Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Naha

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,344 in Naha, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Naha outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Naha
Learn more

Naha Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Naha

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,344

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,344 in Naha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Naha $1,344

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,090 in Naha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Naha $2,090

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,836 in Naha, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Naha $2,836

Playa del Carmen is about 11% cheaper than Naha, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$200

$4.97 ¥787

114.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$819

$30.22 ¥4,785

44.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$220

$4.92 ¥779

139.63%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.8

$3.00 ¥474

26.33%

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

$1.30 MX$24.26

$1.29 ¥204

0.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.59

$0.86 ¥135

-3.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.9

$2.57 ¥407

22.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.3

$4.10 ¥649

20.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.35

$1.61 ¥256

-12.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.07

$2.15 ¥341

2.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.54

$3.91 ¥619

-62.40%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.70

$1.84 ¥292

35.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$17.70 ¥2,802

-58.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$149

$4.95 ¥784

60.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$241

$22.19 ¥3,513

-42.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.2

$3.62 ¥573

-19.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.87

$2.61 ¥414

-47.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.59

$2.20 ¥348

13.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.97

$5.03 ¥796

-59.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.88

$2.41 ¥381

-16.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.60

$2.46 ¥390

-22.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.41

$1.26 ¥199

-9.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.17

$0.77 ¥122

61.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.9

$3.96 ¥627

7.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$184

$6.41 ¥1,014

53.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.66

$1.97 ¥312

-19.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.3

$3.23 ¥512

-14.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.63

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$512

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.1

$3.97 ¥628

19.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.8

$3.49 ¥553

-6.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$11.42 ¥1,808

-52.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.58

$1.02 ¥162

50.00%

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

$21.2K MX$396.8K

$21.5K ¥3.4M

-1.53%

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

$23.3K MX$435.1K

$15.0K ¥2.4M

54.88%

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

$83.5 MX$1,562

$95.4 ¥15.1K

-12.48%

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

$23.19 MX$434

$25.01 ¥3,960

-7.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$516

$51.9 ¥8,215

-46.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,056

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$527

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.5

$11.83 ¥1,873

-57.73%

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

$207 MX$3,873

$327 ¥51.7K

-36.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.8K

$5,517 ¥873.4K

-5.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$813

$50.4 ¥7,977

-13.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$796

$23.44 ¥3,711

81.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,361

$81.6 ¥12.9K

-10.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,653

$96.5 ¥15.3K

-8.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.6K

$725 ¥114.8K

37.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,152

$564 ¥89.4K

-32.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.3K

$1,125 ¥178.2K

48.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.2K

$1,136 ¥179.9K

-4.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.6K

$1,310 ¥207.3K

-36.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.23

413.45%

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 Naha: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Naha

$564 42% 47.6% $182

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Naha

$328 24.4% 27.6% $71

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Naha

$120 8.9% 40% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Naha

$172 12.8% 28.3% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Naha

$113 8.4% 2% $2.2

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Naha

$24 * 1.8% 64.4% $43

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Naha

$21 * 1.6% 57.5% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $725 in Naha. 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 57% higher in Naha. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $30 in Naha. Groceries tell a different story – $257 in Playa del Carmen vs $328 in Naha – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇯🇵 Naha

🕒 Local time

12:24 12:24 PM

02:24 2:24 AM

14 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

317,625

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.62 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 21.01 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.62 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Naha 13,600 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Naha

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 Naha: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Naha costs about 12% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,015 in Naha. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Naha, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $725 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,344 in Naha. That makes Playa del Carmen about 11% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $327 in Naha. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,344 in Naha, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,344 in Naha. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Naha makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.