Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Taoyuan

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Taoyuan: $1,204 and $1,183 a month, rent and utilities included.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Taoyuan
Learn more

Taoyuan Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Taoyuan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,183

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,183 in Taoyuan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Taoyuan $1,183

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,731 in Taoyuan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Taoyuan $1,731

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,278 in Taoyuan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Taoyuan $2,278

Playa del Carmen and Taoyuan have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Taoyuan are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Taoyuan 13% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$4.13 NT$135

164.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$24.84 NT$810

74.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$5.46 NT$178

115.75%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$3.00 NT$97.8

27.00%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$1.00 NT$32.66

28.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.69 NT$22.65

13.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.81 NT$58.9

75.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.25 NT$73.3

119.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$2.76 NT$89.9

-48.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$1.16 NT$37.73

91.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$2.58 NT$84.0

-44.96%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.14 NT$69.9

17.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$8.84 NT$288

-17.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$7.14 NT$233

7.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$21.23 NT$692

-40.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$3.77 NT$123

-26.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.94 NT$63.3

-29.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$3.05 NT$99.4

-16.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$3.05 NT$99.5

-30.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$2.44 NT$79.5

-20.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.91 NT$62.2

-1.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$2.29 NT$74.6

-49.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.87 NT$28.21

35.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$4.85 NT$158

-11.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$10.78 NT$351

-7.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$1.48 NT$48.27

6.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.03 NT$66.3

31.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.52 NT$17.07

5.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$37.11 NT$1,210

-28.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$2.83 NT$92.3

75.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.81 NT$26.32

311.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$6.89 NT$225

-22.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$0.95 NT$31.03

51.58%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$36.5K NT$1.2M

-43.36%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$23.0K NT$748.9K

2.17%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$66.9 NT$2,180

26.82%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$17.45 NT$569

34.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$21.84 NT$712

31.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$30.19 NT$984

88.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$7.09 NT$231

307.76%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$10.80 NT$352

-52.41%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$521 NT$17.0K

-60.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$31.3K NT$1.0M

-87.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$88.0 NT$2,871

-50.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$24.36 NT$794

70.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$83.0 NT$2,707

-10.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$96.0 NT$3,129

-7.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$641 NT$20.9K

52.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$437 NT$14.2K

-12.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$777 NT$25.3K

119.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$610 NT$19.9K

76.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$6,226 NT$203.0K

-36.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$4,079 NT$133.0K

50.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$1,507 NT$49.1K

-51.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.38

381.09%

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 Taoyuan: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Taoyuan

$437 36.9% 14.8% $56

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Taoyuan

$306 25.8% 20% $51

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Taoyuan

$106 8.9% 47.8% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Taoyuan

$106 9% 22.4% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Taoyuan

$131 11.1% 17.4% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Taoyuan

$52 4.4% 23.1% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Taoyuan

$46 3.9% 8.7% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $641 in Taoyuan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Taoyuan are about 2.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $25 in Taoyuan. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $306 in Taoyuan – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇼 Taoyuan

🕒 Local time

14:39 2:39 PM

03:39 3:39 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

2,147,763

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 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 31, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.41 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Taoyuan 14,090 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Taoyuan

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 Taoyuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,775 in Taoyuan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taoyuan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $641 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Interestingly, groceries are about 17% cheaper in Playa del Carmen – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $521 in Taoyuan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,183 in Taoyuan. 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 $1,183 in Taoyuan to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.