Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and San Pedro Sula

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in San Pedro Sula: $1,215 and $1,214 a month, rent and utilities included.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in San Pedro Sula
Learn more

San Pedro Sula Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

San Pedro Sula

🇭🇳 Honduras

$1,214

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,214 in San Pedro Sula, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
San Pedro Sula $1,214

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,834 in San Pedro Sula, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
San Pedro Sula $1,834

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,453 in San Pedro Sula, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
San Pedro Sula $2,453

Playa del Carmen and San Pedro Sula have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and San Pedro Sula are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 9% lower, San Pedro Sula 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$7.47 HNL 201

46.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$33.65 HNL 904

33.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$9.48 HNL 255

25.74%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$2.37 HNL 63.6

60.34%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$1.02 HNL 27.42

28.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$0.83 HNL 22.16

3.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

$1.85 HNL 49.68

73.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

$3.56 HNL 95.5

40.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.52 HNL 40.86

-3.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$1.96 HNL 52.6

18.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.54 HNL 41.28

-6.49%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$2.43 HNL 65.3

1.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$8.63 HNL 232

-10.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$6.73 HNL 181

17.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$9.34 HNL 251

37.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$3.52 HNL 94.5

-17.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$1.21 HNL 32.45

17.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$3.30 HNL 88.8

-22.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$1.64 HNL 44.12

30.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$2.43 HNL 65.2

-19.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$2.32 HNL 62.3

-16.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$1.43 HNL 38.29

-19.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$1.61 HNL 43.20

-24.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$2.92 HNL 78.4

50.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

$13.14 HNL 353

-25.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

$0.79 HNL 21.19

94.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

$1.34 HNL 36.06

102.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$0.63 HNL 17.00

-17.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

$35.83 HNL 962

-23.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$2.83 HNL 76.1

73.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$1.88 HNL 50.4

87.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$11.29 HNL 303

-49.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$1.01 HNL 27.05

52.48%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$22.8K HNL 613.4K

-7.00%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$25.3K HNL 678.9K

-3.12%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$130 HNL 3,497

-35.78%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$11.37 HNL 305

111.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$43.66 HNL 1,173

-32.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$37.58 HNL 1,009

72.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$13.86 HNL 372

112.55%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$5.59 HNL 150

-8.94%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$146 HNL 3,932

41.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

$3,243 HNL 87.1K

24.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$75.5 HNL 2,029

-41.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$39.70 HNL 1,066

5.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$79.7 HNL 2,139

-5.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$76.2 HNL 2,045

19.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$560 HNL 15.0K

76.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$422 HNL 11.3K

-8.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$814 HNL 21.9K

110.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$710 HNL 19.1K

56.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$1,017 HNL 27.3K

294.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$436 HNL 11.7K

1332.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

$604 HNL 16.2K

25.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

12.33

-7.14%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for San Pedro Sula: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

San Pedro Sula

$422 34.5% 9.5% $36

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

San Pedro Sula

$254 20.8% 2.3% $6

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

San Pedro Sula

$140 11.5% 31.2% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

San Pedro Sula

$185 15.2% 35.2% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

San Pedro Sula

$122 10% 6.9% $7.9

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

San Pedro Sula

$49 4% 35% $26

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

San Pedro Sula

$51 4.1% 2.8% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $560 in San Pedro Sula. 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 25% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $34.00 in San Pedro Sula. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $254 – making San Pedro Sula the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇭🇳 San Pedro Sula

🕒 Local time

03:53 3:53 AM

02:53 2:53 AM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

719,064

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Honduran Lempira HNL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

100 HNL = 3.72 USD

100 HNL = 3.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HNL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Honduran Lempira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 26.86 HNL (100 HNL = 3.72 USD). 1 EUR = 30.12 HNL (100 HNL = 3.32 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen San Pedro Sula 580 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
San Pedro Sula

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 Pedro Sula: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,821 in San Pedro Sula. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Pedro Sula, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 2% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

Kindergarten costs $208 per month in Playa del Carmen and $146 in San Pedro Sula. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in San Pedro Sula, where all-in costs run around $1,214, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In San Pedro Sula 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 Pedro Sula – 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 Pedro Sula. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.