Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sari

For one person, living is cheaper in Sari: $874 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Sari
Learn more

Sari Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Sari

🇮🇷 Iran

$874

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Sari

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Sari actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $874 in Sari, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Sari $874

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,080 in Sari, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Sari $1,080

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,287 in Sari, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Sari $1,287

Playa del Carmen costs about 38% more than Sari, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sari are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Sari 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$3.55 $3.55

207.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$11.80 $11.80

267.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$4.08 $4.08

188.73%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.68 $0.68

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 $0.91

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$1.23 $1.23

209.76%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.48 $0.48

166.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.52 $0.52

50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$0.48 $0.48

193.75%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$0.60 $0.60

270.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$3.32 $3.32

-57.23%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$1.23 $1.23

104.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$4.48 $4.48

62.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$3.46 $3.46

122.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$9.25 $9.25

37.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$1.32 $1.32

110.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.88 $1.88

-27.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$1.19 $1.19

114.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$0.65 $0.65

226.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$0.59 $0.59

228.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$0.51 $0.51

270.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$0.58 $0.58

98.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.30 $0.30

293.33%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.77 $0.77

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 $0.51

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 $2.15

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$2.44 $2.44

76.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$9.87 $9.87

169.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$0.51 $0.51

874.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.31 $0.31

974.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$3.03 $3.03

76.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$0.09 $0.09

1500.00%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$50.9K $50.9K

-59.44%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$45.1K $45.1K

-47.97%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$13.18 $13.18

543.32%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$1.58 $1.58

1381.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$3.99 $3.99

618.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$49.52 $49.52

15.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$11.93 $11.93

142.33%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$1.02 $1.02

403.92%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$49.24 $49.24

319.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$815 $815

381.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$26.10 $26.10

66.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$37.45 $37.45

10.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$115 $115

-35.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$73.5 $73.5

21.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$794 $794

23.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$497 $497

-23.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$693 $693

146.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$401 $401

168.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$857 $857

360.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$526 $526

1070.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$248 $248

196.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

24.79

-53.81%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sari: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Sari

$497 56.8% 30.4% $116

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Sari

$122 14% 52.1% $133

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Sari

$59 6.8% 70.6% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Sari

$19 2.1% 86.3% $118

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Sari

$113 13% 1.6% $1.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Sari

$52 5.9% 23.4% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Sari

$12 * 1.4% 76.3% $39

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $794 in Sari. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $12 in Sari. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $122 – making Sari the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇷 Sari

🕒 Local time

04:03 4:03 AM

12:33 12:33 PM

8 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

300,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sari 12,400 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sari

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Playa del Carmen vs Sari: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,311 in Sari. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sari, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $794 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $874 in Sari. That makes Sari about 27% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 63% less in Sari. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Sari, where all-in costs run around $874, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Sari it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sari – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Sari. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.