Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Skudai

For one person, living is cheaper in Skudai: $900 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Skudai
Learn more

Skudai Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Skudai

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$900

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $900 in Skudai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Skudai $900

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,370 in Skudai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Skudai $1,370

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,840 in Skudai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Skudai $1,840

Playa del Carmen costs about 34% more than Skudai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$3.63 MYR 14.84

200.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$807

$18.25 MYR 74.6

137.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$4.90 MYR 20.05

140.41%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.9

$2.87 MYR 11.73

32.75%

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

$1.28 MX$23.87

$0.83 MYR 3.40

54.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.57

$0.45 MYR 1.83

73.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$3.33 MYR 13.62

-4.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.9

$5.62 MYR 22.97

-12.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.18

$1.74 MYR 7.11

-18.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.27

$1.02 MYR 4.18

117.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.38

$1.48 MYR 6.06

-4.05%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.96

$1.66 MYR 6.78

51.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$9.64 MYR 39.43

-24.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$3.20 MYR 13.09

140.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$9.61 MYR 39.28

32.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.8

$3.42 MYR 13.98

-18.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.47

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-19.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.49

$2.61 MYR 10.68

-2.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.52

$1.64 MYR 6.69

29.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.08

$1.41 MYR 5.75

37.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.11

$1.73 MYR 7.08

9.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.34

$1.37 MYR 5.59

-16.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.95

$0.51 MYR 2.09

131.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.0

$4.28 MYR 17.49

0.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$13.83 MYR 56.5

-28.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.48

$2.74 MYR 11.19

-42.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.72

$2.99 MYR 12.22

-10.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.30

$0.83 MYR 3.40

-33.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$495

$10.95 MYR 44.78

143.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.5

$1.01 MYR 4.13

392.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.0

$0.36 MYR 1.46

825.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.7

$9.03 MYR 36.92

-40.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.88

$0.86 MYR 3.51

67.44%

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

$20.7K MX$384.7K

$44.3K MYR 181.0K

-53.32%

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

$23.5K MX$436.8K

$36.0K MYR 147.2K

-34.83%

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

$84.8 MX$1,578

$48.79 MYR 199

73.79%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$8.16 MYR 33.38

186.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$533

$26.88 MYR 110

6.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,062

$36.95 MYR 151

54.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$538

$7.55 MYR 30.86

282.91%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.7

$4.93 MYR 20.17

4.26%

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

$207 MX$3,845

$235 MYR 962

-12.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.1K

$4,393 MYR 18.0K

-10.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$807

$50.5 MYR 206

-14.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$771

$16.62 MYR 68.0

149.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,381

$77.2 MYR 316

-3.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,661

$85.4 MYR 349

4.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$357 MYR 1,461

174.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,089

$311 MYR 1,270

22.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$650 MYR 2,659

162.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$565 MYR 2,310

90.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.4K

$1,956 MYR 7,997

101.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.6K

$1,161 MYR 4,746

430.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

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 Skudai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Skudai

$311 34.5% 18.4% $70

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Skudai

$226 25.2% 11.1% $28

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Skudai

$111 12.4% 45.1% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Skudai

$84 9.3% 38.7% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Skudai

$103 11.5% 7.4% $8.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Skudai

$47 5.2% 30.5% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Skudai

$17 1.9% 66.2% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $357 in Skudai. 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 in Playa del Carmen versus $18 in Skudai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $226 – making Skudai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇾 Skudai

🕒 Local time

12:09 12:09 PM

01:09 1:09 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

159,733

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 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 October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 18.62 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.57 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Skudai 17,290 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Skudai

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 Skudai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 34%, 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 $1,349 in Skudai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Skudai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $357 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $900 in Skudai. That’s a gap of about 34%.

Public transport costs about 59% less in Skudai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Skudai, where all-in costs run around $900, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Skudai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $900 in Skudai to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Skudai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 34% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.