Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sao Carlos Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sao Carlos

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 36.7% more expensive than Sao Carlos without rent, and 56.7% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 36.2% more expensive than Sao Carlos without rent, and 62.4% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.85 MX$210

$4.39 R$23.06

169.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.16 MX$746

$32.64 R$171

29.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 MX$190

$6.80 R$35.72

58.09%

Cappuccino

$3.47 MX$61.5

$1.74 R$9.16

99.43%

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

$1.45 MX$25.72

$1.16 R$6.09

25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MX$15.98

$0.68 R$3.56

32.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 MX$54.1

$1.45 R$7.63

110.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 MX$78.2

$3.03 R$15.89

45.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 MX$24.24

$1.09 R$5.74

25.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 MX$33.14

$1.50 R$7.90

24.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$27.32

$2.68 R$14.06

-42.54%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$44.31

$2.32 R$12.19

7.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 MX$152

$9.25 R$48.57

-6.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.63 MX$153

$4.31 R$22.61

100.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 MX$195

$7.84 R$41.17

40.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 MX$48.67

$2.38 R$12.48

15.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$25.28

$1.49 R$7.80

-4.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MX$33.15

$1.49 R$7.80

25.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 MX$38.37

$1.99 R$10.43

9.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.33

$1.58 R$8.28

18.99%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 MX$39.76

$1.24 R$6.49

81.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MX$18.90

$0.88 R$4.62

21.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 MX$19.00

$0.76 R$3.99

40.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MX$73.5

$2.13 R$11.18

94.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.34 MX$183

$8.15 R$42.76

26.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 MX$29.72

$1.30 R$6.83

29.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 MX$43.97

$2.55 R$13.41

-2.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$9.82

$0.87 R$4.59

-36.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.53 MX$470

$21.81 R$115

21.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 MX$56.9

$1.39 R$7.28

131.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$43.93

$0.91 R$4.76

172.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 MX$55.0

$3.34 R$17.51

-6.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 MX$22.22

$1.00 R$5.28

26.00%

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

$30.7K MX$542.7K

$29.5K R$155.0K

3.82%

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

$24.0K MX$425.5K

$29.9K R$156.9K

-19.56%

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

$82.5 MX$1,460

$72.5 R$380

13.84%

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

$22.29 MX$394

$14.82 R$77.8

50.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 MX$531

$18.51 R$97.2

62.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 MX$911

$20.72 R$109

148.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 MX$324

$38.88 R$204

-52.96%

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 MX$88.2

$4.31 R$22.62

15.55%

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

$200 MX$3,540

$313 R$1,645

-36.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,304 MX$93.9K

$2,730 R$14.3K

94.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.71 MX$632

$45.87 R$241

-22.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.56 MX$700

$37.24 R$195

6.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 MX$1,426

$101 R$529

-20.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.3 MX$1,563

$89.1 R$468

-0.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 MX$17.2K

$222 R$1,167

336.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MX$8,535

$221 R$1,162

117.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 MX$28.2K

$431 R$2,261

270.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 MX$21.0K

$478 R$2,512

147.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$71.7K

$709 R$3,722

471.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,522 MX$115.4K

$867 R$4,552

652.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$756 MX$13.4K

$649 R$3,409

16.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

10.67

7.03%

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 Sao Carlos: February 28, 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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