Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Shaab Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Shaab

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 8.9% more expensive than Shaab without rent, and 7.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 27.8% cheaper than Shaab without rent, and 6.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$9.76 KWD 2.98
22.85%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$82.4 KWD 25.18
-48.45%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$8.79 KWD 2.69
19.11%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$2.52 KWD 0.77
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$3.6 KWD 1.1
-
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$5.85 KWD 1.79
-38.46%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$0.7 KWD 0.21
105.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$0.37 KWD 0.11
140.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.61 KWD 0.49
-14.29%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.24 KWD 0.38
49.19%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.72 KWD 0.52
-8.72%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.03 KWD 0.62
25.62%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$5.22 KWD 1.6
64.94%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$6.43 KWD 1.97
32.81%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$10.41 KWD 3.18
5.48%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.46 KWD 0.75
10.57%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$1.98 KWD 0.61
-23.74%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.81 KWD 0.55
3.87%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.49 KWD 0.46
46.98%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.26 KWD 0.39
48.41%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.26 KWD 0.39
73.81%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.6 KWD 0.49
-33.13%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.48 KWD 0.15
127.08%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$3.2 KWD 0.98
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.05 KWD 0.32
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$1.39 KWD 0.43
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$2.98 KWD 0.91
32.89%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$0.9 KWD 0.27
-42.22%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$43.6 KWD 13.32
-39.01%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$3.3 KWD 1.01
-1.82%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$3.19 KWD 0.97
-25.39%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$16.37 KWD 5
-81.00%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$0.34 KWD 0.1
285.29%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$21.5K KWD 6,562
41.16%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$19.6K KWD 5,998
22.25%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$61.5 KWD 18.78
37.04%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$18.49 KWD 5.65
19.74%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$26.22 KWD 8.01
14.95%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$94.1 KWD 28.74
-44.73%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$47.51 KWD 14.52
-60.60%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$11.56 KWD 3.53
-56.14%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$397 KWD 121
-49.51%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$6,497 KWD 1,986
-17.92%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$42.78 KWD 13.07
-16.46%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$42.11 KWD 12.87
-5.49%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$88.7 KWD 27.12
-11.01%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$80.7 KWD 24.65
9.55%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$790 KWD 242
22.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$612 KWD 187
-22.49%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$1,561 KWD 477
5.85%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$1,275 KWD 390
-5.72%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Shaab
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$3,209 KWD 981
-75.33%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
7.14
59.94%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Shaab: October 28, 2025

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