Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Santa Cruz Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Santa Cruz

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 12.9% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 21% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 26% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 3.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 MX$210

$10.72 ₡5,316

10.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.90 MX$740

$60.6 ₡30.0K

-30.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.55 MX$186

$9.93 ₡4,923

6.24%

Cappuccino

$3.60 MX$63.5

$3.85 ₡1,910

-6.49%

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

$1.50 MX$26.45

$1.98 ₡981

-24.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 MX$16.09

$1.60 ₡792

-43.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 MX$54.4

$3.00 ₡1,487

2.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 MX$78.8

$4.56 ₡2,263

-1.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 MX$24.54

$1.96 ₡973

-29.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.90 MX$33.47

$2.91 ₡1,443

-34.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 MX$28.27

$2.14 ₡1,061

-25.23%

Eggs

$2.60 MX$45.97

$2.91 ₡1,441

-10.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.36 MX$148

$9.94 ₡4,928

-15.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.64 MX$152

$8.98 ₡4,451

-3.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 MX$192

$13.40 ₡6,642

-18.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 MX$45.98

$4.62 ₡2,291

-43.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$25.46

$1.00 ₡497

44.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 MX$34.55

$4.37 ₡2,168

-55.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$37.34

$3.47 ₡1,723

-38.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 MX$32.87

$3.52 ₡1,743

-47.16%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 MX$39.20

$3.22 ₡1,596

-31.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 MX$17.99

$0.96 ₡475

6.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$18.36

$2.95 ₡1,463

-64.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.05 MX$71.5

$5.25 ₡2,605

-22.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.18 MX$180

$18.01 ₡8,929

-43.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 MX$29.79

$2.40 ₡1,192

-29.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 MX$46.25

$2.91 ₡1,442

-9.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.09

$1.03 ₡508

-50.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.52 MX$468

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 MX$55.7

$1.86 ₡921

69.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.46 MX$43.49

$1.78 ₡884

38.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 MX$57.5

$8.09 ₡4,010

-59.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 MX$23.36

$1.39 ₡691

-5.04%

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

$30.1K MX$531.0K

$37.3K ₡18.5M

-19.42%

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

$23.8K MX$419.3K

$32.2K ₡16.0M

-26.30%

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

$83.5 MX$1,474

$94.4 ₡46.8K

-11.55%

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

$22.86 MX$404

$25.54 ₡12.7K

-10.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.04 MX$530

$54.2 ₡26.9K

-44.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.9 MX$916

$56.8 ₡28.2K

-8.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.30 MX$323

$23.84 ₡11.8K

-23.24%

Cinema Ticket

$5.12 MX$90.4

$6.14 ₡3,045

-16.61%

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

$201 MX$3,541

$558 ₡276.9K

-64.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,318 MX$93.9K

$12.8K ₡6.4M

-58.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.73 MX$631

$63.1 ₡31.3K

-43.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.27 MX$711

$50.9 ₡25.2K

-20.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 MX$1,398

$125 ₡62.1K

-36.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,576

$107 ₡53.1K

-16.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$947 MX$16.7K

$767 ₡380.4K

23.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 MX$8,525

$604 ₡299.3K

-20.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,599 MX$28.2K

$1,541 ₡764.1K

3.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 MX$21.4K

$970 ₡480.9K

24.85%

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

10.17

12.29%

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 Santa Cruz: January 12, 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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