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 59% more expensive than Sao Carlos without rent, and 58.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 30.9% more expensive than Sao Carlos without rent, and 63.5% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$4.6 R$25.55
160.65%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$32.65 R$181
30.08%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$6.78 R$37.65
54.42%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$1.74 R$9.68
106.90%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$1.16 R$6.42
24.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.63 R$3.5
41.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$1.47 R$8.16
110.20%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$3.02 R$16.78
51.66%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.09 R$6.04
26.61%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.52 R$8.42
21.71%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$2.57 R$14.24
-38.91%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.23 R$12.37
14.35%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$9.55 R$53
-9.84%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$4.17 R$23.13
104.80%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$7.74 R$42.96
41.86%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.33 R$12.94
16.74%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$1.51 R$8.38
-
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.53 R$8.47
22.88%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.99 R$11.04
10.05%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.53 R$8.47
22.22%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.24 R$6.87
76.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$0.9 R$4.98
18.89%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.78 R$4.32
39.74%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$2.1 R$11.63
88.57%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$7.24 R$40.17
22.38%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$1.27 R$7.07
35.43%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.52 R$14.01
3.57%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.93 R$5.17
-44.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$21.89 R$121
21.47%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$1.31 R$7.29
147.33%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$0.96 R$5.34
147.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$3.31 R$18.39
-6.04%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.04 R$5.76
25.96%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$29.1K R$161.3K
4.27%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$29.2K R$162.2K
-17.90%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$71.1 R$395
18.51%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$14.76 R$81.9
50.00%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$18.57 R$103
62.30%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$20.55 R$114
152.94%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$39.92 R$222
-53.11%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$4.22 R$23.42
20.14%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$308 R$1,707
-34.88%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$2,678 R$14.9K
99.13%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$46.58 R$259
-23.27%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$36.53 R$203
8.95%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$101 R$560
-21.78%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$90.6 R$503
-2.47%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$219 R$1,218
340.09%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$216 R$1,202
119.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$439 R$2,437
276.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$486 R$2,696
147.51%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$693 R$3,845
344.84%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$850 R$4,718
785.79%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Sao Carlos
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$828 R$4,594
-4.33%
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: October 28, 2025

Last update for Sao Carlos: October 29, 2025

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