Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sutomore

For one person, living is cheaper in Sutomore: $1,095 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Sutomore
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Sutomore Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Sutomore

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,095

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,095 in Sutomore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Sutomore $1,095

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,682 in Sutomore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Sutomore $1,682

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,269 in Sutomore, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Sutomore $2,269

Playa del Carmen costs about 10% more than Sutomore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sutomore are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Sutomore 19% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$11.24 €10.00

-3.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$35.96 €31.99

22.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$9.16 €8.14

28.38%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$2.59 €2.30

42.08%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$2.20 €1.96

-39.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.47 €1.31

-44.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$2.85 €2.53

7.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$3.44 €3.06

43.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.19 €1.06

23.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.01 €0.90

119.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$2.25 €2.00

-34.22%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$3.08 €2.74

-19.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$8.77 €7.80

-14.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$7.55 €6.71

5.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$12.24 €10.89

2.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$1.26 €1.12

120.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.49 €1.32

-4.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$1.47 €1.31

78.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$2.87 €2.56

-25.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$0.85 €0.75

137.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$1.09 €0.97

82.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.46 €1.30

-21.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.89 €0.79

34.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$3.85 €3.42

10.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$4.56 €4.05

119.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.24 €1.10

24.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.68 €1.50

58.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$1.65 €1.47

-67.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$38.44 €34.19

-28.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$1.14 €1.01

329.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$1.14 €1.01

200.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$16.91 €15.04

-68.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$1.77 €1.57

-18.08%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$28.7K €25.5K

-26.31%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$21.3K €18.9K

8.14%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$133 €118

-35.60%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$13.19 €11.73

77.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$33.34 €29.65

-14.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$45.68 €40.63

36.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$14.42 €12.83

98.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$5.97 €5.31

-14.57%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$395 €352

-49.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$6,959 €6,190

-43.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$84.5 €75.2

-47.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$33.24 €29.56

24.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$72.2 €64.2

0.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$93.0 €82.8

-3.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$370 €329

164.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$275 €245

35.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$559 €497

200.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$494 €439

121.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$3,356 €2,985

17.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$2,300 €2,046

166.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$669 €595

10.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

129.00%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Sutomore: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Sutomore

$275 25.1% 26.2% $98

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Sutomore

$219 20% 15.1% $39

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Sutomore

$184 16.8% 8% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Sutomore

$179 16.4% 30.5% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Sutomore

$127 11.6% 14.1% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Sutomore

$58 5.3% 20.4% $15

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Sutomore

$52 4.7% 0.4% $0.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $370 in Sutomore. 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 10% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $36.00 in Sutomore. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $219 – making Sutomore the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇪 Sutomore

🕒 Local time

23:31 11:31 PM

05:31 5:31 AM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

2,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sutomore 9,730 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sutomore

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 Sutomore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 10%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,642 in Sutomore. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sutomore, 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 $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,095 in Sutomore. That's a gap of about 10%.

Public transport costs about 40% less in Sutomore. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Sutomore, where all-in costs run around $1,095, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Sutomore it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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