CityCost App
Cost of living in 8000+ cities on the go.

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

๐Ÿ˜ Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 80.1% more expensive than Santa Cruz, Laguna without rent, and 66.9% more expensive with rent.
๐Ÿ˜ Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 35.9% more expensive than Santa Cruz, Laguna without rent, and 102.9% more expensive with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.88 MX$210
$1.75 โ‚ฑ104
578.86%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$41.90 MX$740
$9.06 โ‚ฑ538
362.47%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.55 MX$186
$3.06 โ‚ฑ182
244.77%
Cappuccino
$3.60 MX$63.5
$2.08 โ‚ฑ123
73.08%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.50 MX$26.45
$0.43 โ‚ฑ25.34
248.84%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.91 MX$16.09
$0.28 โ‚ฑ16.84
225.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.08 MX$54.4
$1.22 โ‚ฑ72.5
152.46%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.47 MX$78.8
$1.08 โ‚ฑ64.4
313.89%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.39 MX$24.54
$1.77 โ‚ฑ105
-21.47%
White Bread (500g)
$1.90 MX$33.47
$1.21 โ‚ฑ72.1
57.02%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.60 MX$28.27
$1.08 โ‚ฑ64.4
48.15%
Eggs
$2.60 MX$45.97
$1.74 โ‚ฑ104
49.43%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.36 MX$148
$5.19 โ‚ฑ308
61.08%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.64 MX$152
$4.32 โ‚ฑ257
100.00%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.91 MX$192
$7.02 โ‚ฑ417
55.41%
Apples (1kg)
$2.61 MX$45.98
$1.57 โ‚ฑ93.1
66.24%
Banana (1kg)
$1.44 MX$25.46
$0.56 โ‚ฑ33.00
157.14%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.96 MX$34.55
$1.65 โ‚ฑ97.9
18.79%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$37.34
$1.69 โ‚ฑ101
25.44%
Potato (1kg)
$1.86 MX$32.87
$2.76 โ‚ฑ164
-32.61%
Onion (1kg)
$2.22 MX$39.20
$4.05 โ‚ฑ241
-45.19%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.02 MX$17.99
$1.57 โ‚ฑ93.5
-35.03%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.04 MX$18.36
$1.04 โ‚ฑ62.0
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.05 MX$71.5
$3.23 โ‚ฑ192
25.39%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.18 MX$180
$7.46 โ‚ฑ444
36.46%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.69 MX$29.79
$1.62 โ‚ฑ96.0
4.32%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.62 MX$46.25
$2.01 โ‚ฑ120
30.35%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.51 MX$9.09
$0.28 โ‚ฑ16.71
82.14%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.52 MX$468
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.15 MX$55.7
$0.77 โ‚ฑ45.63
309.09%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.46 MX$43.49
$0.22 โ‚ฑ13.05
1018.18%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.26 MX$57.5
$2.10 โ‚ฑ125
55.24%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 MX$23.36
$1.14 โ‚ฑ67.7
15.79%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.1K MX$531.0K
$26.2K โ‚ฑ1.6M
14.94%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.8K MX$419.3K
$20.2K โ‚ฑ1.2M
17.76%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.5 MX$1,474
$93.8 โ‚ฑ5,576
-10.98%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.86 MX$404
$33.54 โ‚ฑ1,993
-31.84%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.04 MX$530
$29.72 โ‚ฑ1,766
1.08%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.9 MX$916
$34.55 โ‚ฑ2,053
50.22%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.30 MX$323
$4.49 โ‚ฑ267
307.57%
Cinema Ticket
$5.12 MX$90.4
$7.07 โ‚ฑ420
-27.58%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,541
$82.1 โ‚ฑ4,877
144.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,318 MX$93.9K
$2,769 โ‚ฑ164.6K
92.06%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.73 MX$631
$31.34 โ‚ฑ1,863
14.01%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$40.27 MX$711
$29.91 โ‚ฑ1,777
34.64%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79.2 MX$1,398
$99.3 โ‚ฑ5,899
-20.21%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,576
$95.2 โ‚ฑ5,660
-6.27%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$947 MX$16.7K
$262 โ‚ฑ15.6K
261.51%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$483 MX$8,525
$176 โ‚ฑ10.4K
175.07%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,599 MX$28.2K
$597 โ‚ฑ35.5K
167.66%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,211 MX$21.4K
$396 โ‚ฑ23.5K
205.92%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,996 MX$70.5K
$1,751 โ‚ฑ104.1K
128.16%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,402 MX$113.0K
$804 โ‚ฑ47.8K
695.85%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Santa Cruz, Laguna
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$730 MX$12.9K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
8.13
40.47%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: January 13, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz, Laguna: January 10, 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
Join the CityCost newsletter โ€“ low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.