Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tarragona

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,786 in Tarragona, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Tarragona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Tarragona
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Tarragona Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Tarragona

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,786

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,786 in Tarragona, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Tarragona $1,786

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,604 in Tarragona, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Tarragona $2,604

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,421 in Tarragona, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Tarragona $3,421

Playa del Carmen is about 32% cheaper than Tarragona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 9% below the global median, while Tarragona is 33% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$18.24 €16.28

-39.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$61.0 €54.4

-26.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$9.00 €8.03

32.44%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$2.48 €2.22

53.23%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$2.41 €2.15

-45.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$1.98 €1.77

-56.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

$3.30 €2.95

-2.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

$4.04 €3.60

24.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.22 €1.09

19.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$1.98 €1.77

17.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.46 €1.31

-1.37%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$3.59 €3.20

-31.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$13.23 €11.81

-41.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$10.35 €9.23

-23.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$14.42 €12.87

-11.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$2.84 €2.54

2.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$2.48 €2.21

-42.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$2.79 €2.49

-7.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$2.61 €2.33

-18.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$1.63 €1.45

19.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$1.95 €1.74

-0.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$1.50 €1.34

-23.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$0.64 €0.57

90.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$6.84 €6.11

-35.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

$5.12 €4.57

92.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

$1.92 €1.71

-19.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

$1.78 €1.59

52.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$1.69 €1.51

-69.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

$27.99 €24.98

-2.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$4.04 €3.60

21.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$1.47 €1.31

139.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$21.66 €19.33

-73.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$1.78 €1.59

-13.48%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$35.9K €32.1K

-40.90%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$29.8K €26.6K

-17.96%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$131 €117

-36.27%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$23.19 €20.69

3.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$34.90 €31.15

-15.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$59.6 €53.2

8.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$24.34 €21.73

21.04%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$8.73 €7.79

-41.70%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$313 €280

-33.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$104 €92.8

-57.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$33.49 €29.89

25.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$79.4 €70.9

-4.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$89.1 €79.5

2.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$925 €825

6.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$789 €704

-51.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$1,231 €1,098

39.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$1,208 €1,078

-8.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$2,746 €2,451

46.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$1,295 €1,155

382.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

$2,108 €1,881

-64.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.02

279.14%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Tarragona: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Tarragona

$789 44.6% 105% $404

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Tarragona

$286 16.2% 9.9% $26

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Tarragona

$245 13.8% 20.1% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Tarragona

$189 10.7% 38.2% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Tarragona

$138 7.8% 20.7% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Tarragona

$77 4.4% 2.7% $2

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Tarragona

$46 2.6% 11.3% $5.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $925 in Tarragona. 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 178% higher in Tarragona, 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 $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $61.0 in Tarragona. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $286 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇪🇸 Tarragona

🕒 Local time

02:45 2:45 AM

09:45 9:45 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

138,262

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Tarragona 8,380 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Tarragona

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 Tarragona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Tarragona is pricier by about 47%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,680 in Tarragona. 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 $1,215 in Playa del Carmen and $1,786 in Tarragona. That's a gap of about 47%.

Public transport costs about 2% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,215, than in Tarragona at $1,786. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tarragona 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.

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