Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Santo Domingo Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Santo Domingo

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 2.1% cheaper than Santo Domingo without rent, and 15.7% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 0.7% cheaper than Santo Domingo without rent, and 19.1% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.85 MX$209
$8.71 DOP 522
36.05%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.16 MX$744
$50.6 DOP 3,034
-16.68%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.75 MX$190
$7.23 DOP 434
48.69%
Cappuccino
$3.47 MX$61.3
$2.74 DOP 164
26.64%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$25.65
$0.99 DOP 59.5
46.46%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$15.93
$0.83 DOP 49.73
8.43%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.05 MX$53.9
$2.60 DOP 156
17.31%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 MX$77.9
$5.16 DOP 310
-14.34%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 MX$24.17
$1.38 DOP 82.7
-0.72%
White Bread (500g)
$1.87 MX$33.05
$1.81 DOP 108
3.31%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 MX$27.25
$1.57 DOP 94.0
-1.91%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$44.18
$2.28 DOP 137
9.65%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$152
$7.07 DOP 424
21.78%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.63 MX$152
$6.23 DOP 374
38.52%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.02 MX$195
$11.19 DOP 671
-1.52%
Apples (1kg)
$2.75 MX$48.53
$3.32 DOP 199
-17.17%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$25.21
$0.93 DOP 55.5
53.76%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.87 MX$33.05
$2.98 DOP 179
-37.25%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MX$38.26
$1.95 DOP 117
11.28%
Potato (1kg)
$1.88 MX$33.23
$2.43 DOP 146
-22.63%
Onion (1kg)
$2.25 MX$39.65
$2.28 DOP 137
-1.32%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$18.85
$1.13 DOP 67.8
-5.31%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.07 MX$18.95
$0.91 DOP 54.7
17.58%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.15 MX$73.3
$5.80 DOP 348
-28.45%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.34 MX$182
$11.60 DOP 696
-10.86%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 MX$29.64
$2.67 DOP 160
-37.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 MX$43.84
$3.11 DOP 186
-20.26%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$9.80
$0.62 DOP 36.91
-11.29%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.53 MX$468
$67.9 DOP 4,072
-60.93%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.22 MX$56.8
$3.33 DOP 199
-3.30%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.48 MX$43.80
$2.12 DOP 127
16.98%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$54.9
$5.82 DOP 349
-46.56%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.16
$1.27 DOP 76.1
-0.79%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K MX$541.1K
$26.2K DOP 1.6M
16.84%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$424.3K
$31.7K DOP 1.9M
-24.09%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$82.5 MX$1,456
$77.8 DOP 4,665
6.02%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.29 MX$393
$25.17 DOP 1,509
-11.44%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.02 MX$530
$35.50 DOP 2,128
-15.44%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 MX$908
$35.42 DOP 2,124
45.23%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.29 MX$323
$14.61 DOP 876
25.19%
Cinema Ticket
$4.98 MX$88.0
$6.71 DOP 403
-25.78%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,530
$270 DOP 16.2K
-25.86%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,304 MX$93.6K
$8,076 DOP 484.3K
-34.32%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.71 MX$630
$61.1 DOP 3,663
-41.55%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.56 MX$698
$52.6 DOP 3,155
-24.83%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.6 MX$1,422
$96.5 DOP 5,789
-16.56%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.3 MX$1,559
$117 DOP 7,025
-24.62%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$969 MX$17.1K
$578 DOP 34.7K
67.71%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,511
$286 DOP 17.2K
68.34%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,595 MX$28.2K
$1,193 DOP 71.5K
33.69%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,184 MX$20.9K
$670 DOP 40.2K
76.66%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,050 MX$71.5K
$2,151 DOP 129.0K
88.31%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,522 MX$115.1K
$1,180 DOP 70.8K
452.55%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Santo Domingo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$756 MX$13.4K
$634 DOP 38.0K
19.36%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
12.9
-11.47%

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 Santo Domingo: March 3, 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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