Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Minca

For one person, living is cheaper in Minca: $802 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Minca
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Minca Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Minca

🇨🇴 Colombia

$802

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $802 in Minca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Minca $802

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,213 in Minca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Minca $1,213

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,623 in Minca, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Minca $1,623

Playa del Carmen costs about 50% more than Minca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Minca are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Minca 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$3.99 COP 13.0K

167.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$23.82 COP 77.2K

83.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$7.18 COP 23.3K

64.21%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$1.57 COP 5,086

141.40%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$0.92 COP 2,989

41.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$0.62 COP 2,006

33.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$1.20 COP 3,891

162.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$2.24 COP 7,279

120.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$1.11 COP 3,590

27.03%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$1.29 COP 4,175

70.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$1.14 COP 3,712

28.95%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$2.23 COP 7,225

12.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$4.39 COP 14.2K

66.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$5.20 COP 16.9K

52.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$7.30 COP 23.7K

76.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$2.56 COP 8,313

13.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$1.04 COP 3,375

32.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$1.34 COP 4,347

85.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$1.06 COP 3,452

91.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$1.11 COP 3,595

81.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.14 COP 3,687

66.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$0.87 COP 2,824

31.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$0.65 COP 2,110

90.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$2.34 COP 7,598

82.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$9.51 COP 30.8K

3.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$1.13 COP 3,658

40.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$1.74 COP 5,632

58.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$0.67 COP 2,165

-23.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

$30.46 COP 98.8K

-10.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$1.49 COP 4,818

219.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$1.70 COP 5,516

91.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$6.13 COP 19.9K

-12.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$0.96 COP 3,105

59.38%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$17.7K COP 57.5M

19.59%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$25.3K COP 82.0M

-8.04%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$81.1 COP 262.9K

3.01%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$9.13 COP 29.6K

154.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$22.93 COP 74.4K

20.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$23.47 COP 76.1K

140.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$4.03 COP 13.1K

24.07%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$241 COP 780.7K

-13.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$5,950 COP 19.3M

-12.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$59.4 COP 192.7K

-26.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$33.17 COP 107.6K

28.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$83.0 COP 269.3K

-12.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$73.5 COP 238.4K

20.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$274 COP 887.2K

263.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$239 COP 776.7K

59.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$525 COP 1.7M

219.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$412 COP 1.3M

162.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

$1,416 COP 4.6M

176.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$1,077 COP 3.5M

469.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

13.06

-12.33%

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 Minca: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Minca

$240 29.9% 37.4% $143

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Minca

$173 21.6% 32.7% $84

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Minca

$89 11.1% 55.6% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Minca

$113 14.1% 15.8% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Minca

$112 14% 0.8% $0.9

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Minca

$32 3.9% 52.5% $35

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Minca

$43 5.4% 14.5% $7.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $274 in Minca. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $24 in Minca. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $173 – making Minca the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇴 Minca

🕒 Local time

02:36 2:36 AM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

500

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.08 USD

10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3,243 COP (10,000 COP = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 3,636 COP (10,000 COP = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Playa del Carmen Minca 1,740 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Minca

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 Minca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 50%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,202 in Minca. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Minca, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $274 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $802 in Minca. That makes Minca about 33% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Minca, where all-in costs run around $802, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Minca 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 $802 in Minca to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.