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

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 10.1% cheaper than Santa Lucia without rent, and 2.7% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 17.2% cheaper than Santa Lucia without rent, and 29.6% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$10.2 CUP 245
17.55%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$30.27 CUP 726
40.30%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$7.02 CUP 168
49.15%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$3.33 CUP 79.9
8.11%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$1.08 CUP 25.95
33.33%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.88 CUP 21.17
1.14%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$1.96 CUP 46.98
57.65%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$3.09 CUP 74.1
48.22%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.94 CUP 46.52
-28.87%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.9 CUP 45.64
-2.63%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.54 CUP 36.94
1.95%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$3.63 CUP 87.1
-29.75%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$6.42 CUP 154
34.11%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$5.95 CUP 143
43.53%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$11.21 CUP 269
-2.05%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.77 CUP 66.4
-1.81%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$1.57 CUP 37.7
-3.82%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$2.03 CUP 48.63
-7.39%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$2.22 CUP 53.2
-1.35%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$2.05 CUP 49.09
-8.78%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.7 CUP 40.83
28.82%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.02 CUP 24.49
4.90%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$1.02 CUP 24.56
6.86%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$4.06 CUP 97.3
-2.46%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$12.17 CUP 292
-27.20%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.68 CUP 40.32
2.38%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.41 CUP 57.9
8.30%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.19 CUP 4.61
173.68%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$25.02 CUP 600
6.27%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$3.24 CUP 77.7
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$0.42 CUP 10.02
466.67%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$15.27 CUP 366
-79.63%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.06 CUP 25.5
23.58%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$69.6K CUP 1.7M
-56.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$79.2K CUP 1.9M
-69.71%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$34.59 CUP 830
143.54%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$15.14 CUP 363
46.24%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$248 CUP 5,944
-87.83%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$39.57 CUP 950
31.36%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$15.24 CUP 366
22.83%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$1.03 CUP 24.63
392.23%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$166 CUP 3,989
20.51%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$4,009 CUP 96.2K
33.01%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$71.3 CUP 1,711
-49.88%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$55.6 CUP 1,335
-28.46%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$102 CUP 2,439
-22.28%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$106 CUP 2,536
-16.36%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$549 CUP 13.2K
75.78%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$345 CUP 8,289
37.35%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$753 CUP 18.1K
119.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$507 CUP 12.2K
136.97%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$335 CUP 8,034
820.51%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$381 CUP 9,151
1874.72%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Santa Lucia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$55.4 CUP 1,329
1330.22%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
4.94
131.17%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Santa Lucia: October 28, 2025

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