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

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 1.2% cheaper than Sao Tome without rent, and 16.3% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 31% cheaper than Sao Tome without rent, and 17.3% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 MX$210

$20.26 STN 428

-41.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.90 MX$740

$45.66 STN 964

-8.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.55 MX$186

$9.89 STN 209

6.67%

Cappuccino

$3.60 MX$63.5

$1.72 STN 36.37

109.30%

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

$1.50 MX$26.45

$1.94 STN 40.94

-22.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 MX$16.09

$1.18 STN 24.83

-22.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.08 MX$54.4

$1.68 STN 35.56

83.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 MX$78.8

$1.88 STN 39.77

137.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 MX$24.54

$1.32 STN 27.81

5.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.90 MX$33.47

$0.99 STN 20.91

91.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 MX$28.27

$2.25 STN 47.43

-28.89%

Eggs

$2.60 MX$45.97

$5.13 STN 108

-49.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.36 MX$148

$20.47 STN 432

-59.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.64 MX$152

$20.53 STN 433

-57.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 MX$192

$25.41 STN 536

-57.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 MX$45.98

$4.60 STN 97.2

-43.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$25.46

$1.18 STN 24.98

22.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 MX$34.55

$4.07 STN 85.9

-51.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$37.34

$3.55 STN 74.8

-40.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 MX$32.87

$2.62 STN 55.3

-29.01%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 MX$39.20

$1.97 STN 41.69

12.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 MX$17.99

$0.71 STN 14.96

43.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$18.36

$1.88 STN 39.60

-44.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.05 MX$71.5

$2.25 STN 47.44

80.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.18 MX$180

$8.36 STN 176

21.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 MX$29.79

$1.33 STN 28.05

27.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 MX$46.25

$1.29 STN 27.27

103.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.09

$1.22 STN 25.69

-58.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.52 MX$468

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 MX$55.7

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.46 MX$43.49

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.26 MX$57.5

$14.22 STN 300

-77.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 MX$23.36

$1.66 STN 35.02

-20.48%

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

$30.1K MX$531.0K

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

$23.8K MX$419.3K

$22.9K STN 483.4K

3.76%

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

$83.5 MX$1,474

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

$22.86 MX$404

$35.31 STN 745

-35.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.04 MX$530

$71.4 STN 1,507

-57.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.9 MX$916

$37.54 STN 792

38.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.30 MX$323

$28.77 STN 607

-36.39%

Cinema Ticket

$5.12 MX$90.4

$21.05 STN 444

-75.68%

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

$201 MX$3,541

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,318 MX$93.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.73 MX$631

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.27 MX$711

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 MX$1,398

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,576

$19.13 STN 404

366.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$947 MX$16.7K

$350 STN 7,383

170.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 MX$8,525

$230 STN 4,853

110.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,599 MX$28.2K

$655 STN 13.8K

144.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 MX$21.4K

$529 STN 11.2K

128.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,996 MX$70.5K

$1,892 STN 39.9K

111.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,402 MX$113.0K

$1,211 STN 25.6K

428.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$730 MX$12.9K

$269 STN 5,685

170.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

7.38

54.74%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: January 13, 2026

Last update for Sao Tome: January 13, 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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