Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Prachin Buri

For one person, living is cheaper in Prachin Buri: $894 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Prachin Buri
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Prachin Buri Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Prachin Buri

🇹🇭 Thailand

$894

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Prachin Buri

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $894 in Prachin Buri, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Prachin Buri $894

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,397 in Prachin Buri, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Prachin Buri $1,397

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,901 in Prachin Buri, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Prachin Buri $1,901

Playa del Carmen costs about 35% more than Prachin Buri, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Prachin Buri are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Prachin Buri 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$2.99 ฿101

256.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$26.35 ฿889

66.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$8.74 ฿295

34.90%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$1.95 ฿65.7

94.36%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$0.71 ฿23.81

83.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$0.25 ฿8.40

232.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$2.41 ฿81.4

30.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$2.63 ฿88.7

87.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$1.39 ฿46.96

1.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$1.18 ฿39.68

86.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$0.94 ฿31.64

56.38%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$1.57 ฿53.1

59.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$10.58 ฿357

-31.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$2.50 ฿84.3

218.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$10.15 ฿342

26.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$3.51 ฿118

-17.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$0.73 ฿24.48

89.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$1.86 ฿62.6

33.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$1.05 ฿35.49

93.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$1.13 ฿38.05

78.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.07 ฿36.17

77.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$1.25 ฿42.31

-8.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$0.34 ฿11.56

264.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$4.26 ฿144

0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$11.79 ฿398

-16.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$1.66 ฿56.1

-4.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$2.88 ฿97.1

-4.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$0.74 ฿24.98

-31.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$1.07 ฿36.08

344.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$1.08 ฿36.31

200.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$3.58 ฿121

50.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$1.03 ฿34.69

48.54%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$45.5K ฿1.5M

-53.42%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$26.7K ฿901.0K

-12.91%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$91.5 ฿3,085

-8.72%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$11.57 ฿390

100.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$9.51 ฿321

190.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$46.58 ฿1,571

21.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

$15.17 ฿512

85.83%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$7.75 ฿261

-35.48%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$624 ฿21.0K

-66.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$20.7K ฿697.4K

-74.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$50.8 ฿1,715

-14.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$29.29 ฿988

45.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$94.9 ฿3,202

-23.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$74.9 ฿2,525

18.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$428 ฿14.5K

132.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$305 ฿10.3K

25.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$1,235 ฿41.7K

35.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$608 ฿20.5K

77.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

$1,930 ฿65.1K

102.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$1,764 ฿59.5K

247.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$440 ฿14.8K

89.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.96

92.11%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Prachin Buri: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Prachin Buri

$305 34.2% 20.1% $77

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Prachin Buri

$197 22.1% 23.4% $60

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Prachin Buri

$95 10.6% 52.7% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Prachin Buri

$113 12.6% 16.2% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Prachin Buri

$112 12.6% 1.1% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Prachin Buri

$62 7% 6.6% $4.4

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Prachin Buri

$9.4 * 1.1% 81.3% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $428 in Prachin Buri. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 89% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $26 in Prachin Buri. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $197 – making Prachin Buri the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇭 Prachin Buri

🕒 Local time

06:23 6:23 AM

18:23 6:23 PM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

19,910

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Prachin Buri 16,050 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Prachin Buri

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 Prachin Buri: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 35%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,341 in Prachin Buri. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Prachin Buri, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $428 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $894 in Prachin Buri. That makes Prachin Buri about 26% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $624 in Prachin Buri. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $894 in Prachin Buri. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $894 in Prachin Buri to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Prachin Buri. 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.