Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sentul

For one person, living is cheaper in Sentul: $888 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Sentul
Learn more

Sentul Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Sentul

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$888

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $888 in Sentul, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Sentul $888

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,370 in Sentul, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Sentul $1,370

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,853 in Sentul, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Sentul $1,853

Playa del Carmen costs about 35% more than Sentul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sentul are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Sentul 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.74 MYR 15.19

185.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$22.21 MYR 90.2

97.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$5.00 MYR 20.30

135.80%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.98 MYR 12.11

27.18%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.80 MYR 3.24

62.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.51 MYR 2.07

62.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$3.22 MYR 13.07

-2.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$5.58 MYR 22.67

-11.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.66 MYR 6.76

-15.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.06 MYR 4.31

107.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.42 MYR 5.76

3.52%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$1.73 MYR 7.04

44.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$9.74 MYR 39.56

-25.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.29 MYR 13.35

141.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$9.29 MYR 37.71

38.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.41 MYR 13.83

-14.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.72 MYR 6.99

-19.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$2.71 MYR 10.99

-8.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$1.62 MYR 6.59

25.31%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.48 MYR 6.00

36.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.67 MYR 6.77

13.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.33 MYR 5.40

-14.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.51 MYR 2.06

143.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$4.37 MYR 17.77

-2.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$14.34 MYR 58.3

-31.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$2.75 MYR 11.18

-42.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$3.14 MYR 12.76

-12.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.72 MYR 2.91

-29.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$12.26 MYR 49.81

123.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.00 MYR 4.07

376.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.35 MYR 1.44

828.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$8.69 MYR 35.29

-37.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.83 MYR 3.35

84.34%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$43.5K MYR 176.5K

-51.18%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$36.2K MYR 146.9K

-35.68%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$48.50 MYR 197

72.14%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$8.07 MYR 32.77

187.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$27.19 MYR 110

1.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$36.97 MYR 150

52.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$6.39 MYR 25.96

341.16%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.92 MYR 19.96

1.63%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$243 MYR 986

-14.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$4,427 MYR 18.0K

18.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$50.4 MYR 205

-13.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$16.33 MYR 66.3

160.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$78.6 MYR 319

-7.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$84.4 MYR 343

4.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$419 MYR 1,702

137.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$295 MYR 1,198

29.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$731 MYR 2,970

128.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$553 MYR 2,245

95.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$2,002 MYR 8,129

95.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,182 MYR 4,801

419.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$881 MYR 3,578

-5.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.06

182.02%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Sentul: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Sentul

$295 33.2% 22.8% $87

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Sentul

$228 25.6% 11.6% $30

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Sentul

$113 12.8% 43.5% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Sentul

$84 9.4% 37.6% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Sentul

$103 11.7% 7.1% $7.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Sentul

$47 5.3% 29.6% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Sentul

$18 2% 64.5% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $419 in Sentul. 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 6% higher in Sentul, 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $22 in Sentul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $228 – making Sentul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Sentul

🕒 Local time

08:55 8:55 AM

21:55 9:55 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

100,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 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 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.55 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sentul

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 Sentul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 35%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,331 in Sentul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sentul, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $419 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $888 in Sentul. That makes Sentul about 26% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 55% less in Sentul. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $888 in Sentul. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $888 in Sentul to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Sentul is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 26% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.