Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Rio de Janeiro

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Rio de Janeiro: $1,202 and $1,185 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Rio de Janeiro
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Rio de Janeiro Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,185

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Rio de Janeiro

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 Rio de Janeiro actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Rio de Janeiro $1,185

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,737 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Rio de Janeiro $1,737

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,289 in Rio de Janeiro, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Rio de Janeiro $2,289

Playa del Carmen and Rio de Janeiro have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Rio de Janeiro are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Rio de Janeiro 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$8.16 R$44.76

30.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$37.20 R$204

17.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.52 R$41.28

56.78%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.10 R$11.55

80.48%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.36 R$7.47

-4.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.96 R$5.27

-13.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.98 R$10.84

59.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.26 R$17.89

51.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.09 R$5.96

29.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.87 R$10.24

17.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.12 R$6.17

31.25%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$2.20 R$12.09

13.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$9.91 R$54.4

-26.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$4.11 R$22.56

93.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$9.25 R$50.7

39.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.59 R$14.22

11.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.69 R$9.26

-18.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$1.47 R$8.06

69.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$1.72 R$9.42

18.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.16 R$6.34

74.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.00 R$5.48

90.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.66 R$3.60

72.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.61 R$3.34

103.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.69 R$14.77

58.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$7.20 R$39.53

36.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.07 R$5.89

48.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.24 R$12.29

22.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.88 R$4.81

-42.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$52.3 R$287

-47.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.18 R$6.47

303.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.68 R$3.71

377.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$8.71 R$47.80

-38.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.20 R$6.58

27.50%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$21.9K R$120.0K

-3.01%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$31.0K R$170.2K

-24.98%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$126 R$689

-33.54%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$10.14 R$55.6

128.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$20.95 R$115

31.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$28.51 R$156

97.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$28.87 R$158

-2.36%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$7.40 R$40.63

-32.43%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$537 R$2,947

-61.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$15.9K R$87.2K

-67.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$38.68 R$212

12.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$45.06 R$247

-5.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$68.6 R$376

6.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$64.1 R$352

37.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$768 R$4,213

29.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$491 R$2,693

-22.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$1,458 R$8,004

14.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$743 R$4,077

45.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$3,325 R$18.3K

17.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,552 R$8,518

295.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$674 R$3,698

23.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.93

-4.02%

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 Rio de Janeiro: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Rio de Janeiro

$491 41.4% 28.3% $108

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Rio de Janeiro

$198 16.7% 23.1% $59

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Rio de Janeiro

$139 11.7% 30.7% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$157 13.2% 16.7% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Rio de Janeiro

$97 8.2% 12.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Rio de Janeiro

$43 3.7% 34.8% $23

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Rio de Janeiro

$60 5.1% 19.7% $9.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $768 in Rio de Janeiro. 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 24% 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 $37 in Rio de Janeiro. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $198 – making Rio de Janeiro the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Rio de Janeiro

🕒 Local time

18:51 6:51 PM

20:51 8:51 PM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

6,211,223

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 BRL = 0.182 USD

1 BRL = 0.162 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 5.49 BRL (1 BRL = 0.182 USD). 1 EUR = 6.18 BRL (1 BRL = 0.162 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Rio de Janeiro 6,790 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Rio de Janeiro

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 Rio de Janeiro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,778 in Rio de Janeiro. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rio de Janeiro, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $768 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Groceries cost about 30% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $537 in Rio de Janeiro. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,185 in Rio de Janeiro, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Rio de Janeiro costs $1,185 versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Rio de Janeiro. 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.