Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and San Juan, Argentina

Name: San Juan
Address: San Juan, AR

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $891 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 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
43

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

San Juan

🇦🇷 Argentina

$891

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $891 in San Juan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
San Juan $891

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,398 in San Juan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
San Juan $1,398

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,904 in San Juan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
San Juan $1,904

Playa del Carmen costs about 35% more than San Juan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and San Juan are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, San Juan 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$7.16 ARS 11.1K

52.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$805

$39.73 ARS 61.4K

9.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$12.51 ARS 19.3K

-5.84%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.7

$2.62 ARS 4,048

45.42%

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

$1.28 MX$23.81

$2.19 ARS 3,380

-41.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.54

$1.82 ARS 2,810

-57.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$58.8

$3.96 ARS 6,121

-19.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.7

$4.56 ARS 7,042

8.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.12

$1.35 ARS 2,084

4.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.17

$1.38 ARS 2,131

60.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.32

$1.39 ARS 2,147

2.16%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.85

$1.45 ARS 2,237

73.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$2.90 ARS 4,483

150.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.37 ARS 9,843

20.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$10.75 ARS 16.6K

18.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.7

$1.45 ARS 2,238

91.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.41

$1.38 ARS 2,133

-0.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.37

$1.37 ARS 2,112

86.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$1.45 ARS 2,233

46.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.00

$1.46 ARS 2,254

32.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.02

$1.38 ARS 2,136

36.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.29

$1.39 ARS 2,147

-17.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.89

$1.46 ARS 2,251

-19.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$79.8

$2.69 ARS 4,157

59.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$4.95 ARS 7,650

101.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.41

$1.46 ARS 2,251

8.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.60

$1.43 ARS 2,214

86.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.28

$1.04 ARS 1,603

-47.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$494

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.3

$2.03 ARS 3,139

144.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$61.9

$0.97 ARS 1,501

243.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.5

$5.04 ARS 7,792

6.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.82

$1.13 ARS 1,749

27.43%

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

$20.7K MX$383.8K

$26.8K ARS 41.4M

-22.83%

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

$23.5K MX$435.8K

$33.6K ARS 52.0M

-30.22%

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

$84.8 MX$1,575

$141 ARS 217.8K

-39.87%

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

$23.41 MX$435

$9.91 ARS 15.3K

136.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$532

$17.96 ARS 27.7K

59.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,059

$29.64 ARS 45.8K

92.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.4

$6.96 ARS 10.8K

-26.15%

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

$207 MX$3,836

$173 ARS 267.6K

19.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$72.9K

$4,149 ARS 6.4M

-5.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$805

$108 ARS 166.2K

-59.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$770

$42.19 ARS 65.2K

-1.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,378

$56.8 ARS 87.8K

30.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,657

$36.24 ARS 56.0K

146.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$248 ARS 382.6K

295.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,072

$198 ARS 305.2K

92.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.7K

$500 ARS 772.8K

241.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$408 ARS 629.8K

163.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

$696 ARS 1.1M

5.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-78.80%

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 San Juan: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

San Juan

$198 22.2% 48.1% $183

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

San Juan

$190 21.3% 25.5% $65

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

San Juan

$171 19.2% 15.4% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

San Juan

$169 19% 23.4% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

San Juan

$109 12.3% 2.2% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

San Juan

$44 4.9% 35.3% $24

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

San Juan

$11 * 1.2% 78.1% $39

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $248 in San Juan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 6% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $40 in San Juan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $190 – making San Juan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇷 San Juan

🕒 Local time

23:02 11:02 PM

01:02 1:02 AM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

522,029

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 1,545 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD). 1 EUR = 1,732 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.77 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen San Juan 6,130 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
San Juan

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 Juan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 35%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,337 in San Juan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Juan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $248 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $891 in San Juan. That makes San Juan about 26% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $173 in San Juan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $891 in San Juan. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward San Juan – 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 San Juan. 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.