Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Margate, South Africa

For one person, living is cheaper in Margate: $883 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Margate
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Margate Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Margate

🇿🇦 South Africa

$883

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $883 in Margate.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Margate $883

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,419 in Margate.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Margate $1,419

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,956 in Margate.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Margate $1,956

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 36% more expensive than in Margate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Margate 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$8.41 R 138

26.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$36.18 R 594

21.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$6.15 R 101

91.71%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.86 R 30.51

103.76%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.03 R 16.91

26.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.82 R 13.50

1.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$2.44 R 40.03

29.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.31 R 37.84

113.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.99 R 16.19

42.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.89 R 14.63

147.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.07 R 17.51

37.38%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$2.30 R 37.75

8.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$5.27 R 86.5

38.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.49 R 57.3

127.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$5.81 R 95.3

121.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.19 R 19.60

143.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.17 R 19.28

17.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$1.07 R 17.51

132.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.38 R 22.72

47.10%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.02 R 16.74

98.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.26 R 20.71

50.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.14 R 18.67

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.97 R 15.93

27.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$1.62 R 26.58

163.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$3.62 R 59.3

170.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.49 R 24.43

6.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.96 R 32.09

40.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$1.65 R 27.14

-69.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.40 R 6.62

1090.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.75 R 12.37

333.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$7.80 R 128

-30.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.34 R 22.02

14.18%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$35.3K R 578.6K

-39.85%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$34.1K R 559.0K

-31.73%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$61.0 R 1,001

36.80%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$18.22 R 299

27.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$32.75 R 537

-15.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$31.51 R 517

79.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$11.19 R 184

151.92%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.28 R 70.2

16.82%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$316 R 5,188

-34.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$7,369 R 120.9K

-29.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$53.2 R 872

-18.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$18.09 R 297

135.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$72.0 R 1,181

1.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$48.72 R 799

81.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$389 R 6,376

155.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$354 R 5,805

8.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$720 R 11.8K

132.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$731 R 12.0K

47.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$772 R 12.7K

406.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$671 R 11.0K

814.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$1,479 R 24.3K

-43.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.7

-2.14%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Margate: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Margate

$354 40.1% 7.5% $29

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Margate

$148 16.7% 42.7% $110

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Margate

$132 15% 34% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Margate

$112 12.7% 16.6% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Margate

$86 9.8% 22.3% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Margate

$40 4.5% 39.7% $26

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Margate

$11 * 1.2% 78.6% $40

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $389 in Margate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Margate pays 78% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $36 in Margate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $148 per month, with Margate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇿🇦 Margate

🕒 Local time

06:21 6:21 AM

13:21 1:21 PM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

34,407

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.09 USD

100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.41 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.09 USD). 1 EUR = 18.44 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Margate 13,730 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Margate

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 Margate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Margate wins on cost – living expenses run 27% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Margate the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 44% lower in Playa del Carmen. 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: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $389 in Margate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $316 in Margate. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Margate – a meal for two runs $36 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Margate is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.