Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Samana

For one person, living is cheaper in Samana: $712 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Samana
Learn more

Samana Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Samana

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$712

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $712 in Samana, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Samana $712

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,168 in Samana, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Samana $1,168

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,625 in Samana, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Samana $1,625

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

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$8.05 DOP 484

32.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$41.69 DOP 2,504

5.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.03 DOP 422

67.71%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.74 DOP 105

117.82%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.67 DOP 40.26

94.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.40 DOP 24.10

107.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$2.39 DOP 144

31.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.87 DOP 232

27.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.15 DOP 69.2

22.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.69 DOP 101

30.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.53 DOP 92.0

-3.92%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.42 DOP 85.2

76.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$6.07 DOP 364

20.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.50 DOP 210

127.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$4.76 DOP 286

170.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.66 DOP 220

-20.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.44 DOP 86.5

-4.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$3.34 DOP 200

-25.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.84 DOP 110

10.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$3.44 DOP 207

-41.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$2.91 DOP 175

-34.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.93 DOP 55.9

22.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$1.63 DOP 97.7

-23.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$4.82 DOP 290

-11.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$8.30 DOP 499

18.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$2.96 DOP 178

-46.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$3.44 DOP 207

-20.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.81 DOP 48.56

-37.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$2.43 DOP 146

95.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$3.19 DOP 191

1.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.20 DOP 71.8

27.50%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$14.7K DOP 882.7K

44.34%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$25.8K DOP 1.5M

-9.72%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$92.2 DOP 5,539

-9.48%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$16.54 DOP 993

40.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$37.91 DOP 2,277

-27.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.81 DOP 289

3.95%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$149 DOP 8,928

39.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$5,316 DOP 319.3K

-1.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$25.70 DOP 1,544

69.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$44.73 DOP 2,686

-4.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$62.0 DOP 3,726

17.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$65.7 DOP 3,948

34.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$131 DOP 7,840

662.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$97.1 DOP 5,834

293.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$325 DOP 19.5K

414.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$242 DOP 14.6K

345.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.09%

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 Samana: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Samana

$97 13.6% 74.6% $285

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Samana

$217 30.5% 15.6% $40

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Samana

$130 18.3% 34.9% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Samana

$147 20.6% 9.2% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Samana

$89 12.5% 19.8% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Samana

$9.6 * 1.4% 85.5% $57

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Samana

$22 * 3% 57.2% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $131 in Samana. 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 in Playa del Carmen versus $42 in Samana. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $217 – making Samana the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇩🇴 Samana

🕒 Local time

15:15 3:15 PM

16:15 4:15 PM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

108,179

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Dominican Peso DOP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 DOP = 1.67 USD

100 DOP = 1.49 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DOP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 60.06 DOP (100 DOP = 1.67 USD). 1 EUR = 67.17 DOP (100 DOP = 1.49 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Samana 1,860 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Samana

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 Samana: 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 $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,068 in Samana. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Samana, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $131 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $712 in Samana. That makes Samana about 41% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $149 in Samana. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Samana, where all-in costs run around $712, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Samana it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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