Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Scarborough, Canada

Name: Scarborough
Address: Scarborough, CA

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,561 in Scarborough, rent and utilities included – about $16,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Scarborough
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Scarborough Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Scarborough

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,561

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Scarborough actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,561 in Scarborough, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Scarborough $2,561

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,474 in Scarborough, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Scarborough $3,474

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,388 in Scarborough, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Scarborough $4,388

Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper than Scarborough, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Scarborough is 88% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$17.32 CA$24.20

-36.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$70.3 CA$98.3

-38.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$10.89 CA$15.21

8.17%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$3.99 CA$5.57

-4.51%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$2.03 CA$2.84

-36.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$1.47 CA$2.05

-46.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$6.55 CA$9.15

-51.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$7.29 CA$10.18

-32.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$2.51 CA$3.51

-43.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$2.63 CA$3.68

-15.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$2.28 CA$3.18

-37.72%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$3.64 CA$5.09

-30.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$9.14 CA$12.77

-20.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$11.44 CA$15.98

-32.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$12.96 CA$18.11

-2.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$3.43 CA$4.79

-18.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.21 CA$1.69

13.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$3.34 CA$4.67

-23.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$4.17 CA$5.82

-49.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.69 CA$2.37

14.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$1.68 CA$2.35

12.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$2.20 CA$3.08

-47.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$1.26 CA$1.76

-6.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$14.00 CA$19.56

-69.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$12.58 CA$17.58

-20.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$2.19 CA$3.06

-27.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$2.55 CA$3.57

4.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$2.40 CA$3.35

-77.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$105 CA$147

-74.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$3.06 CA$4.28

62.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.28 CA$1.79

160.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$22.52 CA$31.46

-76.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.25 CA$1.75

15.20%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$26.1K CA$36.5K

-20.96%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$21.7K CA$30.4K

8.02%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$137 CA$192

-38.27%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$35.21 CA$49.20

-33.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$48.56 CA$67.8

-40.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$35.87 CA$50.1

59.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$35.96 CA$50.2

-19.61%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$12.95 CA$18.10

-60.31%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$749 CA$1,047

-72.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$10.8K CA$15.1K

-63.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$53.4 CA$74.6

-18.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$40.94 CA$57.2

1.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$85.1 CA$119

-12.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$105 CA$147

-14.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$1,744 CA$2,437

-43.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$1,415 CA$1,977

-73.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$2,122 CA$2,965

-19.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$1,758 CA$2,456

-38.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$7,770 CA$10.9K

-49.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$6,085 CA$8,501

1.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$2,980 CA$4,163

-75.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.55

151.65%

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 Scarborough: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Scarborough

$1.4K 55.3% 272% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Scarborough

$331 12.9% 29.8% $76

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Scarborough

$280 11% 38.6% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Scarborough

$221 8.6% 61.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Scarborough

$128 5% 14.6% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Scarborough

$62 2.4% 8.2% $5.5

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Scarborough

$124 4.8% 146% $74

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,744 in Scarborough. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Scarborough are about 4.1 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 $70 in Scarborough. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $331 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇦 Scarborough

🕒 Local time

07:33 7:33 AM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

29,960

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, 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).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Scarborough 2,670 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Scarborough

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 Scarborough: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Scarborough is pricier by about 113%, 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 $3,841 in Scarborough. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,744 in Scarborough.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $2,561 in Scarborough. That makes Playa del Carmen about 53% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 75% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Scarborough at $2,561. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Scarborough it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – 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 Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Scarborough makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.