Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Perth Amboy, NJ

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,684 in Perth Amboy, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $17,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
121

Cost of Living Index in Perth Amboy, NJ
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Perth Amboy, NJ Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Perth Amboy, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,684

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Perth Amboy, NJ

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 Perth Amboy, NJ actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,684 in Perth Amboy, NJ.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Perth Amboy, NJ $2,684

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,774 in Perth Amboy, NJ.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Perth Amboy, NJ $3,774

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,865 in Perth Amboy, NJ.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Perth Amboy, NJ $4,865

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 55% less than in Perth Amboy, NJ, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Perth Amboy, NJ is 98% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$19.32 $19.32

-43.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$78.5 $78.5

-43.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$13.14 $13.14

-10.50%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$6.28 $6.28

-41.40%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$2.52 $2.52

-46.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.51 $1.51

-45.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$8.90 $8.90

-65.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$7.13 $7.13

-30.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.14 $1.14

28.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$2.23 $2.23

-0.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$6.16 $6.16

-75.97%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$2.93 $2.93

-15.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$13.68 $13.68

-45.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$10.45 $10.45

-23.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$19.90 $19.90

-36.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$5.96 $5.96

-53.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$3.51 $3.51

-59.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$4.33 $4.33

-39.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$5.22 $5.22

-59.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$1.40 $1.40

44.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$1.40 $1.40

42.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.46 $1.46

-21.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$2.99 $2.99

-59.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$14.80 $14.80

-71.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$12.21 $12.21

-17.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.84 $1.84

-16.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$3.62 $3.62

-26.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$1.81 $1.81

-70.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$3.04 $3.04

61.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$2.11 $2.11

62.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$42.43 $42.43

-87.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.04 $1.04

39.42%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$27.7K $27.7K

-23.67%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$25.5K $25.5K

-9.81%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$170 $170

-49.89%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$24.07 $24.07

-2.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$49.71 $49.71

-42.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$41.11 $41.11

51.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$17.68 $17.68

-71.15%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$2,026 $2,026

-90.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$16.2K $16.2K

-75.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$33.62 $33.62

32.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$40.44 $40.44

2.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$77.1 $77.1

-5.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$96.4 $96.4

-7.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$1,617 $1,617

-39.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$1,480 $1,480

-74.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$2,211 $2,211

-23.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$2,137 $2,137

-48.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$2,753 $2,753

43.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$2,425 $2,425

153.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$3,323 $3,323

-77.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.8

68.38%

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 Perth Amboy, NJ: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$1.5K 55.1% 297% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$407 15.2% 57.5% $149

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$344 12.8% 71.9% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$244 9.1% 77.9% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$111 4.2% 0.2% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$76 2.9% 5.6% $4.1

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Perth Amboy, NJ

$21 * 0.8% 59.7% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $1,617 in Perth Amboy, NJ. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Perth Amboy, NJ pays 351% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $78.0 in Perth Amboy, NJ for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $407 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 Perth Amboy, NJ

🕒 Local time

17:20 5:20 PM

18:20 6:20 PM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

48,607

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Perth Amboy, NJ 2,520 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Perth Amboy, NJ

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 Perth Amboy, NJ: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 123% lower than in Perth Amboy, NJ. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 351% lower in Perth Amboy, NJ. 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: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,617 in Perth Amboy, NJ. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $201 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,026 in Perth Amboy, NJ. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $78.0 in Perth Amboy, NJ. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,684 in Perth Amboy, NJ, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Perth Amboy, NJ. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,204 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 123% less than in Perth Amboy, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.