Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and North Shore Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and North Shore

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 10.5% cheaper than North Shore without rent, and 31.7% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ™‚ Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 31% cheaper than North Shore without rent, and 19.6% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$15.13 NZ$24.95
-20.75%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$78.1 NZ$129
-45.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$8.41 NZ$13.87
24.49%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$3.37 NZ$5.55
6.82%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$2.14 NZ$3.53
-32.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$1.82 NZ$3.01
-51.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$7.08 NZ$11.68
-56.36%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$7.37 NZ$12.16
-37.86%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.77 NZ$2.92
-22.03%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.56 NZ$2.57
18.59%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.96 NZ$3.23
-19.90%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$6.07 NZ$10.01
-57.99%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$8.29 NZ$13.67
3.86%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$9.33 NZ$15.39
-8.47%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$8.94 NZ$14.74
22.82%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.64 NZ$4.36
3.03%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$2.19 NZ$3.61
-31.05%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$3.31 NZ$5.45
-43.20%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$4.13 NZ$6.81
-46.97%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.97 NZ$3.26
-5.08%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.7 NZ$2.8
28.82%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.91 NZ$3.16
-43.98%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.66 NZ$1.1
65.15%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$24.61 NZ$40.59
-83.91%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$11.7 NZ$19.3
-24.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.93 NZ$3.19
-10.88%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$1.25 NZ$2.07
108.80%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$2.39 NZ$3.94
-78.24%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$64.6 NZ$107
-58.86%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$2.1 NZ$3.46
54.29%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$2 NZ$3.3
19.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$35.09 NZ$57.9
-91.14%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.68 NZ$2.77
-22.02%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$27.9K NZ$46.1K
8.47%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$22.4K NZ$36.9K
7.15%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$146 NZ$240
-42.19%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$15.08 NZ$24.87
46.82%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$44.47 NZ$73.4
-32.22%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$29.23 NZ$48.2
77.83%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$12.25 NZ$20.21
52.82%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$10.65 NZ$17.57
-52.39%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$899 NZ$1,483
-77.72%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$13.4K NZ$22.1K
-60.12%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$70.2 NZ$116
-49.06%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$49.56 NZ$81.8
-19.69%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$95.2 NZ$157
-17.08%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$89.8 NZ$148
-1.58%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$1,064 NZ$1,755
-9.28%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$790 NZ$1,303
-39.97%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$2,916 NZ$4,810
-43.33%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$1,369 NZ$2,259
-12.23%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$4,273 NZ$7,048
-27.89%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$3,341 NZ$5,511
125.33%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
North Shore
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$2,922 NZ$4,820
-72.91%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
6.37
79.28%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for North Shore: October 28, 2025

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