Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Quanzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Quanzhou: $815 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Quanzhou
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Quanzhou Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Quanzhou

🇨🇳 China

$815

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $815 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Quanzhou $815

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,204 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Quanzhou $1,204

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,593 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Quanzhou $1,593

Playa del Carmen costs about 48% more than Quanzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Quanzhou are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 10% lower, Quanzhou 40% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$2.20 ¥14.70

389.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$794

$30.02 ¥201

43.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$6.48 ¥43.35

81.94%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$3.26 ¥21.82

18.71%

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

$1.37 MX$25.26

$0.96 ¥6.40

42.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.43

$0.27 ¥1.80

211.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.2

$2.95 ¥19.70

5.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.5

$1.75 ¥11.72

189.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.52

$1.45 ¥9.72

-0.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.19

$0.86 ¥5.74

159.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.14

$0.93 ¥6.23

58.06%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.66

$1.53 ¥10.27

65.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$7.68 ¥51.4

-4.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$2.30 ¥15.36

241.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$5.12 ¥34.25

149.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.5

$1.46 ¥9.74

98.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.50

$0.99 ¥6.62

45.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.02

$0.72 ¥4.80

254.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.99

$1.08 ¥7.21

90.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.93

$0.46 ¥3.11

334.78%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.03

$1.05 ¥7.00

91.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$21.99

$0.16 ¥1.09

643.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.20

$0.48 ¥3.18

162.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.3

$3.15 ¥21.08

39.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$7.67 ¥51.3

25.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.38

$0.88 ¥5.92

80.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$1.38 ¥9.20

103.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.46

$0.31 ¥2.07

83.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$23.44 ¥157

18.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.0

$1.22 ¥8.18

308.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$0.35 ¥2.34

900.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.7

$9.01 ¥60.3

-40.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.05

$1.25 ¥8.36

17.60%

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

$21.0K MX$387.4K

$17.6K ¥117.6K

19.30%

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

$23.9K MX$441.3K

$15.7K ¥104.9K

52.35%

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

$84.2 MX$1,554

$52.8 ¥353

59.61%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$7.95 ¥53.2

201.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$12.15 ¥81.3

138.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,163

$54.4 ¥364

15.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$538

$18.63 ¥125

56.41%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.2

$5.83 ¥38.96

-15.27%

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

$204 MX$3,759

$514 ¥3,438

-60.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$11.8K ¥79.0K

-66.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$805

$20.64 ¥138

111.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$796

$34.07 ¥228

26.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,399

$92.7 ¥620

-18.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,635

$96.5 ¥646

-8.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$277 ¥1,851

264.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,904

$303 ¥2,027

23.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.5K

$503 ¥3,362

239.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$410 ¥2,743

169.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.8K

$3,004 ¥20.1K

31.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$113.9K

$2,008 ¥13.4K

207.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$829 ¥5,545

-9.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.15

263.49%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Quanzhou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Quanzhou

$303 37.2% 19% $71

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Quanzhou

$137 16.8% 47.1% $122

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Quanzhou

$99 12.2% 50.9% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Quanzhou

$73 8.9% 46.9% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Quanzhou

$110 13.5% 2.8% $3.2

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Quanzhou

$66 8.1% 9.4% $6.8

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Quanzhou

$28 3.4% 47.4% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $277 in Quanzhou. 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 10% higher in Quanzhou, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $30.00 in Quanzhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $137 – making Quanzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇳 Quanzhou

🕒 Local time

05:24 5:24 AM

18:24 6:24 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

8,128,530

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.42 USD

100 MXN = 4.84 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 18.46 MXN (100 MXN = 5.42 USD). 1 EUR = 20.67 MXN (100 MXN = 4.84 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Quanzhou 14,240 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Quanzhou

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 Quanzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,223 in Quanzhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quanzhou, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $815 in Quanzhou. That's a gap of about 48%.

Public transport costs about 19% less in Quanzhou. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Quanzhou, where all-in costs run around $815, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Quanzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Quanzhou – 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 Quanzhou. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.