Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Monrovia

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,282 in Monrovia, rent and utilities included – about $960 less a year. The total is higher in Monrovia despite lower rent and utilities.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Monrovia
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Monrovia Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monrovia

🇱🇷 Liberia

$1,282

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,282 in Monrovia.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Monrovia $1,282

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,894 in Monrovia.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Monrovia $1,894

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,506 in Monrovia.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Monrovia $2,506

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 6% less than in Monrovia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Monrovia 5% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$7.42 LRD 1,258

43.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$10.84 LRD 1,837

8.76%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$3.05 LRD 516

24.26%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$2.03 LRD 344

-35.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$1.97 LRD 334

-57.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$4.09 LRD 693

-22.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$3.02 LRD 512

63.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$2.10 LRD 355

-32.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$1.74 LRD 295

26.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$5.11 LRD 865

-71.23%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$3.56 LRD 602

-29.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$7.80 LRD 1,322

-6.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$11.62 LRD 1,968

-31.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$14.02 LRD 2,375

-8.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$1.66 LRD 281

74.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$8.49 LRD 1,439

-83.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$10.13 LRD 1,715

-75.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$10.82 LRD 1,833

-81.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$2.22 LRD 376

-9.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$10.82 LRD 1,832

-82.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$4.73 LRD 801

-75.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$1.97 LRD 334

-37.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$5.07 LRD 859

-15.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$6.95 LRD 1,177

41.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$2.55 LRD 431

-37.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$3.53 LRD 599

-22.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$2.97 LRD 504

-82.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

$20.30 LRD 3,439

34.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$2.06 LRD 349

131.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$1.81 LRD 306

79.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$25.48 LRD 4,317

-78.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$1.25 LRD 212

22.40%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$20.2K LRD 3.4M

4.76%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$14.7K LRD 2.5M

57.90%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$152 LRD 25.8K

-45.24%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$22.35 LRD 3,787

3.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$177 LRD 29.9K

-84.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$62.1 LRD 10.5K

-9.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

$9.87 LRD 1,671

185.61%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$5.11 LRD 865

-2.15%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$101 LRD 17.1K

105.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$991 LRD 167.9K

427.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$25.23 LRD 4,275

72.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$32.55 LRD 5,514

30.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$54.1 LRD 9,163

34.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$93.0 LRD 15.7K

-4.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$253 LRD 42.8K

293.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$96.8 LRD 16.4K

295.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$641 LRD 108.6K

161.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$269 LRD 45.5K

302.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$711 LRD 120.5K

17.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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 Monrovia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Monrovia

$97 7.6% 74.7% $286

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Monrovia

$455 35.5% 76.8% $198

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Monrovia

$171 13.3% 14.6% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Monrovia

$351 27.4% 162% $217

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Monrovia

$92 7.2% 17.1% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Monrovia

$72 5.6% 8.8% $5.9

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Monrovia

$43 3.4% 14.2% $7.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $253 in Monrovia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 17% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇷 Monrovia

🕒 Local time

19:38 7:38 PM

00:38 12:38 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

1,010,970 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Liberian Dollar LRD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

1,000 LRD = 5.9 USD

1,000 LRD = 5.28 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LRD, 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 = 21.05 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Liberian Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 169 LRD (1,000 LRD = 5.9 USD). 1 EUR = 189 LRD (1,000 LRD = 5.28 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Monrovia 8,340 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Monrovia

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 Monrovia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Monrovia. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 17% higher in Playa del Carmen, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $253 in Monrovia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $101 in Monrovia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Monrovia runs roughly 26% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Playa del Carmen gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.