Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and San Fernando, La Union

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando, La Union: $721 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Other living expenses 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 San Fernando, La Union
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San Fernando, La Union Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

San Fernando, La Union

🇵🇭 Philippines

$721

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in San Fernando, La Union

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 San Fernando, La Union actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $721 in San Fernando, La Union, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
San Fernando, La Union $721

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,102 in San Fernando, La Union, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
San Fernando, La Union $1,102

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,484 in San Fernando, La Union, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
San Fernando, La Union $1,484

Playa del Carmen costs about 67% more than San Fernando, La Union, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and San Fernando, La Union are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, San Fernando, La Union 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$198

$3.97 ₱250

168.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$16.71 ₱1,053

162.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$2.69 ₱170

338.29%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.4

$2.14 ₱135

77.10%

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

$1.30 MX$24.12

$0.69 ₱43.30

88.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.50

$0.33 ₱21.05

151.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.5

$1.19 ₱74.7

164.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.06 ₱130

139.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.20

$1.65 ₱104

-14.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.83

$1.09 ₱69.0

101.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.39

$0.89 ₱56.2

65.17%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.43

$1.90 ₱120

31.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$5.52 ₱348

32.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$4.09 ₱258

94.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.11 ₱448

80.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.39 ₱150

21.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.73

$1.57 ₱98.7

-12.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.32

$2.33 ₱147

6.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.75

$1.17 ₱74.0

73.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$2.06 ₱130

-1.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.40

$2.30 ₱145

-17.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.28

$1.08 ₱68.2

5.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.04

$0.53 ₱33.36

133.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.4

$2.82 ₱178

51.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$7.54 ₱475

30.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.49

$0.99 ₱62.3

60.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.93 ₱121

42.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.22 ₱13.80

131.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$509

$12.52 ₱789

118.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.80 ₱50.6

495.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.4

$0.20 ₱12.61

1525.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$1.91 ₱121

182.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.42

$1.03 ₱65.1

48.54%

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

$21.2K MX$394.5K

$20.8K ₱1.3M

2.00%

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

$23.3K MX$432.6K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

22.05%

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

$83.5 MX$1,553

$119 ₱7,523

-30.05%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$15.64 ₱986

48.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$23.84 ₱1,502

15.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$31.64 ₱1,994

78.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$524

$5.16 ₱325

446.32%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.0

$5.22 ₱329

-4.21%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$130 ₱8,169

59.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$7,895 ₱497.6K

-33.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$808

$33.12 ₱2,087

31.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$791

$19.07 ₱1,202

123.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,353

$69.2 ₱4,364

5.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,644

$55.4 ₱3,489

59.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$251 ₱15.8K

296.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,112

$167 ₱10.5K

128.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.1K

$490 ₱30.9K

241.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$350 ₱22.1K

208.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$2,657 ₱167.5K

47.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.1K

$1,125 ₱70.9K

445.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.92

65.46%

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 San Fernando, La Union: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

San Fernando, La Union

$167 23.2% 56.3% $215

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

San Fernando, La Union

$179 24.8% 30.5% $79

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

San Fernando, La Union

$80 11.1% 60.2% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

San Fernando, La Union

$159 22% 18.3% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

San Fernando, La Union

$80 11% 28.5% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

San Fernando, La Union

$42 5.8% 36.6% $24

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

San Fernando, La Union

$15 2.1% 69.9% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $251 in San Fernando, La Union. 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 $17 in San Fernando, La Union. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $179 – making San Fernando, La Union the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 San Fernando, La Union

🕒 Local time

13:39 1:39 PM

02:39 2:39 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

83,003

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.83 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 8, 2026: 1 USD = 18.6 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.72 MXN (100 MXN = 4.83 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 8, 2026: 1 USD = 63.03 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.24 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen San Fernando, La Union 14,910 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
San Fernando, La Union

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 San Fernando, La Union: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 67%, 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 $1,082 in San Fernando, La Union. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Fernando, La Union, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $251 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $721 in San Fernando, La Union. That makes San Fernando, La Union about 40% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 54% less in San Fernando, La Union. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in San Fernando, La Union, where all-in costs run around $721, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In San Fernando, La Union it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, San Fernando, La Union is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 40% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.