Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Quang Ngai

For one person, living is cheaper in Quang Ngai: $484 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
23

Cost of Living Index in Quang Ngai
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Quang Ngai Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Quang Ngai

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$484

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Quang Ngai

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $484 in Quang Ngai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Quang Ngai $484

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $751 in Quang Ngai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Quang Ngai $751

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,019 in Quang Ngai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Quang Ngai $1,019

Playa del Carmen costs about 148% more than Quang Ngai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Quang Ngai are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Quang Ngai 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$1.00 ₫25.7K

967.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$10.32 ₫265.3K

324.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$4.78 ₫122.9K

146.65%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.29 ₫33.0K

193.80%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.32 ₫8,189

306.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.17 ₫4,386

388.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.39 ₫35.6K

126.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$1.48 ₫37.9K

233.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.59 ₫40.8K

-11.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.41 ₫10.5K

436.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.80 ₫20.5K

83.75%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.49 ₫38.3K

67.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$7.53 ₫193.5K

-3.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.91 ₫100.6K

103.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$6.36 ₫163.4K

102.20%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.90 ₫48.9K

52.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.56 ₫14.5K

146.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$1.35 ₫34.7K

84.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.35 ₫34.7K

50.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.20 ₫30.9K

68.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.95 ₫24.5K

100.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.32 ₫8,278

256.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.49 ₫12.5K

153.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$1.28 ₫33.0K

233.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$5.71 ₫146.6K

71.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$0.58 ₫15.0K

174.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$0.86 ₫22.0K

219.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.37 ₫9,393

37.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$5.72 ₫147.0K

378.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.60 ₫15.4K

693.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.38 ₫9,760

755.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$1.93 ₫49.5K

179.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.80 ₫20.5K

91.25%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$30.8K ₫790.7M

-31.06%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$28.4K ₫729.3M

-18.03%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$66.1 ₫1.7M

26.39%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$6.49 ₫166.7K

257.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$7.65 ₫196.7K

260.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$9.59 ₫246.4K

488.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$4.75 ₫122.0K

493.47%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$3.47 ₫89.2K

44.09%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$136 ₫3.5M

52.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$3,851 ₫99.0M

35.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$7.56 ₫194.2K

474.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$7.66 ₫197.0K

455.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$102 ₫2.6M

-28.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$26.65 ₫684.9K

231.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$180 ₫4.6M

451.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$119 ₫3.1M

221.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$382 ₫9.8M

338.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$247 ₫6.4M

337.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$219 ₫5.6M

279.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

63.57%

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 Quang Ngai: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Quang Ngai

$119 24.6% 68.9% $263

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Quang Ngai

$144 29.8% 44% $113

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Quang Ngai

$50 10.3% 75.2% $151

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Quang Ngai

$80 16.6% 40.3% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Quang Ngai

$65 13.4% 41.6% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Quang Ngai

$17 3.4% 75.1% $50

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Quang Ngai

$9.7 2% 80.8% $41

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $180 in Quang Ngai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $10 in Quang Ngai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $144 – making Quang Ngai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇻🇳 Quang Ngai

🕒 Local time

19:36 7:36 PM

07:36 7:36 AM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

112,384

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.89 USD

100,000 VND = 3.46 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 25,699 VND (100,000 VND = 3.89 USD). 1 EUR = 28,931 VND (100,000 VND = 3.46 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Quang Ngai 15,680 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Quang Ngai

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 Quang Ngai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 148%, 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 $726 in Quang Ngai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quang Ngai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $180 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $484 in Quang Ngai. That makes Quang Ngai about 60% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 79% less in Quang Ngai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Quang Ngai, where all-in costs run around $484, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Quang Ngai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Quang Ngai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Quang Ngai. 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.