Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sibu

For one person, living is cheaper in Sibu: $905 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

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

Cost of Living Index in Sibu
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Sibu Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Sibu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$905

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $905 in Sibu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Sibu $905

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,406 in Sibu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Sibu $1,406

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,906 in Sibu, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Sibu $1,906

Playa del Carmen costs about 33% more than Sibu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sibu are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Sibu 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$2.26 MYR 9.14

383.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$19.22 MYR 77.9

125.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$4.23 MYR 17.14

178.49%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$2.30 MYR 9.31

65.65%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.61 MYR 2.48

109.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.23 MYR 0.93

239.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.86 MYR 11.60

10.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$4.46 MYR 18.08

10.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$1.76 MYR 7.14

-19.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$0.87 MYR 3.54

155.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$1.33 MYR 5.37

6.77%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$2.18 MYR 8.82

15.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$13.35 MYR 54.1

-45.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$4.90 MYR 19.88

57.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$9.92 MYR 40.23

27.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$2.86 MYR 11.60

-2.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.81 MYR 7.35

-24.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$2.36 MYR 9.58

8.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$1.69 MYR 6.86

25.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$1.38 MYR 5.59

40.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$1.33 MYR 5.40

42.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.06 MYR 4.28

8.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.56 MYR 2.28

110.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$4.48 MYR 18.18

-4.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$19.27 MYR 78.1

-48.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$3.02 MYR 12.23

-47.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$4.61 MYR 18.71

-42.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.79 MYR 3.21

-30.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$11.49 MYR 46.59

131.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$1.04 MYR 4.24

377.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.61 MYR 2.48

445.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$7.27 MYR 29.47

-26.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$0.87 MYR 3.51

65.52%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$45.5K MYR 184.6K

-54.61%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$36.2K MYR 146.6K

-35.09%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$48.91 MYR 198

73.36%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$7.37 MYR 29.86

217.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$26.21 MYR 106

9.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$27.13 MYR 110

110.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$6.38 MYR 25.88

353.13%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$3.72 MYR 15.10

38.17%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$243 MYR 984

-14.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$6,876 MYR 27.9K

-42.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$56.1 MYR 228

-22.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$36.43 MYR 148

13.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$69.2 MYR 281

7.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$78.2 MYR 317

14.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$390 MYR 1,579

151.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$318 MYR 1,288

19.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$698 MYR 2,828

144.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$630 MYR 2,552

70.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$2,136 MYR 8,660

84.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$1,165 MYR 4,723

428.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$487 MYR 1,974

50.85%

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: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sibu: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Sibu

$318 35.1% 16.6% $63

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Sibu

$258 28.6% 1.4% $3.6

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Sibu

$85 9.4% 58.1% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Sibu

$82 9.1% 39.7% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Sibu

$108 11.9% 3.3% $3.7

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Sibu

$35 3.8% 48.6% $33

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Sibu

$19 2.1% 62.8% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $390 in Sibu. 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 51% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $19 in Sibu. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $258 in Sibu – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Sibu

🕒 Local time

04:23 4:23 AM

17:23 5:23 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

198,239

💱 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 = 20.97 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 = 4.52 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sibu 16,730 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sibu

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 Sibu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 33%, 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 $1,357 in Sibu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sibu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $390 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $905 in Sibu. That makes Sibu about 25% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $243 in Sibu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $905 in Sibu. 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 $905 in Sibu to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Sibu. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.