Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sandakan, Sabah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sandakan, Sabah: $968 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Sandakan, Sabah
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Sandakan, Sabah Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Sandakan, Sabah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$968

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Sandakan, Sabah

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $968 in Sandakan, Sabah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Sandakan, Sabah $968

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,470 in Sandakan, Sabah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Sandakan, Sabah $1,470

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,971 in Sandakan, Sabah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Sandakan, Sabah $1,971

Playa del Carmen costs about 24% more than Sandakan, Sabah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sandakan, Sabah are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Sandakan, Sabah 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$3.65 MYR 14.86

199.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$19.26 MYR 78.5

125.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$4.56 MYR 18.57

158.33%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$3.07 MYR 12.53

24.10%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.73 MYR 2.97

75.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.43 MYR 1.75

81.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$4.24 MYR 17.29

-25.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$3.93 MYR 16.01

25.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.99 MYR 8.11

-29.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.18 MYR 4.80

88.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.49 MYR 6.08

-4.70%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.24 MYR 9.13

12.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$11.79 MYR 48.06

-38.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$4.00 MYR 16.31

92.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$9.55 MYR 38.90

32.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.84 MYR 11.55

-2.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.63 MYR 6.63

-15.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.53 MYR 10.30

0.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.56 MYR 6.37

35.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.39 MYR 5.66

39.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.38 MYR 5.63

36.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.27 MYR 5.15

-9.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.48 MYR 1.94

145.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$4.04 MYR 16.47

6.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$21.89 MYR 89.2

-54.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$3.12 MYR 12.73

-49.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$4.29 MYR 17.46

-37.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.79 MYR 3.21

-30.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$10.67 MYR 43.47

149.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.32 MYR 5.39

276.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.63 MYR 2.58

428.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$8.09 MYR 32.98

-33.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$0.82 MYR 3.32

75.61%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$46.8K MYR 190.5K

-55.80%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$39.7K MYR 161.6K

-40.85%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$48.86 MYR 199

73.54%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$10.09 MYR 41.11

132.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$28.65 MYR 117

0.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$36.98 MYR 151

54.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$7.38 MYR 30.07

291.73%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$5.08 MYR 20.70

1.18%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$242 MYR 987

-14.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$7,062 MYR 28.8K

-44.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$63.1 MYR 257

-31.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$30.35 MYR 124

36.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$91.5 MYR 373

-18.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$77.2 MYR 315

15.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$379 MYR 1,545

158.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$326 MYR 1,327

16.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$631 MYR 2,569

170.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$589 MYR 2,399

82.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,010 MYR 8,190

96.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$1,149 MYR 4,682

435.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$1,210 MYR 4,931

-39.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.06

182.02%

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 Sandakan, Sabah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Sandakan, Sabah

$326 33.6% 14.5% $55

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Sandakan, Sabah

$258 26.7% 1.3% $3.4

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Sandakan, Sabah

$113 11.7% 43.9% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Sandakan, Sabah

$88 9.1% 36% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Sandakan, Sabah

$118 12.2% 5.6% $6.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Sandakan, Sabah

$47 4.9% 30% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Sandakan, Sabah

$18 1.9% 63.7% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $379 in Sandakan, Sabah. 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 65% higher in Sandakan, Sabah, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $19 in Sandakan, Sabah. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $258 in Sandakan, Sabah – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Sandakan, Sabah

🕒 Local time

08:06 8:06 AM

21:06 9:06 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

439,050

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sandakan, Sabah 15,990 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sandakan, Sabah

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 Sandakan, Sabah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 24%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,453 in Sandakan, Sabah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sandakan, Sabah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $379 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $968 in Sandakan, Sabah. That’s a gap of about 24%.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $242 in Sandakan, Sabah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Sandakan, Sabah, where all-in costs run around $968, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Sandakan, Sabah 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 $968 in Sandakan, Sabah to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.