Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Neum

For one person, living is cheaper in Neum: $923 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Neum
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Neum Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Neum

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina

$923

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $923 in Neum.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Neum $923

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,388 in Neum.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Neum $1,388

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,852 in Neum.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Neum $1,852

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 30% more expensive than in Neum, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Neum 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$5.00 BAM 8.77

118.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$31.00 BAM 54.4

39.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$5.68 BAM 9.97

107.39%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.81 BAM 3.18

110.50%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$1.94 BAM 3.41

-34.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$1.25 BAM 2.19

-37.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$2.60 BAM 4.56

21.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$2.21 BAM 3.87

123.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.16 BAM 2.04

21.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$0.90 BAM 1.58

146.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$2.08 BAM 3.66

-31.73%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.59 BAM 4.55

-2.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$7.55 BAM 13.25

-3.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$7.08 BAM 12.44

8.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$10.69 BAM 18.78

18.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.10 BAM 1.93

152.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.63 BAM 2.86

-15.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.39 BAM 2.45

83.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.16 BAM 2.03

82.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$0.98 BAM 1.73

97.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$0.99 BAM 1.74

90.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$0.77 BAM 1.36

49.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.67 BAM 1.18

76.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$3.87 BAM 6.80

11.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$4.11 BAM 7.22

142.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$0.79 BAM 1.39

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$0.89 BAM 1.56

200.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$1.19 BAM 2.09

-53.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$56.7 BAM 99.6

-53.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.75 BAM 3.07

184.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.60 BAM 1.05

455.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$5.80 BAM 10.19

-7.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.56 BAM 2.74

-7.69%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$29.8K BAM 52.4K

-30.69%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$21.4K BAM 37.5K

9.80%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$135 BAM 237

-37.27%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$17.71 BAM 31.10

32.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$25.81 BAM 45.32

11.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$33.44 BAM 58.7

70.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$12.73 BAM 22.36

127.10%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$6.93 BAM 12.18

-25.83%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$195 BAM 342

6.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$2,298 BAM 4,035

70.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$57.5 BAM 101

-24.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$32.40 BAM 56.9

27.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$86.7 BAM 152

-14.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$80.8 BAM 142

10.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$311 BAM 546

214.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$220 BAM 387

72.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$524 BAM 921

225.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$350 BAM 615

207.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,299 BAM 4,038

71.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$1,585 BAM 2,784

288.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$872 BAM 1,531

-15.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.9

294.83%

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 Neum: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Neum

$220 23.9% 42.1% $160

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Neum

$186 20.2% 27% $69

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Neum

$109 11.8% 46.2% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Neum

$179 19.4% 30.6% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Neum

$116 12.5% 3.7% $4.1

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Neum

$47 5.1% 29.7% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Neum

$66 7.2% 31.2% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $311 in Neum. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Neum pays 19% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $31 in Neum for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $186 per month, with Neum cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇦 Neum

🕒 Local time

17:27 5:27 PM

23:27 11:27 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

3,200

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark BAM KM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 BAM = 0.569 USD

1 BAM = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BAM, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 BAM (1 BAM = 0.569 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BAM (1 BAM = 0.512 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Neum 9,590 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Neum

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 Neum: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $923 in Neum, so Neum is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 16% 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $311 in Neum. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 53% less than in Neum. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $195 in Neum. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $923 in Neum versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Neum but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Neum 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.