Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Paramaribo

For one person, living is cheaper in Paramaribo: $1,035 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Paramaribo
Learn more

Paramaribo Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Paramaribo

🇸🇷 Suriname

$1,035

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,035 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Paramaribo $1,035

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,707 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Paramaribo $1,707

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,379 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Paramaribo $2,379

Playa del Carmen costs about 16% more than Paramaribo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Playa del Carmen and Paramaribo are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Paramaribo 24% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$13.36 SRD 499

-18.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$52.9 SRD 1,976

-17.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$11.21 SRD 419

5.08%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$2.80 SRD 105

36.07%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$1.36 SRD 50.7

-5.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.85 SRD 31.94

-8.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.64 SRD 98.7

20.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$3.95 SRD 148

24.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.75 SRD 65.4

-19.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$1.39 SRD 52.0

59.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$1.68 SRD 62.7

-15.48%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$3.03 SRD 113

-16.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$11.70 SRD 437

-37.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$6.21 SRD 232

23.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$10.17 SRD 380

24.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$4.82 SRD 180

-42.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$3.09 SRD 116

-55.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$3.77 SRD 141

-32.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$6.13 SRD 229

-65.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.32 SRD 49.22

46.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$2.01 SRD 75.1

-5.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.54 SRD 57.5

-25.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$1.52 SRD 57.0

-22.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$5.65 SRD 211

-23.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$7.90 SRD 295

25.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$2.02 SRD 75.7

-21.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$3.68 SRD 138

-27.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.55 SRD 20.47

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$31.71 SRD 1,186

-16.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$2.14 SRD 79.9

132.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.50 SRD 56.0

122.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$7.19 SRD 269

-25.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.17 SRD 43.92

23.08%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$25.5K SRD 952.9K

-18.91%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$24.8K SRD 928.0K

-5.45%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$37.77 SRD 1,412

124.49%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$25.57 SRD 956

-8.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$30.52 SRD 1,141

-6.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$13.67 SRD 511

317.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$20.29 SRD 758

42.48%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$5.04 SRD 188

1.98%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$63.8 SRD 2,386

223.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$1,758 SRD 65.7K

123.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$33.13 SRD 1,239

30.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$20.78 SRD 777

99.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$66.7 SRD 2,493

11.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$102 SRD 3,810

-12.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$478 SRD 17.9K

104.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$268 SRD 10.0K

41.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$937 SRD 35.0K

82.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$501 SRD 18.7K

114.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$474 SRD 17.7K

732.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$405 SRD 15.2K

1418.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$277 SRD 10.4K

165.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-28.44%

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 Paramaribo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Paramaribo

$268 25.9% 29.5% $112

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Paramaribo

$301 29.1% 18.1% $46

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Paramaribo

$204 19.7% 0.8% $1.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Paramaribo

$94 9.1% 31.4% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Paramaribo

$100 9.7% 10.4% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Paramaribo

$24 2.3% 64.7% $44

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Paramaribo

$44 4.2% 13.7% $6.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $478 in Paramaribo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 2.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $53 in Paramaribo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $301 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇷 Paramaribo

🕒 Local time

23:47 11:47 PM

01:47 1:47 AM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

242,946 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Surinamese Dollar SRD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 SRD = 2.67 USD

100 SRD = 2.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SRD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Surinamese Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 37.39 SRD (100 SRD = 2.67 USD). 1 EUR = 41.75 SRD (100 SRD = 2.4 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Paramaribo 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Paramaribo

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 Paramaribo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen costs about 16% more than Paramaribo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from leisure. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,552 in Paramaribo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Paramaribo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $478 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $64 in Paramaribo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 15% cheaper in Playa del Carmen – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,035 in Paramaribo. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

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