Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Selangor

For one person, living is cheaper in Selangor: $1,145 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $710 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Selangor
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Selangor Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Selangor

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,145

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,145 in Selangor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Selangor $1,145

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,656 in Selangor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Selangor $1,656

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,168 in Selangor, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Selangor $2,168

Playa del Carmen costs about 5% more than Selangor, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Selangor are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Selangor 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$4.23 MYR 17.14

158.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$19.90 MYR 80.7

117.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$3.87 MYR 15.67

204.39%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$2.20 MYR 8.91

73.18%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.88 MYR 3.58

45.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.47 MYR 1.91

65.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$4.51 MYR 18.29

-29.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$5.12 MYR 20.75

-3.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.83 MYR 7.43

-22.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$1.05 MYR 4.25

111.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$1.48 MYR 6.02

-4.05%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$1.88 MYR 7.64

34.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$23.03 MYR 93.4

-68.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$4.96 MYR 20.11

55.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$10.94 MYR 44.35

16.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$4.13 MYR 16.73

-32.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.77 MYR 7.16

-22.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$3.45 MYR 14.01

-26.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$2.68 MYR 10.86

-20.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.75 MYR 7.09

10.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$1.07 MYR 4.34

76.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.11 MYR 4.50

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.57 MYR 2.33

107.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$4.28 MYR 17.36

0.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$31.12 MYR 126

-68.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$4.60 MYR 18.64

-65.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$5.64 MYR 22.86

-52.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.76 MYR 3.09

-27.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$12.37 MYR 50.2

115.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$1.19 MYR 4.84

317.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.25 MYR 5.06

166.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$4.37 MYR 17.70

22.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$0.75 MYR 3.03

92.00%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$46.2K MYR 187.4K

-55.31%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$36.0K MYR 145.9K

-34.81%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$76.2 MYR 309

11.29%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$10.68 MYR 43.31

119.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$30.89 MYR 125

-7.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$39.74 MYR 161

43.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$7.00 MYR 28.39

313.00%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$5.92 MYR 24.00

-13.18%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$121 MYR 489

71.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$7,093 MYR 28.8K

-44.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$116 MYR 469

-62.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$65.8 MYR 267

-36.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$78.7 MYR 319

-5.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$82.0 MYR 332

8.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$510 MYR 2,067

92.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$346 MYR 1,402

10.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$894 MYR 3,625

90.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$485 MYR 1,966

121.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$1,787 MYR 7,245

120.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$1,015 MYR 4,113

506.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$1,048 MYR 4,250

-29.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.96

189.14%

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 Selangor: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Selangor

$346 30.2% 9.2% $35

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Selangor

$343 29.9% 34.5% $88

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Selangor

$110 9.6% 45.6% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Selangor

$118 10.3% 13.9% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Selangor

$154 13.5% 37.8% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Selangor

$52 4.5% 23.4% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Selangor

$23 2% 54.7% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $510 in Selangor. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 43% higher in Selangor, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $20 in Selangor. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $343 in Selangor – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Selangor

🕒 Local time

23:09 11:09 PM

12:09 12:09 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

281,717

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 MYR = 0.247 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, 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 = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.05 MYR (1 MYR = 0.247 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Selangor 17,200 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Selangor

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 Selangor: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 5%, 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 $1,717 in Selangor. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Selangor, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $510 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,145 in Selangor. That makes Selangor about 5% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 54% less in Selangor. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,145 in Selangor, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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