Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Rui'an

For one person, living is cheaper in Rui'an: $714 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Rui'an
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Rui'an Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Rui'an

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Rui'an

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $714 in Rui'an, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Rui'an $714

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,133 in Rui'an, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Rui'an $1,133

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,552 in Rui'an, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Rui'an $1,552

Playa del Carmen costs about 69% more than Rui'an, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Rui'an are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Rui'an 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$2.83 ¥18.91

283.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$21.42 ¥143

106.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$4.92 ¥32.91

139.02%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$3.11 ¥20.77

18.33%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$0.43 ¥2.89

211.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.29 ¥1.96

182.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$0.92 ¥6.17

232.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$2.06 ¥13.79

139.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.85 ¥12.39

-20.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.61 ¥10.73

37.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$0.95 ¥6.34

55.79%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$1.55 ¥10.38

60.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$12.91 ¥86.3

-41.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$3.24 ¥21.64

145.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$10.13 ¥67.7

24.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$1.79 ¥11.95

55.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.20 ¥8.03

19.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$1.54 ¥10.32

70.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$1.14 ¥7.64

87.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$0.69 ¥4.61

192.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$0.92 ¥6.14

116.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$0.60 ¥4.00

90.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.55 ¥3.70

118.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$3.22 ¥21.50

32.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$10.43 ¥69.7

-3.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$0.74 ¥4.93

108.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.65 ¥11.04

61.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$0.27 ¥1.80

96.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$16.57 ¥111

66.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$1.38 ¥9.21

255.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$0.32 ¥2.17

971.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$6.72 ¥44.95

-19.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.13 ¥7.53

28.32%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$19.4K ¥130.0K

8.85%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$17.4K ¥116.1K

32.51%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$44.23 ¥296

92.99%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$10.04 ¥67.1

133.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$11.61 ¥77.6

144.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$41.34 ¥276

50.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$13.91 ¥93.0

106.18%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$5.77 ¥38.60

-11.61%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$341 ¥2,279

-41.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$16.5K ¥110.6K

-76.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$43.27 ¥289

2.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$30.29 ¥203

36.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$71.0 ¥475

2.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$72.3 ¥484

23.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$275 ¥1,839

256.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$192 ¥1,285

93.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$600 ¥4,010

180.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$362 ¥2,418

202.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$3,056 ¥20.4K

29.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$2,008 ¥13.4K

205.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.89

194.34%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Rui'an: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Rui'an

$192 26.9% 48.4% $181

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Rui'an

$199 27.8% 23.1% $60

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Rui'an

$86 12.1% 56.9% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Rui'an

$66 9.2% 52% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Rui'an

$98 13.7% 12.6% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Rui'an

$53 7.4% 26.9% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Rui'an

$21 2.9% 60.1% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $275 in Rui'an. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $21.00 in Rui'an. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $199 – making Rui'an the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇳 Rui'an

🕒 Local time

12:03 12:03 PM

01:03 1:03 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

213,600

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Rui'an 13,860 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Rui'an

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 Rui'an: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 69%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,071 in Rui'an. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rui'an, 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 $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $714 in Rui'an. That's a gap of about 69%.

Public transport costs about 66% less in Rui'an. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Rui'an, where all-in costs run around $714, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Rui'an it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Rui'an. 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.