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 13.1% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 40% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 6.8% more expensive than Santa Cruz without rent, and 51.3% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.85 MX$209

$7.66 JMD 1,198

54.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.16 MX$744

$62.9 JMD 9,834

-32.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 MX$190

$8.65 JMD 1,354

24.28%

Cappuccino

$3.47 MX$61.3

$4.33 JMD 677

-19.86%

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

$1.45 MX$25.65

$1.37 JMD 215

5.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MX$15.93

$0.70 JMD 109

28.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 MX$53.9

$2.55 JMD 400

19.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 MX$77.9

$3.17 JMD 496

39.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 MX$24.17

$4.41 JMD 689

-68.93%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 MX$33.05

$3.59 JMD 561

-47.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$27.25

$1.57 JMD 245

-1.91%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$44.18

$3.53 JMD 552

-29.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 MX$152

$10.97 JMD 1,716

-21.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.63 MX$152

$6.45 JMD 1,009

33.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 MX$195

$7.85 JMD 1,228

40.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 MX$48.53

$6.11 JMD 956

-54.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$25.21

$3.09 JMD 483

-53.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MX$33.05

$4.25 JMD 665

-56.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 MX$38.26

$2.96 JMD 464

-26.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.23

$2.09 JMD 327

-10.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 MX$39.65

$2.01 JMD 315

11.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MX$18.85

$2.97 JMD 464

-63.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 MX$18.95

$1.44 JMD 225

-25.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MX$73.3

$8.54 JMD 1,336

-51.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.34 MX$182

$11.28 JMD 1,765

-8.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 MX$29.64

$2.81 JMD 439

-40.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 MX$43.84

$3.19 JMD 499

-22.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$9.80

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.53 MX$468

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 MX$56.8

$1.07 JMD 167

200.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$43.80

$3.24 JMD 507

-23.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 MX$54.9

$6.39 JMD 1,000

-51.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 MX$22.16

$1.28 JMD 201

-1.56%

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

$30.7K MX$541.1K

$43.4K JMD 6.8M

-29.41%

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

$24.0K MX$424.3K

$32.9K JMD 5.2M

-27.01%

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

$82.5 MX$1,456

$160 JMD 25.1K

-48.54%

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

$22.29 MX$393

$21.79 JMD 3,408

2.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 MX$530

$50.4 JMD 7,889

-40.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 MX$908

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 MX$323

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 MX$88.0

$13.25 JMD 2,072

-62.42%

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

$200 MX$3,530

$227 JMD 35.5K

-11.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,304 MX$93.6K

$2,440 JMD 381.7K

117.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.71 MX$630

$26.36 JMD 4,122

35.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.56 MX$698

$25.86 JMD 4,045

52.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 MX$1,422

$71.3 JMD 11.1K

13.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.3 MX$1,559

$75.4 JMD 11.8K

17.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 MX$17.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MX$8,511

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 MX$28.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 MX$20.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$71.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,522 MX$115.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$756 MX$13.4K

$401 JMD 62.7K

88.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

9.15

24.81%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz: March 2, 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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