Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Phoenix

For one person, living is cheaper in Phoenix: $842 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

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

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Phoenix

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$842

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $842 in Phoenix.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Phoenix $842

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,313 in Phoenix.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Phoenix $1,313

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,784 in Phoenix.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Phoenix $1,784

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 43% more expensive than in Phoenix, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Phoenix 38% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$2.16 MUR 102

405.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$31.24 MUR 1,472

38.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$7.49 MUR 353

57.28%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$5.40 MUR 255

-29.44%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$0.65 MUR 30.75

96.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.55 MUR 25.73

41.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.11 MUR 99.4

50.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$5.36 MUR 253

-8.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.50 MUR 70.9

-6.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$0.40 MUR 18.93

455.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$2.17 MUR 102

-34.56%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$5.01 MUR 236

-49.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$8.34 MUR 393

-7.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$6.30 MUR 297

101.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$7.41 MUR 349

-62.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$3.79 MUR 178

-63.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$4.63 MUR 218

-44.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.53 MUR 72.2

38.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$0.89 MUR 41.92

117.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$0.81 MUR 38.31

133.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.70 MUR 33.15

64.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.76 MUR 35.73

55.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$10.54 MUR 497

-5.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$2.06 MUR 97.2

-23.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$1.03 MUR 48.75

-46.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$10.76 MUR 507

147.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$1.46 MUR 68.6

128.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.29 MUR 60.9

11.63%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

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

$23.41 MX$439

$14.45 MUR 681

62.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$25.12 MUR 1,184

14.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$25.60 MUR 1,207

122.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$5.39 MUR 254

-4.64%

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

$207 MX$3,878

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$53.6 MUR 2,526

-19.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$53.5 MUR 2,519

-22.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$531 MUR 25.0K

84.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$323 MUR 15.2K

18.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$855 MUR 40.3K

99.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$525 MUR 24.7K

104.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$939 MUR 44.2K

-21.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

129.00%

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 Phoenix: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Phoenix

–

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Phoenix

–

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Phoenix

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Phoenix

–

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Phoenix

–

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Phoenix

–

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Phoenix

–

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $531 in Phoenix. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phoenix pays 28% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $31 in Phoenix for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $242 per month, with Phoenix cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇺 Phoenix

🕒 Local time

18:11 6:11 PM

03:11 3:11 AM

9 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

115,289

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 MUR = 2.12 USD

100 MUR = 1.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 47.13 MUR (100 MUR = 2.12 USD). 1 EUR = 52.62 MUR (100 MUR = 1.9 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Phoenix 16,330 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

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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 Phoenix: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $842 in Phoenix, so Phoenix is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 22% lower in Playa del Carmen. 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $531 in Phoenix. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $842 in Phoenix – Phoenix is about 30% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $842 in Phoenix versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Phoenix but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Phoenix the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Phoenix gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.