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 19.7% more expensive than Shaab without rent, and 9.5% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 29.8% cheaper than Shaab without rent, and 6.6% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.61 MX$200

$10.04 KWD 3.09

15.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.75 MX$738

$81.4 KWD 25.07

-47.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.60 MX$183

$9.20 KWD 2.83

15.22%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.50 KWD 0.77

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 KWD 1.16

Cappuccino

$3.59 MX$62.0

$6.07 KWD 1.87

-40.86%

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

$1.45 MX$25.08

$0.69 KWD 0.21

110.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MX$15.50

$0.37 KWD 0.12

143.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.03 MX$52.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.56 MX$78.8

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$25.07

$1.57 KWD 0.48

-7.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.83 MX$31.55

$1.24 KWD 0.38

47.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 MX$27.77

$1.72 KWD 0.53

-6.40%

Eggs

$2.54 MX$43.82

$2.09 KWD 0.64

21.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.54 MX$148

$5.13 KWD 1.58

66.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.47 MX$146

$6.67 KWD 2.05

26.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.86 MX$188

$10.30 KWD 3.17

5.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 MX$47.13

$2.41 KWD 0.74

13.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 MX$25.77

$1.90 KWD 0.59

-21.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 MX$33.55

$1.82 KWD 0.56

6.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 MX$37.38

$1.45 KWD 0.45

48.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 MX$31.88

$1.26 KWD 0.39

46.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 MX$37.80

$1.33 KWD 0.41

64.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MX$18.52

$1.63 KWD 0.50

-34.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$18.71

$0.46 KWD 0.14

134.78%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.17 KWD 0.98

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 KWD 0.31

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 KWD 0.42

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.06 MX$70.1

$2.88 KWD 0.89

40.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.46 MX$181

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 MX$28.56

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 MX$44.01

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.56 MX$9.60

$0.84 KWD 0.26

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.20 MX$453

$43.78 KWD 13.48

-40.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.14 MX$54.2

$3.22 KWD 0.99

-2.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.37 MX$40.96

$3.30 KWD 1.02

-28.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 MX$56.0

$16.28 KWD 5.01

-80.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 MX$22.70

$0.34 KWD 0.10

285.29%

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

$30.5K MX$527.4K

$21.1K KWD 6,499

44.72%

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

$23.8K MX$411.4K

$20.2K KWD 6,221

17.95%

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

$83.1 MX$1,436

$62.9 KWD 19.37

32.22%

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

$22.15 MX$383

$18.56 KWD 5.72

19.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.37 MX$507

$26.24 KWD 8.08

11.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.2 MX$884

$94.7 KWD 29.17

-45.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.69 MX$323

$45.92 KWD 14.14

-59.30%

Cinema Ticket

$4.89 MX$84.4

$11.63 KWD 3.58

-57.95%

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

$199 MX$3,431

$406 KWD 125

-51.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,207 MX$89.9K

$6,673 KWD 2,055

-21.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.93 MX$621

$42.74 KWD 13.16

-15.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.39 MX$680

$41.96 KWD 12.92

-6.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.3 MX$1,387

$86.6 KWD 26.67

-7.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.6 MX$1,512

$80.3 KWD 24.73

9.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$963 MX$16.6K

$802 KWD 247

20.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MX$8,326

$610 KWD 188

-20.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,645 MX$28.4K

$1,591 KWD 490

3.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,192 MX$20.6K

$1,272 KWD 392

-6.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,957 MX$68.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,513 MX$112.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$726 MX$12.5K

$3,280 KWD 1,010

-77.85%

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: April 12, 2026

Last update for Shaab: April 13, 2026

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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