Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Malaga Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Malaga

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 7.1% more expensive than Malaga without rent, and 30.3% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 22% cheaper than Malaga without rent, and 16.6% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$13.84 €11.95
-13.37%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$62.9 €54.3
-32.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$9.09 €7.85
15.18%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.37 €2.04
51.90%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$2.37 €2.04
-39.24%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$1.89 €1.63
-52.91%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$3.38 €2.92
-8.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$4.41 €3.81
3.85%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.18 €1.01
16.95%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.33 €1.15
39.10%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.74 €1.5
-9.77%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.81 €2.42
-9.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$15.38 €13.28
-44.02%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$7.73 €6.67
10.48%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$14.32 €12.37
-23.32%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.51 €2.16
8.37%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$1.95 €1.69
-22.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.64 €1.41
14.63%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$2.37 €2.05
-7.59%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.86 €1.61
0.54%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.98 €1.71
10.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.17 €1.01
-8.55%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.75 €0.65
45.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$6.3 €5.44
-37.14%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$5.79 €5
53.02%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.22 €1.05
40.98%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.43 €2.1
7.41%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$1.66 €1.43
-68.67%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$29.94 €25.85
-11.19%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$4.68 €4.04
-30.77%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$1.02 €0.88
133.33%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$29.11 €25.13
-89.32%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.84 €1.59
-28.80%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$38.7K €33.4K
-21.67%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$30.4K €26.2K
-21.05%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$138 €119
-39.12%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$17.97 €15.52
23.21%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$29.71 €25.65
1.45%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$48.39 €41.78
7.42%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$16.21 €14
15.48%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$10.22 €8.82
-50.39%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$453 €391
-55.75%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$10.1K €8,711
-47.15%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$80.8 €69.8
-55.79%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$39.55 €34.15
0.63%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$88 €76
-10.22%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$118 €102
-24.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$1,216 €1,050
-20.63%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$879 €759
-46.06%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$2,020 €1,744
-18.17%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$1,528 €1,319
-21.35%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$6,271 €5,414
-50.86%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$5,346 €4,616
40.84%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Malaga
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$1,719 €1,484
-53.93%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
3.46
230.06%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Malaga: October 29, 2025

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