Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Perez Zeledon

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,317 in Perez Zeledon, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. The total is higher in Perez Zeledon despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Perez Zeledon
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Perez Zeledon Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Perez Zeledon

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,317

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Perez Zeledon

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,317 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Perez Zeledon $1,317

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,364 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Perez Zeledon $2,364

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,410 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Perez Zeledon $3,410

Playa del Carmen is about 9% cheaper than Perez Zeledon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Perez Zeledon are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Perez Zeledon 3% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$9.09 ₡4,102

20.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$37.24 ₡16.8K

16.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$8.19 ₡3,699

43.83%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$2.70 ₡1,217

41.11%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$1.97 ₡887

-35.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$1.78 ₡805

-56.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.73 ₡780

83.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$3.21 ₡1,447

53.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.60 ₡724

-11.88%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$3.13 ₡1,413

-29.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$2.49 ₡1,122

-42.97%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$2.49 ₡1,126

1.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$10.73 ₡4,846

-32.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$10.28 ₡4,639

-25.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$14.14 ₡6,384

-10.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$5.24 ₡2,365

-46.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.08 ₡488

26.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$4.89 ₡2,206

-47.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$3.85 ₡1,737

-44.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$3.72 ₡1,680

-47.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$3.59 ₡1,622

-47.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$0.45 ₡205

155.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$3.09 ₡1,394

-61.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$5.57 ₡2,516

-22.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$19.80 ₡8,937

-49.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$2.87 ₡1,297

-44.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$3.63 ₡1,638

-26.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.81 ₡364

-32.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$2.49 ₡1,126

99.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.63 ₡737

104.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$8.76 ₡3,955

-38.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.52 ₡688

-5.26%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$33.8K ₡15.2M

-38.78%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$42.1K ₡19.0M

-44.28%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$93.6 ₡42.2K

-9.38%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$23.99 ₡10.8K

-2.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$59.2 ₡26.7K

-51.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$67.9 ₡30.7K

-16.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$7.67 ₡3,464

-32.99%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$498 ₡224.8K

-58.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-77.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$71.8 ₡32.4K

-39.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$55.0 ₡24.8K

-24.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$128 ₡57.7K

-41.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$133 ₡60.0K

-32.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$402 ₡181.3K

143.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$326 ₡147.1K

16.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$2,133 ₡963.0K

-19.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$1,260 ₡568.7K

-14.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.62

32.83%

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 Perez Zeledon: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Perez Zeledon

$326 24.8% 14.4% $55

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Perez Zeledon

$383 29.1% 50.4% $128

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Perez Zeledon

$160 12.1% 21.1% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Perez Zeledon

$177 13.4% 29.1% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Perez Zeledon

$174 13.2% 56.1% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Perez Zeledon

$83 6.3% 23.7% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Perez Zeledon

$14 * 1.1% 72.5% $37

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $402 in Perez Zeledon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $37 in Perez Zeledon. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $383 in Perez Zeledon – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇷 Perez Zeledon

🕒 Local time

21:07 9:07 PM

20:07 8:07 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

135,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Perez Zeledon 1,320 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Perez Zeledon

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 Perez Zeledon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Perez Zeledon is pricier by about 9%, 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 $1,975 in Perez Zeledon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Perez Zeledon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $402 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,317 in Perez Zeledon. That makes Playa del Carmen about 9% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $498 in Perez Zeledon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,317 in Perez Zeledon, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,317 in Perez Zeledon. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.