Last update: Nov 2026

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

Name: San Fernando
Address: San Fernando, PH

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando: $807 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 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
39

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando
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San Fernando Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

San Fernando

🇵🇭 Philippines

$807

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $807 in San Fernando, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
San Fernando $807

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,271 in San Fernando, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
San Fernando $1,271

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,735 in San Fernando, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
San Fernando $1,735

Playa del Carmen costs about 49% more than San Fernando, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and San Fernando are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, San Fernando 40% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.07 ₱195

247.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$23.84 ₱1,516

83.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$2.82 ₱179

318.09%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.71 ₱109

121.64%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.64 ₱40.43

103.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.38 ₱24.23

118.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.09 ₱69.3

188.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$1.95 ₱124

152.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.76 ₱112

-19.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.87 ₱55.0

152.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.96 ₱61.1

53.13%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$1.90 ₱121

31.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$4.60 ₱293

58.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.31 ₱210

140.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.04 ₱448

82.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.58 ₱164

12.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$2.06 ₱131

-33.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$2.75 ₱175

-9.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$0.92 ₱58.2

120.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.38 ₱88.0

46.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.32 ₱83.8

43.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.65 ₱41.09

75.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.35 ₱22.37

254.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.71 ₱172

57.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$6.96 ₱442

40.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$0.75 ₱47.73

112.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.95 ₱187

-6.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.25 ₱15.80

104.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$13.59 ₱864

101.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.00 ₱63.7

376.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.20 ₱12.70

1525.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$1.94 ₱123

177.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.27 ₱80.7

20.47%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$21.0K ₱1.3M

0.92%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

22.07%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$96.3 ₱6,121

-13.28%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$17.18 ₱1,092

34.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$30.29 ₱1,926

-8.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$31.66 ₱2,013

78.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$15.57 ₱990

81.05%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.66 ₱296

7.30%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$267 ₱17.0K

-22.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$13.5K ₱855.9K

-61.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$49.06 ₱3,119

-11.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$37.73 ₱2,399

12.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$71.4 ₱4,542

1.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$78.4 ₱4,982

12.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$402 ₱25.6K

147.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$266 ₱16.9K

44.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$724 ₱46.0K

131.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$560 ₱35.6K

93.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$4,249 ₱270.2K

-8.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$2,385 ₱151.6K

157.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

63.57%

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: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

San Fernando

$266 32.9% 30.6% $117

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

San Fernando

$167 20.7% 35.1% $90

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

San Fernando

$67 8.3% 66.5% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

San Fernando

$144 17.8% 7% $9.5

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

San Fernando

$106 13.2% 4.3% $4.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

San Fernando

$41 5.1% 38.3% $25

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

San Fernando

$17 2.1% 67.1% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $402 in San Fernando. 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 $24 in San Fernando. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $167 – making San Fernando the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇵🇭 San Fernando

🕒 Local time

07:47 7:47 AM

20:47 8:47 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

354,666

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 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 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 63.58 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen San Fernando 15,020 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
San Fernando

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: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 49%, 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 $1,211 in San Fernando. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Fernando, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $402 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $807 in San Fernando. That makes San Fernando about 33% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 50% less in San Fernando. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in San Fernando, where all-in costs run around $807, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In San Fernando it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $807 in San Fernando to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, San Fernando is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 33% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.