Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Simpson Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $3,879 in Simpson Bay, rent and utilities included – about $32,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Simpson Bay

🇸🇽 Sint Maarten

$3,879

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Simpson Bay

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,879 in Simpson Bay, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Simpson Bay $3,879

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $6,586 in Simpson Bay, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Simpson Bay $6,586

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $9,293 in Simpson Bay, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Simpson Bay $9,293

Playa del Carmen is about 69% cheaper than Simpson Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while Simpson Bay is 187% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$19.30 ANG 34.54

-44.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$132 ANG 236

-67.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$13.10 ANG 23.44

-10.00%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$4.45 ANG 7.96

-13.03%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$2.96 ANG 5.29

-53.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$2.92 ANG 5.23

-71.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$5.45 ANG 9.76

-43.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$4.12 ANG 7.37

23.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$4.09 ANG 7.32

-64.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$2.75 ANG 4.92

-18.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$2.93 ANG 5.25

-49.83%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$4.50 ANG 8.06

-43.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$24.59 ANG 44.02

-70.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$13.46 ANG 24.10

-41.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$17.21 ANG 30.80

-25.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$4.28 ANG 7.65

-32.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$3.51 ANG 6.29

-58.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$6.55 ANG 11.72

-61.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$5.07 ANG 9.08

-59.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$4.02 ANG 7.20

-50.25%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$3.51 ANG 6.29

-42.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.92 ANG 5.23

-59.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$1.44 ANG 2.58

-12.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$14.87 ANG 26.62

-35.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$1.70 ANG 3.05

65.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$3.05 ANG 5.45

-81.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$15.20 ANG 27.21

-67.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$1.31 ANG 2.34

12.21%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$506 ANG 906

-83.36%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$34.60 ANG 61.9

-30.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$88.9 ANG 159

-67.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$75.5 ANG 135

-16.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$7.97 ANG 14.27

-38.02%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$753 ANG 1,348

-72.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$11.9K ANG 21.3K

-66.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$49.79 ANG 89.1

-12.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$39.25 ANG 70.3

9.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$101 ANG 181

-25.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$59.8 ANG 107

48.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$2,321 ANG 4,155

-56.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$2,246 ANG 4,020

-83.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$5,924 ANG 10.6K

-71.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$5,759 ANG 10.3K

-80.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Simpson Bay: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Simpson Bay

–

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Simpson Bay

–

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Simpson Bay

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Simpson Bay

–

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Simpson Bay

–

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Simpson Bay

–

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Simpson Bay

–

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,321 in Simpson Bay. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $132 in Simpson Bay. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $466 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇽 Simpson Bay

🕒 Local time

18:47 6:47 PM

19:47 7:47 PM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

6,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Netherlands Antillean Guilder ANG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 ANG = 0.559 USD

1 ANG = 0.497 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ANG, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Netherlands Antillean Guilder exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 ANG (1 ANG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 ANG (1 ANG = 0.497 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Playa del Carmen Simpson Bay 2,530 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Simpson Bay

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 Simpson Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Simpson Bay is pricier by about 220%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $5,818 in Simpson Bay. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $3,879 in Simpson Bay. That's a gap of about 220%.

Kindergarten costs $204 per month in Playa del Carmen and $753 in Simpson Bay. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Simpson Bay at $3,879. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Simpson Bay it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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