Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Saint-Etienne

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,436 in Saint-Etienne, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Saint-Etienne
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Saint-Etienne Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Saint-Etienne

🇫🇷 France

$1,436

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Saint-Etienne

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 Saint-Etienne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,436 in Saint-Etienne, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Saint-Etienne $1,436

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,264 in Saint-Etienne, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Saint-Etienne $2,264

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,092 in Saint-Etienne, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Saint-Etienne $3,092

Playa del Carmen is about 16% cheaper than Saint-Etienne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Saint-Etienne is 6% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$16.56 €14.88

-34.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$810

$56.7 €50.9

-23.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$13.54 €12.16

-13.00%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.2

$2.07 €1.86

84.06%

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

$1.28 MX$23.96

$3.42 €3.07

-62.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.63

$1.70 €1.53

-54.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.2

$5.07 €4.55

-37.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.2

$5.75 €5.16

-14.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.28

$1.29 €1.15

9.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.43

$1.10 €0.99

101.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.48

$2.09 €1.88

-32.06%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.14

$3.05 €2.74

-17.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$17.01 €15.28

-57.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$11.17 €10.04

-31.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$16.35 €14.69

-22.39%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.0

$3.27 €2.94

-14.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.56

$2.54 €2.28

-46.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.66

$2.45 €2.20

4.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.67

$2.71 €2.43

-21.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.22

$1.57 €1.41

23.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.24

$1.73 €1.55

9.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.42

$1.10 €0.99

4.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.03

$2.30 €2.07

-48.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.3

$12.15 €10.91

-64.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$186

$10.14 €9.11

-1.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.59

$3.32 €2.99

-52.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.91

$3.26 €2.93

-18.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.34

$1.81 €1.62

-69.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$497

$39.87 €35.82

-33.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.9

$2.83 €2.54

75.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.2

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$100

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.98

$2.11 €1.89

-31.75%

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

$20.7K MX$386.2K

$20.1K €18.0K

2.90%

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

$23.5K MX$438.5K

$32.0K €28.7K

-26.62%

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

$84.8 MX$1,584

$164 €148

-48.40%

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

$23.41 MX$437

$29.01 €26.07

-19.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$535

$19.04 €17.11

50.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,066

$29.86 €26.83

91.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$540

$6.61 €5.94

337.37%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.0

$9.89 €8.88

-48.03%

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

$207 MX$3,860

$996 €895

-79.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.4K

$15.8K €14.2K

-75.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$810

$72.1 €64.8

-39.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$774

$30.47 €27.38

36.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,386

$103 €92.3

-27.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,668

$151 €135

-40.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$515 €463

90.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,116

$370 €332

2.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.9K

$873 €785

95.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.1K

$716 €643

50.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.7K

$1,677 €1,506

135.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.1K

$1,619 €1,455

280.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$2,255 €2,026

-67.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.67

211.99%

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 Saint-Etienne: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Saint-Etienne

$370 25.8% 2.8% $11

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Saint-Etienne

$339 23.6% 33% $84

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Saint-Etienne

$255 17.8% 26.1% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Saint-Etienne

$212 14.8% 55.2% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Saint-Etienne

$160 11.2% 43.4% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Saint-Etienne

$50 3.5% 26.3% $18

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Saint-Etienne

$50 * 3.5% 1% $0.5

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 $515 in Saint-Etienne. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Saint-Etienne are about 3.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $57 in Saint-Etienne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $339 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇫🇷 Saint-Etienne

🕒 Local time

11:55 11:55 AM

17:55 5:55 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

172,718

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Saint-Etienne 8,500 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Saint-Etienne

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 Saint-Etienne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Saint-Etienne is pricier by about 19%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,154 in Saint-Etienne. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Saint-Etienne, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $515 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,436 in Saint-Etienne. That’s a gap of about 19%.

Public transport costs about 33% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,436 in Saint-Etienne. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Saint-Etienne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.