Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Punta Cana Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Punta Cana

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 23.6% more expensive than Punta Cana without rent, and 7.8% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 7.5% cheaper than Punta Cana without rent, and 20% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$8.59 DOP 506
39.58%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$49.92 DOP 2,939
-14.92%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$7.35 DOP 433
42.45%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$2.72 DOP 160
32.35%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$1 DOP 58.7
44.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.83 DOP 49.14
7.23%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$2.58 DOP 152
19.77%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$4.97 DOP 293
-7.85%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.38 DOP 81.1
-
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.44 DOP 84.9
28.47%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.5 DOP 88.3
4.67%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.26 DOP 133
12.83%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$7.09 DOP 417
21.44%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$6.5 DOP 383
31.38%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$10.34 DOP 608
6.19%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$3.14 DOP 185
-13.38%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$0.92 DOP 54.2
64.13%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$2.27 DOP 133
-17.18%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.95 DOP 115
12.31%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.04 DOP 61.3
79.81%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.46 DOP 85.8
50.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$0.78 DOP 46.14
37.18%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.97 DOP 57
12.37%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$5.89 DOP 347
-32.77%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$7.13 DOP 420
24.26%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$2.62 DOP 154
-34.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$3.12 DOP 184
-16.35%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.88 DOP 52
-40.91%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$3.45 DOP 203
-6.09%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$2.21 DOP 130
7.69%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$5.99 DOP 353
-48.08%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.31 DOP 77.2
-
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$26K DOP 1.5M
16.64%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$32.1K DOP 1.9M
-25.24%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$76.3 DOP 4,491
10.42%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$19.29 DOP 1,136
14.77%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$36.07 DOP 2,123
-16.44%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$62.5 DOP 3,677
-16.79%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$5.22 DOP 308
-2.87%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$265 DOP 15.6K
-24.54%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$7,312 DOP 430.4K
-27.07%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$15.56 DOP 916
129.69%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$51.7 DOP 3,043
-23.00%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$66.3 DOP 3,906
19.04%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$115 DOP 6,795
-23.44%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$854 DOP 50.3K
13.06%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$646 DOP 38K
-26.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$1,288 DOP 75.8K
28.31%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$884 DOP 52K
35.96%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$3,000 DOP 176.6K
2.70%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$913 DOP 53.7K
724.68%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Punta Cana
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$546 DOP 32.1K
45.11%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
12.9
-11.47%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Punta Cana: October 29, 2025

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