Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Nanning

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanning: $737 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Nanning
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Nanning Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Nanning

🇨🇳 China

$737

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $737 in Nanning.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Nanning $737

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,176 in Nanning.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Nanning $1,176

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,615 in Nanning.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Nanning $1,615

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 63% more expensive than in Nanning, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Nanning 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$2.97 ¥19.73

267.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$20.42 ¥136

112.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$5.76 ¥38.31

104.51%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$2.33 ¥15.51

63.52%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$0.56 ¥3.70

128.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.27 ¥1.78

188.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$0.88 ¥5.84

260.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.30 ¥15.29

114.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$2.24 ¥14.91

-37.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$2.23 ¥14.86

-0.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$1.13 ¥7.54

25.66%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$1.93 ¥12.85

30.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$10.30 ¥68.5

-29.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$3.93 ¥26.14

95.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$17.63 ¥117

-28.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$1.89 ¥12.57

47.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.31 ¥8.73

4.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$1.52 ¥10.11

67.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.68 ¥11.17

26.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$0.97 ¥6.45

100.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.21 ¥8.05

56.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.57 ¥3.80

101.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.63 ¥4.22

87.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$4.07 ¥27.10

5.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$14.93 ¥99.3

-33.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$0.93 ¥6.22

69.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$1.65 ¥10.96

61.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.50 ¥3.30

10.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$15.90 ¥106

67.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$1.37 ¥9.13

262.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.46 ¥3.09

623.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$7.48 ¥49.76

-28.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.30 ¥8.62

10.77%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$23.2K ¥154.6K

-11.06%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$13.2K ¥88.2K

77.12%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$33.66 ¥224

151.90%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$14.52 ¥96.6

61.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$10.84 ¥72.2

164.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$76.0 ¥506

-24.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$7.43 ¥49.41

289.10%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$6.93 ¥46.14

-25.83%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$304 ¥2,020

-31.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$4,423 ¥29.4K

-11.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$19.68 ¥131

120.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$29.48 ¥196

40.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$65.5 ¥436

13.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$72.4 ¥481

23.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$251 ¥1,669

290.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$156 ¥1,036

144.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$388 ¥2,580

340.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$294 ¥1,959

265.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$3,516 ¥23.4K

12.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$1,577 ¥10.5K

290.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$667 ¥4,438

10.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.63

215.43%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Nanning: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Nanning

$156 21.1% 59.1% $225

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Nanning

$245 33.3% 3.7% $9.5

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Nanning

$81 11% 59.9% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Nanning

$59 8% 56.9% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Nanning

$84 11.4% 24.7% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Nanning

$90 12.2% 33.5% $23

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Nanning

$22 2.9% 57.2% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $251 in Nanning. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 10% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $20 in Nanning for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $245 per month, with Nanning cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇳 Nanning

🕒 Local time

07:35 7:35 AM

20:35 8:35 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

8,741,584

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.43 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Nanning 14,900 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Nanning

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 Nanning: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $737 in Nanning, so Nanning is about 39% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 10% 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $251 in Nanning. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Nanning runs roughly 40% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $304 in Nanning. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $737 in Nanning versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Nanning but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Nanning the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Nanning gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.