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

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 6.5% cheaper than Sharjah without rent, and 20.3% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 16.1% cheaper than Sharjah without rent, and 2.5% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.61 MX$201
$5.49 AED 20.15
111.48%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.75 MX$739
$32.23 AED 118
32.64%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.60 MX$183
$9.01 AED 33.06
17.65%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$9.49 AED 34.82
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$9.30 AED 34.12
-
Cappuccino
$3.59 MX$62.0
$4.20 AED 15.42
-14.52%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$25.10
$1.01 AED 3.69
43.56%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$15.52
$0.37 AED 1.36
143.24%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.03 MX$52.4
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.56 MX$78.8
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$25.10
$1.70 AED 6.25
-14.71%
White Bread (500g)
$1.83 MX$31.59
$1.14 AED 4.18
60.53%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.61 MX$27.80
$1.99 AED 7.31
-19.10%
Eggs
$2.54 MX$43.87
$2.82 AED 10.34
-9.93%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.54 MX$148
$10.39 AED 38.14
-17.81%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.47 MX$146
$6.72 AED 24.65
26.04%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.86 MX$188
$8.61 AED 31.62
26.13%
Apples (1kg)
$2.73 MX$47.18
$1.86 AED 6.81
46.77%
Banana (1kg)
$1.49 MX$25.80
$1.55 AED 5.70
-3.87%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.94 MX$33.59
$1.43 AED 5.25
35.66%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.16 MX$37.42
$1.21 AED 4.44
78.51%
Potato (1kg)
$1.85 MX$31.92
$1.01 AED 3.70
83.17%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$37.84
$1.23 AED 4.51
78.05%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$18.54
$1.44 AED 5.28
-25.69%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.08 MX$18.73
$0.60 AED 2.22
80.00%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$15.83 AED 58.1
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.87 AED 6.88
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$3.31 AED 12.15
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.06 MX$70.2
$6.31 AED 23.17
-35.66%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.46 MX$181
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.65 MX$28.59
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.55 MX$44.06
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.56 MX$9.61
$1.60 AED 5.87
-65.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.20 MX$453
$40.64 AED 149
-35.53%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.14 MX$54.3
$3.63 AED 13.32
-13.50%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.37 MX$41.00
$0.71 AED 2.59
233.80%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$56.0
$4.88 AED 17.92
-33.61%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$22.72
$0.78 AED 2.86
67.95%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.5K MX$528.0K
$45.7K AED 167.8K
-33.21%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.8K MX$411.9K
$22.4K AED 82.2K
6.37%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.1 MX$1,438
$195 AED 715
-57.35%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.15 MX$383
$66.7 AED 245
-66.77%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.37 MX$508
$104 AED 382
-71.81%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.2 MX$885
$62.2 AED 228
-17.73%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.69 MX$323
$37.93 AED 139
-50.73%
Cinema Ticket
$4.89 MX$84.5
$13.07 AED 47.97
-62.59%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$199 MX$3,435
$274 AED 1,006
-27.55%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,207 MX$90.0K
$6,013 AED 22.1K
-13.40%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.93 MX$621
$51.9 AED 190
-30.76%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.39 MX$681
$97.4 AED 358
-59.58%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.3 MX$1,388
$97.0 AED 356
-17.19%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$87.6 MX$1,514
$80.6 AED 296
8.58%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$963 MX$16.7K
$753 AED 2,762
28.00%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,336
$593 AED 2,177
-18.73%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,645 MX$28.4K
$1,651 AED 6,061
-0.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,192 MX$20.6K
$1,029 AED 3,776
15.86%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,957 MX$68.4K
$8,130 AED 29.8K
-51.33%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,513 MX$112.6K
$2,677 AED 9,824
143.31%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Sharjah
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$726 MX$12.6K
$2,296 AED 8,426
-68.37%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
4.42
158.37%

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 Sharjah: 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

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