Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Saint Lucia

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,360 in Saint Lucia, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. The total is higher in Saint Lucia despite lower rent and utilities.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,215
/mo nomad
🇱🇨 Saint Lucia
$1,360
/mo nomad
🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 15.2% cheaper than Saint Lucia without rent, and 10.7% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 26% cheaper than Saint Lucia without rent, and 0.3% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.97 MX$201
$8.06 EC$21.77
36.10%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.85 MX$823
$74.7 EC$202
-39.98%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.92 MX$219
$9.37 EC$25.29
27.21%
Cappuccino
$3.80 MX$69.9
$3.94 EC$10.63
-3.55%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.31 MX$24.08
$1.43 EC$3.86
-8.39%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.86 MX$15.72
$1.01 EC$2.72
-14.85%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.21 MX$59.0
$2.89 EC$7.79
11.07%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.01 MX$92.0
$3.26 EC$8.79
53.68%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.46 MX$26.77
$2.19 EC$5.92
-33.33%
White Bread (500g)
$2.33 MX$42.72
$1.68 EC$4.53
38.69%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.44 MX$26.48
$1.68 EC$4.54
-14.29%
Eggs
$2.46 MX$45.20
$4.91 EC$13.25
-49.90%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.70 MX$141
$11.47 EC$30.98
-32.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.89 MX$145
$11.33 EC$30.60
-30.36%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.80 MX$235
$14.89 EC$40.21
-14.04%
Apples (1kg)
$2.92 MX$53.6
$7.74 EC$20.90
-62.27%
Banana (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.11
$1.83 EC$4.94
-22.40%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.57 MX$47.10
$5.08 EC$13.72
-49.41%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.24
$8.59 EC$23.21
-75.09%
Potato (1kg)
$1.95 MX$35.75
$3.49 EC$9.43
-44.13%
Onion (1kg)
$1.94 MX$35.55
$2.07 EC$5.59
-6.28%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.13
$3.02 EC$8.16
-61.92%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.22 MX$22.42
$1.34 EC$3.62
-8.96%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.38 MX$80.3
$7.47 EC$20.18
-41.37%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.85 MX$181
$12.02 EC$32.44
-18.05%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.23
$2.21 EC$5.96
-30.32%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.72 MX$49.86
$5.12 EC$13.82
-46.88%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.64
$1.13 EC$3.05
-53.98%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.42 MX$503
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.91 MX$90.2
$9.28 EC$25.04
-47.09%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.52 MX$64.7
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.69 MX$104
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.54 MX$28.27
$1.58 EC$4.27
-2.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$389.9K
$29.1K EC$78.6K
-27.07%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.5K MX$449.6K
$40.9K EC$110.5K
-40.16%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.6 MX$1,535
$130 EC$350
-35.49%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$24.03 MX$441
$40.65 EC$110
-40.89%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.33 MX$539
$45.35 EC$122
-35.33%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$64.9 MX$1,191
$52.6 EC$142
23.26%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$29.46 MX$541
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.09 MX$93.4
$6.74 EC$18.19
-24.48%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$208 MX$3,813
$215 EC$581
-3.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,045 MX$74.3K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.55 MX$818
$63.7 EC$172
-30.04%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$42.06 MX$772
$53.4 EC$144
-21.28%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.5 MX$1,387
$109 EC$296
-31.00%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$91.4 MX$1,678
$110 EC$296
-16.61%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$986 MX$18.1K
$509 EC$1,373
93.92%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$385 MX$7,072
$355 EC$958
8.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,713 MX$31.5K
$1,070 EC$2,889
60.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,108 MX$20.4K
$687 EC$1,855
61.30%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,016 MX$73.7K
$142 EC$383
2733.06%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,247 MX$114.7K
$163 EC$439
3742.12%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Saint Lucia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$758 MX$13.9K
$768 EC$2,073
-1.29%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
7.75
47.74%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Saint Lucia: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$385
Saint Lucia
$355 7.9% $30
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$260
Saint Lucia
$402 54.4% $142
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$204
Saint Lucia
$171 16.4% $33
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Saint Lucia
$216 57.4% $79
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$114
Saint Lucia
$151 32.6% $37
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$75
Saint Lucia
$66 11.9% $8.9
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Saint Lucia
$14 * 73.5% $38

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

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇱🇨 Saint Lucia
🕒 Local time
06:52 6:52 AM
07:52 7:52 AM
1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
167,591
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

XCD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

East Caribbean Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.7 XCD (1 XCD = 0.37 USD). 1 EUR = 3.03 XCD (1 XCD = 0.331 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Saint Lucia 2,860 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Saint Lucia

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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