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 20.1% cheaper than San José without rent, and 28.8% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 19.6% cheaper than San José without rent, and 44.2% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.58 MX$212

$15.88 UYU 624

-27.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42 MX$769

$55.6 UYU 2,184

-24.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.5 MX$192

$10.84 UYU 425

-3.14%

Cappuccino

$3.43 MX$62.8

$4.15 UYU 163

-17.35%

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

$1.49 MX$27.34

$2.24 UYU 88

-33.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 MX$17.27

$1.77 UYU 69.6

-46.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 MX$56.3

$4.47 UYU 176

-31.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 MX$79.9

$3.65 UYU 143

19.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 MX$25.44

$0.99 UYU 38.72

40.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 MX$33.81

$1.99 UYU 78.1

-7.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 MX$28.88

$1.49 UYU 58.5

6.04%

Eggs

$2.51 MX$46

$2.56 UYU 100

-1.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.26 MX$151

$12.15 UYU 477

-32.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.7 MX$159

$7.28 UYU 286

19.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.73 MX$196

$10.88 UYU 427

-1.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 MX$47.74

$1.19 UYU 46.59

119.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 MX$27.28

$1.48 UYU 58.3

0.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.72

$1.26 UYU 49.29

54.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 MX$38.26

$1.45 UYU 57

44.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.81 MX$33.05

$0.99 UYU 38.89

82.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 MX$39.62

$1.19 UYU 46.77

81.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 MX$18.85

$1.36 UYU 53.3

-24.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$19.7

$1.74 UYU 68.4

-37.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 MX$75.9

$5.28 UYU 207

-21.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.88 MX$163

$10.29 UYU 404

-13.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 MX$30.64

$2.26 UYU 88.6

-26.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 MX$46.31

$3.05 UYU 120

-17.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.27

$1.19 UYU 46.55

-57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.68 MX$488

$44.63 UYU 1,752

-40.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 MX$59.7

$1.51 UYU 59.3

115.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.51 MX$45.94

$1.49 UYU 58.7

68.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 MX$57.2

$10.93 UYU 429

-71.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 MX$23.96

$1.81 UYU 71.1

-27.62%

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

$30.9K MX$565K

$34.6K UYU 1.4M

-10.72%

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

$23.9K MX$436.9K

$36K UYU 1.4M

-33.74%

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

$83 MX$1,520

$174 UYU 6,851

-52.42%

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

$22.59 MX$414

$16.42 UYU 645

37.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.51 MX$540

$49.85 UYU 1,957

-40.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 MX$944

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.42 MX$337

Cinema Ticket

$4.9 MX$89.7

$10.59 UYU 416

-53.73%

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

$200 MX$3,668

$491 UYU 19.3K

-59.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,179 MX$94.8K

$8,820 UYU 346.3K

-41.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.41 MX$667

$94.6 UYU 3,713

-61.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.91 MX$731

$47.97 UYU 1,883

-16.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 MX$1,462

$113 UYU 4,420

-29.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.7 MX$1,605

$122 UYU 4,791

-28.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$983 MX$18K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 MX$8,612

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,610 MX$29.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,189 MX$21.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,839 MX$70.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,205 MX$113.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$724 MX$13.2K

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: November 30, 2025

Last update for San José: November 29, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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