Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Mahdia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mahdia: $561 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Mahdia
Learn more

Mahdia Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Mahdia

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$561

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $561 in Mahdia, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Mahdia $561

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $887 in Mahdia, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Mahdia $887

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,214 in Mahdia, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Mahdia $1,214

Playa del Carmen costs about 115% more than Mahdia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Mahdia are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Mahdia 59% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$2.54 TND 7.61

327.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$19.76 TND 59.2

123.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$5.00 TND 14.99

135.20%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$0.98 TND 2.94

275.51%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$0.62 TND 1.87

116.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.17 TND 0.50

382.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$1.03 TND 3.07

197.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$1.55 TND 4.65

218.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$0.43 TND 1.28

241.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$0.28 TND 0.84

692.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.33 TND 3.98

11.28%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$1.54 TND 4.60

61.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$11.75 TND 35.18

-36.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$5.06 TND 15.15

57.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$14.81 TND 44.37

-15.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$2.91 TND 8.71

-4.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$2.79 TND 8.37

-48.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$1.40 TND 4.19

87.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$0.72 TND 2.16

197.22%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$0.64 TND 1.91

215.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$0.33 TND 0.99

503.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$0.41 TND 1.22

178.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.33 TND 0.98

263.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$3.61 TND 10.82

18.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$3.29 TND 9.87

204.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.57 TND 4.71

-1.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.26 TND 3.78

111.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$0.33 TND 0.99

60.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$13.27 TND 39.75

107.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$0.29 TND 0.86

1589.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$0.26 TND 0.77

1219.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$0.89 TND 2.67

62.92%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$39.7K TND 118.8K

-46.66%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$40.5K TND 121.2K

-43.12%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$56.7 TND 170

50.55%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$7.30 TND 21.87

221.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$20.30 TND 60.8

40.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$20.78 TND 62.2

199.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$7.50 TND 22.46

282.40%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$6.76 TND 20.25

-24.56%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$109 TND 326

84.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$998 TND 2,989

295.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$38.75 TND 116

14.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$34.18 TND 102

20.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$78.5 TND 235

-7.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$23.12 TND 69.2

287.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$129 TND 385

661.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$99.7 TND 298

274.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$300 TND 899

460.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$174 TND 521

529.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$681 TND 2,041

479.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$202 TND 604

2943.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$236 TND 707

212.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

10.33

10.84%

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 Mahdia: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Mahdia

$100 17.8% 73.3% $273

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Mahdia

$189 33.7% 26.8% $69

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Mahdia

$59 10.4% 70.8% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Mahdia

$84 15% 38.6% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Mahdia

$79 14% 29.6% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Mahdia

$34 6.1% 52.6% $38

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Mahdia

$16 2.9% 68.7% $36

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $129 in Mahdia. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 212% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $20.00 in Mahdia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $189 – making Mahdia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇳 Mahdia

🕒 Local time

07:34 7:34 AM

13:34 1:34 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

79,545

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Mahdia 9,390 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Mahdia

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 Mahdia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 115%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $841 in Mahdia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mahdia, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $201 per month in Playa del Carmen and $109 in Mahdia. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 37% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Mahdia, where all-in costs run around $561, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Mahdia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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