 AOA = 1.1 USD). 1 EUR = 1,026 AOA (10,000 AOA = 9.74 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Luanda 11,420 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Luanda

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 Luanda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen and Luanda differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($1,204 vs $999 including rent). Luanda is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 87% lower in Luanda. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $390 in Luanda. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Luanda runs roughly 19% less than in Playa del Carmen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $201 in Playa del Carmen versus $760 in Luanda. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $999 in Luanda versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Luanda but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Luanda the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Luanda gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.