Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Manila

For one person, living is cheaper in Manila: $945 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Manila
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Manila Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Manila

🇵🇭 Philippines

$945

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $945 in Manila, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Manila $945

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,572 in Manila, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Manila $1,572

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,199 in Manila, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Manila $2,199

Playa del Carmen costs about 27% more than Manila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Manila are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Manila 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$5.34 ₱341

104.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$26.46 ₱1,686

63.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$3.93 ₱251

199.75%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$2.53 ₱161

50.59%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$1.35 ₱86.0

-5.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.82 ₱52.1

-4.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.14 ₱72.6

178.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.38 ₱152

107.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.91 ₱121

-26.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$1.44 ₱91.8

54.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$0.94 ₱60.1

51.06%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.30 ₱147

9.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$7.41 ₱472

-2.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$4.61 ₱294

67.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$6.65 ₱424

90.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$3.29 ₱210

-15.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.80 ₱114

-23.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$3.00 ₱191

-15.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.76 ₱112

20.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$2.22 ₱141

-12.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$2.66 ₱169

-28.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$2.14 ₱136

-46.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.53 ₱34.03

122.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$3.06 ₱195

40.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$9.57 ₱610

3.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$1.30 ₱83.1

21.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$1.99 ₱127

34.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.40 ₱25.76

37.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$12.75 ₱812

108.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$0.72 ₱45.85

590.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.23 ₱14.68

1347.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$1.84 ₱117

191.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.27 ₱80.8

13.39%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$20.7K ₱1.3M

-0.22%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$18.7K ₱1.2M

25.71%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$120 ₱7,620

-29.10%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$15.69 ₱1,000

49.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$23.60 ₱1,504

21.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$42.57 ₱2,713

34.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$5.65 ₱360

411.68%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$6.50 ₱414

-20.92%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$599 ₱38.2K

-65.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$8,818 ₱561.9K

-55.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$56.7 ₱3,611

-23.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$27.40 ₱1,746

51.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$76.4 ₱4,865

-2.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$55.5 ₱3,537

60.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$526 ₱33.5K

86.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$297 ₱18.9K

28.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$1,887 ₱120.2K

-9.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$816 ₱52.0K

31.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$3,968 ₱252.9K

-0.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$2,366 ₱150.8K

160.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$466 ₱29.7K

57.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

7.43

54.10%

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 Manila: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Manila

$297 31.4% 22.1% $84

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Manila

$216 22.9% 15.1% $38

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Manila

$104 11% 48.6% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Manila

$159 16.8% 16.1% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Manila

$97 10.3% 13% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Manila

$56 5.9% 17.5% $12

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Manila

$16 1.7% 67.8% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $526 in Manila. 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 58% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $26 in Manila. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $216 – making Manila the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 Manila

🕒 Local time

06:55 6:55 AM

19:55 7:55 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

1,780,148 Capital

💱 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 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 63.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.15 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Manila 15,040 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Manila

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 Manila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $945 in Manila – Manila comes out roughly 22% 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 $1,418 in Manila. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Manila, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $526 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $945 in Manila. That makes Manila about 22% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 52% less in Manila. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Manila, where all-in costs run around $945, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Manila it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Manila costs $945 versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Manila. 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.