Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Taichung

For one person, living is cheaper in Taichung: $1,112 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Taichung
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Taichung Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Taichung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,112

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,112 in Taichung, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Taichung $1,112

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,856 in Taichung, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Taichung $1,856

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,601 in Taichung, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Taichung $2,601

Playa del Carmen costs about 8% more than Taichung, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Taichung are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Taichung 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$4.69 NT$152

132.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$31.30 NT$1,014

38.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$4.64 NT$150

153.88%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$2.89 NT$93.8

31.83%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$1.03 NT$33.31

24.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.76 NT$24.47

2.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.50 NT$48.52

111.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$2.66 NT$86.3

85.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$3.08 NT$99.9

-54.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.65 NT$53.4

34.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$2.59 NT$83.8

-45.17%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$2.54 NT$82.4

-0.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$28.53 NT$924

-74.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$7.76 NT$251

-0.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$16.59 NT$537

-23.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$4.21 NT$137

-33.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.94 NT$62.8

-29.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$3.01 NT$97.6

-15.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$2.13 NT$69.1

-0.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.21 NT$39.28

60.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.93 NT$62.6

-2.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$2.25 NT$73.1

-48.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.89 NT$28.87

32.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$3.79 NT$123

13.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$15.10 NT$489

-34.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.60 NT$51.7

-1.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$2.43 NT$78.6

9.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.63 NT$20.46

-12.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$18.67 NT$605

42.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$2.58 NT$83.5

92.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.90 NT$29.11

270.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$9.19 NT$298

-41.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.04 NT$33.71

38.46%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$35.3K NT$1.1M

-41.43%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$22.2K NT$720.4K

5.53%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$122 NT$3,956

-30.56%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$14.52 NT$470

61.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$20.46 NT$663

40.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$31.28 NT$1,013

82.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$11.39 NT$369

153.82%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$10.22 NT$331

-49.71%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$326 NT$10.6K

-36.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$16.5K NT$533.0K

-76.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$71.8 NT$2,325

-39.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$35.78 NT$1,159

15.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$81.7 NT$2,645

-9.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$111 NT$3,587

-19.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$382 NT$12.4K

156.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$266 NT$8,612

43.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,188 NT$38.5K

43.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$739 NT$23.9K

45.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$5,811 NT$188.3K

-32.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$4,266 NT$138.2K

44.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$1,400 NT$45.3K

-47.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.27

404.41%

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 Taichung: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Taichung

$266 23.9% 30.2% $115

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Taichung

$368 33.1% 44.3% $113

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Taichung

$106 9.6% 47.5% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Taichung

$157 14.1% 14.8% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Taichung

$135 12.1% 20.8% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Taichung

$52 4.7% 23.2% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Taichung

$28 2.5% 44% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $382 in Taichung. 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 91% higher in Taichung, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $31 in Taichung. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $368 in Taichung – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇼 Taichung

🕒 Local time

15:49 3:49 PM

04:49 4:49 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

2,767,239

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 TWD = 3.09 USD

100 TWD = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 32.4 TWD (100 TWD = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 36.07 TWD (100 TWD = 2.77 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Taichung 14,200 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Taichung

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 Taichung: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 8%, 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 $1,667 in Taichung. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taichung, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $382 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,112 in Taichung. That makes Taichung about 8% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 30% less in Taichung. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,112 in Taichung. 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 $1,112 in Taichung to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.