Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Rădăuți

For one person, living is cheaper in Rădăuți: $748 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Rădăuți, Romania
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Rădăuți
🇷🇴 Romania
$748
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $748 in Rădăuți, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Rădăuți $748

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,215 in Rădăuți, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Rădăuți $1,215

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,682 in Rădăuți, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Rădăuți $1,682

Playa del Carmen costs about 61% more than Rădăuți, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Rădăuți are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Rădăuți 45% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$205
$9.00 RON 43.04
21.33%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$815
$41.78 RON 200
3.81%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$221
$8.34 RON 39.90
41.25%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$71.6
$2.11 RON 10.11
80.57%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$24.10
$1.50 RON 7.18
-14.67%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.71
$1.18 RON 5.63
-33.90%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$59.5
$1.32 RON 6.31
140.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$92.7
$2.15 RON 10.29
129.30%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.43
$1.06 RON 5.09
33.02%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.66
$1.07 RON 5.11
107.48%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.64
$1.40 RON 6.71
1.43%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$47.41
$2.14 RON 10.25
17.76%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$137
$7.33 RON 35.09
-0.95%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$145
$5.14 RON 24.60
49.81%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$239
$9.00 RON 43.08
41.00%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$52.3
$0.64 RON 3.08
334.37%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.71
$1.32 RON 6.31
3.79%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.94
$1.45 RON 6.92
75.86%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.90
$1.72 RON 8.21
23.26%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.43
$0.76 RON 3.62
155.26%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$35.44
$0.53 RON 2.56
256.60%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.55
$0.76 RON 3.66
51.32%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$22.16
$0.76 RON 3.66
55.26%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$80.7
$3.52 RON 16.82
22.16%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$187
$6.46 RON 30.89
54.02%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.76
$0.66 RON 3.16
139.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$50.2
$1.08 RON 5.15
147.22%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.40
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$500
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$93.4
$0.80 RON 3.82
521.25%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$62.6
$0.82 RON 3.90
306.10%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$101
$7.57 RON 36.24
-29.19%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$27.14
$1.65 RON 7.89
-12.73%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$388.4K
$28.0K RON 134.1K
-26.30%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$441.0K
$25.1K RON 120.0K
-6.46%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,594
$100 RON 480
-15.52%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$440
$9.30 RON 44.47
151.72%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$539
$7.93 RON 37.94
261.41%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,072
$37.08 RON 177
53.86%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$543
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$96.6
$6.30 RON 30.15
-18.41%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,882
$358 RON 1,711
-42.25%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$73.8K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$815
$52.9 RON 253
-18.01%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$779
$29.95 RON 143
38.36%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,394
$75.2 RON 360
-1.34%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,677
$77.8 RON 372
14.76%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.4K
$206 RON 986
375.47%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,157
$156 RON 747
143.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$32.1K
$419 RON 2,007
307.17%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$20.2K
$317 RON 1,518
238.89%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$74.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$115.7K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Rădăuți
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.8K
$954 RON 4,563
-22.98%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
7.08
61.72%

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 Rădăuți: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Rădăuți
$156 59% $225
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Rădăuți
$170 33.4% $85
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Rădăuți
$144 28.9% $58
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Rădăuți
$118 14.1% $19
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Rădăuți
$106 5% $5.6
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Rădăuți
$50 26.2% $18
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Rădăuți
$4.9 * 90.3% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $206 in Rădăuți. 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 30% higher in Rădăuți, 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 in Playa del Carmen versus $42 in Rădăuți. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $170 – making Rădăuți the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇷🇴 Rădăuți
🕒 Local time
21:21 9:21 PM
04:21 4:21 AM
7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
31,074
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Rădăuți 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Rădăuți

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 Rădăuți: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Rădăuți cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 61%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,122 in Rădăuți. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Rădăuți, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $206 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
How do food prices compare in Playa del Carmen and in Rădăuți?
Groceries cost about 50% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $358 in Rădăuți. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is $1,200 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Rădăuți?
A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Rădăuți, where all-in costs run around $748, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Rădăuți it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is it better to live in Playa del Carmen or in Rădăuți?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $748 in Rădăuți to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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