Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Maputo

For one person, living is cheaper in Maputo: $1,109 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Maputo
Learn more

Maputo Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Maputo

🇲🇿 Mozambique

$1,109

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,109 in Maputo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Maputo $1,109

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,720 in Maputo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Maputo $1,720

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,331 in Maputo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Maputo $2,331

Playa del Carmen costs about 10% more than Maputo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Maputo are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Maputo 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$10.37 MZN 656

5.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$63.2 MZN 3,995

-28.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$6.95 MZN 440

71.51%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$2.28 MZN 144

66.67%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$0.87 MZN 55.2

50.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$0.73 MZN 46.29

17.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

$1.60 MZN 101

100.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

$2.32 MZN 147

115.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.52 MZN 96.1

-3.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$1.00 MZN 63.0

133.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.67 MZN 106

-13.77%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$2.52 MZN 159

-2.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$21.02 MZN 1,329

-63.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$5.87 MZN 371

34.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$5.59 MZN 353

128.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$1.99 MZN 126

46.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$0.79 MZN 50.2

79.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$1.71 MZN 108

50.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$1.09 MZN 68.7

96.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$1.03 MZN 65.4

89.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$0.75 MZN 47.25

158.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$0.96 MZN 61.0

19.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$0.91 MZN 57.4

34.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$2.83 MZN 179

54.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

$10.11 MZN 639

-2.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

$0.98 MZN 61.7

57.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

$1.32 MZN 83.6

106.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$0.37 MZN 23.45

40.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

$23.65 MZN 1,496

15.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$1.60 MZN 101

206.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$1.19 MZN 75.2

195.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$24.44 MZN 1,546

-76.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$1.36 MZN 85.8

13.24%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$31.7K MZN 2.0M

-33.09%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$22.5K MZN 1.4M

8.80%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$71.5 MZN 4,520

17.00%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$7.75 MZN 490

210.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$88.1 MZN 5,573

-66.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$42.26 MZN 2,673

53.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$26.54 MZN 1,679

11.00%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$7.88 MZN 499

-35.41%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$129 MZN 8,158

61.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

$5,162 MZN 326.5K

-21.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$49.15 MZN 3,109

-9.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$55.3 MZN 3,496

-23.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$77.2 MZN 4,881

-2.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$78.1 MZN 4,940

16.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$536 MZN 33.9K

83.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$382 MZN 24.2K

0.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$1,061 MZN 67.1K

61.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$566 MZN 35.8K

95.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$4,129 MZN 261.1K

-2.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$2,051 MZN 129.7K

204.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

$325 MZN 20.6K

133.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-54.20%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Maputo: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Maputo

$382 33.8% 0.8% $3

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Maputo

$225 19.9% 13.5% $35

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Maputo

$150 13.3% 26.3% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Maputo

$167 14.8% 22.1% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Maputo

$117 10.3% 2.4% $2.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Maputo

$58 5.1% 22.7% $17

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Maputo

$33 2.9% 37.2% $19

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $536 in Maputo. 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 133% 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 $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $63.0 in Maputo. Groceries tell a different story – $260 in Playa del Carmen vs $225 in Maputo – so Maputo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇿 Maputo

🕒 Local time

04:41 4:41 AM

11:41 11:41 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

1,244,227 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Mozambican Metical MZN MT

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

100 MZN = 1.58 USD

100 MZN = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MZN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.88 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Maputo 13,880 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Maputo

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 Maputo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, $1,109 in Maputo – roughly 10% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,663 in Maputo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $208 per month in Playa del Carmen and $129 in Maputo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 16% 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 $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Maputo, where all-in costs run around $1,109, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In Maputo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,109 in Maputo to $1,215 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Maputo. 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.