Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Santa Cruz, Costa Rica

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,686 in Santa Cruz, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
83

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz
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Santa Cruz Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,686

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Santa Cruz

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,686 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Santa Cruz $1,686

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,662 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Santa Cruz $2,662

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,637 in Santa Cruz, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Santa Cruz $3,637

Playa del Carmen is about 29% cheaper than Santa Cruz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Santa Cruz is 24% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$12.17 ₡5,474

-10.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$805

$62.3 ₡28.0K

-30.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$10.82 ₡4,866

8.87%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.7

$4.43 ₡1,992

-14.00%

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

$1.28 MX$23.81

$2.32 ₡1,045

-44.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.54

$1.93 ₡868

-59.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$58.8

$3.36 ₡1,509

-5.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.7

$4.49 ₡2,019

9.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.12

$2.43 ₡1,094

-41.98%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.17

$3.08 ₡1,386

-27.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.32

$2.40 ₡1,079

-40.83%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.85

$3.49 ₡1,568

-27.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$10.74 ₡4,830

-32.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$10.59 ₡4,761

-27.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$13.96 ₡6,276

-9.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.7

$5.10 ₡2,293

-45.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.41

$1.13 ₡508

21.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.37

$4.68 ₡2,107

-45.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$3.85 ₡1,731

-44.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.00

$3.75 ₡1,687

-48.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.02

$3.60 ₡1,620

-47.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.29

$1.09 ₡489

5.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.89

$3.21 ₡1,444

-63.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$79.8

$5.86 ₡2,637

-26.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$19.73 ₡8,873

-49.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.41

$2.90 ₡1,306

-45.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.60

$3.62 ₡1,630

-26.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.28

$1.29 ₡578

-57.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$494

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.3

$2.49 ₡1,120

99.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$61.9

$1.62 ₡726

105.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.5

$8.93 ₡4,017

-39.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.82

$1.52 ₡683

-5.26%

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

$20.7K MX$383.8K

$34.4K ₡15.5M

-39.86%

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

$23.5K MX$435.8K

$42.2K ₡19.0M

-44.40%

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

$84.8 MX$1,575

$96.5 ₡43.4K

-12.13%

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

$23.41 MX$435

$35.12 ₡15.8K

-33.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$532

$60.0 ₡27.0K

-52.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,059

$66.7 ₡30.0K

-14.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.4

$6.54 ₡2,939

-21.41%

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

$207 MX$3,836

$966 ₡434.4K

-78.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$72.9K

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-77.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$805

$71.8 ₡32.3K

-39.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$770

$55.0 ₡24.7K

-24.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,378

$131 ₡58.8K

-43.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,657

$133 ₡59.9K

-33.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$785 ₡353.2K

24.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,072

$599 ₡269.3K

-36.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.7K

$2,081 ₡935.9K

-17.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$1,165 ₡524.0K

-7.73%

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.62

32.83%

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 Santa Cruz: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Santa Cruz

$599 35.5% 57.3% $218

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Santa Cruz

$399 23.6% 56.4% $144

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Santa Cruz

$226 13.4% 11.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Santa Cruz

$192 11.4% 40.1% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Santa Cruz

$176 10.4% 57.4% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Santa Cruz

$80 4.7% 18.5% $12

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Santa Cruz

$16 * 0.9% 68.9% $35

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 $785 in Santa Cruz. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $62 in Santa Cruz. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $399 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇷 Santa Cruz

🕒 Local time

22:47 10:47 PM

21:47 9:47 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

1,665

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Santa Cruz 1,160 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz

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 Santa Cruz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Santa Cruz is pricier by about 40%, 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 $2,529 in Santa Cruz. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Cruz, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $785 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,686 in Santa Cruz. That makes Playa del Carmen about 29% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $966 in Santa Cruz. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Santa Cruz at $1,686. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Santa Cruz 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 $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,686 in Santa Cruz. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.