Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Nishinomiya

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Nishinomiya: $1,204 and $1,257 a month, rent and utilities included.

59

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

Cost of Living Index in Nishinomiya
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Nishinomiya Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Nishinomiya

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,257

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,257 in Nishinomiya, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Nishinomiya $1,257

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,020 in Nishinomiya, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Nishinomiya $2,020

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,783 in Nishinomiya, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Nishinomiya $2,783

Playa del Carmen is about 4% cheaper than Nishinomiya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Nishinomiya are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Nishinomiya 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$8.71 ¥1,377

24.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$31.81 ¥5,025

38.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$5.02 ¥794

134.26%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$2.26 ¥358

62.83%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$1.17 ¥185

14.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.63 ¥99.4

30.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$2.09 ¥331

46.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$2.23 ¥353

121.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.49 ¥236

-1.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.49 ¥236

48.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$5.61 ¥886

-73.62%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$2.14 ¥338

16.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$12.69 ¥2,005

-40.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$9.42 ¥1,489

-15.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$31.74 ¥5,015

-60.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$5.13 ¥810

-45.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.81 ¥286

-20.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$3.04 ¥480

-13.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$6.01 ¥949

-64.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$1.62 ¥256

24.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$2.53 ¥400

-21.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.13 ¥179

0.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.94 ¥149

27.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$3.41 ¥538

24.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$9.56 ¥1,511

4.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$2.35 ¥371

-34.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.52 ¥240

75.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$1.50 ¥237

-64.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$53.1 ¥8,392

-48.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$3.23 ¥510

51.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$2.81 ¥444

22.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$15.51 ¥2,450

-65.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.10 ¥174

31.82%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$19.8K ¥3.1M

6.93%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$15.0K ¥2.4M

53.10%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$117 ¥18.4K

-26.84%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$23.12 ¥3,653

1.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$30.51 ¥4,819

-6.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$62.2 ¥9,820

0.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$11.49 ¥1,816

-55.61%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$323 ¥51.0K

-37.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$6,082 ¥960.9K

-35.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$49.33 ¥7,793

-10.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$25.09 ¥3,964

64.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$46.56 ¥7,356

56.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$64.4 ¥10.2K

39.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$523 ¥82.6K

87.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$328 ¥51.9K

13.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$1,114 ¥175.9K

50.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$751 ¥118.6K

45.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$4,265 ¥673.9K

-7.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$1,735 ¥274.1K

253.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$1,977 ¥312.4K

-62.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.02

466.83%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Nishinomiya: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Nishinomiya

$328 26.1% 11.9% $44

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Nishinomiya

$380 30.2% 46.9% $121

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Nishinomiya

$134 10.7% 33% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Nishinomiya

$170 13.5% 24.1% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Nishinomiya

$83 6.6% 25.3% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Nishinomiya

$85 6.8% 17.6% $13

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Nishinomiya

$76 6.1% 47.8% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $523 in Nishinomiya. 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 168% higher in Nishinomiya, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $32.00 in Nishinomiya. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Playa del Carmen vs $380 in Nishinomiya – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇯🇵 Nishinomiya

🕒 Local time

22:18 10:18 PM

12:18 12:18 PM

14 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

488,873

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 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 October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Nishinomiya 12,400 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Nishinomiya

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 Nishinomiya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nishinomiya is pricier by about 4%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,886 in Nishinomiya. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen and $32.00 in Nishinomiya. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,257 in Nishinomiya. That's a gap of about 4%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Nishinomiya at $1,257. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nishinomiya it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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