Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Samarinda

For one person, living is cheaper in Samarinda: $652 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Samarinda
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Samarinda Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Samarinda

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$652

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $652 in Samarinda, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Samarinda $652

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,055 in Samarinda, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Samarinda $1,055

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,457 in Samarinda, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Samarinda $1,457

Playa del Carmen costs about 85% more than Samarinda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Samarinda are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Samarinda 52% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$1.63 Rp 29.6K

569.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$13.90 Rp 252.0K

212.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$3.33 Rp 60.4K

253.75%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$1.45 Rp 26.3K

162.76%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.45 Rp 8,244

184.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.24 Rp 4,368

225.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.17 Rp 39.4K

46.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$3.50 Rp 63.5K

40.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.06 Rp 19.2K

33.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$0.86 Rp 15.6K

158.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$0.64 Rp 11.7K

121.87%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$1.37 Rp 24.8K

83.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$7.12 Rp 129.1K

1.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$3.54 Rp 64.2K

117.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$10.03 Rp 181.9K

26.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$4.99 Rp 90.5K

-44.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.09 Rp 19.8K

25.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$1.07 Rp 19.5K

138.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$1.41 Rp 25.6K

50.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.29 Rp 23.4K

50.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$1.81 Rp 32.8K

4.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

41.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.51 Rp 9,225

131.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$2.07 Rp 37.5K

107.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$21.12 Rp 383.0K

-52.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$1.96 Rp 35.5K

-19.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$2.92 Rp 53.0K

-8.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.21 Rp 3,781

161.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$11.71 Rp 212.4K

127.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$0.50 Rp 9,006

894.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.33 Rp 6,003

909.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$2.80 Rp 50.9K

91.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

77.78%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$22.3K Rp 404.4M

-7.32%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$31.5K Rp 571.7M

-25.55%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$63.1 Rp 1.1M

34.44%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$3.84 Rp 69.7K

509.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$18.56 Rp 336.6K

54.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$18.49 Rp 335.4K

208.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$7.04 Rp 127.7K

310.65%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$2.73 Rp 49.6K

88.28%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$98.6 Rp 1.8M

109.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$8,897 Rp 161.4M

-55.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$40.26 Rp 730.3K

7.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$27.22 Rp 493.8K

52.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$70.8 Rp 1.3M

4.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$64.6 Rp 1.2M

38.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$210 Rp 3.8M

367.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$161 Rp 2.9M

135.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$527 Rp 9.6M

224.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$420 Rp 7.6M

155.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$1,231 Rp 22.3M

220.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$819 Rp 14.9M

651.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$327 Rp 5.9M

124.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

9.46

21.04%

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 Samarinda: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Samarinda

$161 24.8% 57.6% $219

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Samarinda

$214 32.8% 16% $41

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Samarinda

$61 9.4% 69.8% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Samarinda

$85 13.1% 37.6% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Samarinda

$91 14% 18.3% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Samarinda

$24 3.7% 64.4% $43

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Samarinda

$15 2.3% 70.9% $36

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $210 in Samarinda. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 2.2 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 $14 in Samarinda. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $214 – making Samarinda the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇩 Samarinda

🕒 Local time

02:07 2:07 AM

15:07 3:07 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

726,223

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,252 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Samarinda 16,560 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Samarinda

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 Samarinda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 85%, 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 $978 in Samarinda. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Samarinda, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $210 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $652 in Samarinda. That makes Samarinda about 46% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Samarinda. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Samarinda, where all-in costs run around $652, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Samarinda it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Samarinda. 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.