Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and San José Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and San José

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 9.9% cheaper than San José without rent, and 26.5% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 25.6% cheaper than San José without rent, and 46.1% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 MX$210

$15.99 UYU 619

-25.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.90 MX$740

$55.5 UYU 2,149

-24.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.55 MX$186

$10.82 UYU 419

-2.50%

Cappuccino

$3.60 MX$63.5

$4.06 UYU 157

-11.33%

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

$1.50 MX$26.45

$2.15 UYU 83.3

-30.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 MX$16.09

$1.72 UYU 66.6

-47.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 MX$54.4

$4.30 UYU 167

-28.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 MX$78.8

$3.75 UYU 145

19.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 MX$24.54

$1.01 UYU 39.26

37.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.90 MX$33.47

$1.99 UYU 77.2

-4.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 MX$28.27

$1.48 UYU 57.4

8.11%

Eggs

$2.60 MX$45.97

$2.57 UYU 99.5

1.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.36 MX$148

$12.08 UYU 468

-30.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.64 MX$152

$7.31 UYU 283

18.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 MX$192

$11.16 UYU 432

-2.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 MX$45.98

$1.20 UYU 46.46

117.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$25.46

$1.45 UYU 56.2

-0.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 MX$34.55

$1.23 UYU 47.79

59.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$37.34

$1.46 UYU 56.5

45.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 MX$32.87

$0.94 UYU 36.22

97.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 MX$39.20

$1.20 UYU 46.31

85.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 MX$17.99

$1.36 UYU 52.6

-25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$18.36

$1.69 UYU 65.4

-38.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.05 MX$71.5

$5.08 UYU 197

-20.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.18 MX$180

$10.32 UYU 399

-1.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 MX$29.79

$2.36 UYU 91.3

-28.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 MX$46.25

$2.90 UYU 112

-9.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.09

$1.24 UYU 48.11

-58.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.52 MX$468

$44.06 UYU 1,706

-39.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 MX$55.7

$1.49 UYU 57.7

111.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.46 MX$43.49

$1.50 UYU 57.9

64.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 MX$57.5

$10.94 UYU 424

-70.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 MX$23.36

$1.88 UYU 72.8

-29.79%

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

$30.1K MX$531.0K

$34.0K UYU 1.3M

-11.50%

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

$23.8K MX$419.3K

$35.7K UYU 1.4M

-33.51%

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

$83.5 MX$1,474

$169 UYU 6,551

-50.64%

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

$22.86 MX$404

$16.43 UYU 636

39.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.04 MX$530

$48.59 UYU 1,881

-38.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.9 MX$916

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.30 MX$323

Cinema Ticket

$5.12 MX$90.4

$10.50 UYU 406

-51.24%

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

$201 MX$3,541

$485 UYU 18.8K

-58.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,318 MX$93.9K

$8,800 UYU 340.7K

-39.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.73 MX$631

$93.2 UYU 3,609

-61.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.27 MX$711

$47.99 UYU 1,858

-16.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 MX$1,398

$116 UYU 4,495

-31.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,576

$122 UYU 4,709

-26.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$947 MX$16.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 MX$8,525

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,599 MX$28.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 MX$21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,996 MX$70.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,402 MX$113.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$730 MX$12.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

5.68

101.06%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: January 13, 2026

Last update for San José: January 10, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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