Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tawau Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tawau

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 44.1% more expensive than Tawau without rent, and 48.9% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 29.1% more expensive than Tawau without rent, and 76.8% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.85 MX$212

$3.63 MYR 14.35

226.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.16 MX$755

$19.06 MYR 75.3

121.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 MX$192

$4.23 MYR 16.70

154.14%

Cappuccino

$3.47 MX$62.2

$2.30 MYR 9.10

50.87%

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

$1.45 MX$26.01

$0.78 MYR 3.08

85.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MX$16.16

$0.37 MYR 1.46

143.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 MX$54.7

$2.32 MYR 9.15

31.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 MX$79.1

$3.35 MYR 13.22

31.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 MX$24.51

$1.59 MYR 6.28

-13.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 MX$33.51

$1.35 MYR 5.33

38.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$27.63

$1.68 MYR 6.65

-8.33%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$44.81

$2.15 MYR 8.50

16.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 MX$154

$14.95 MYR 59.1

-42.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.63 MX$155

$4.40 MYR 17.38

96.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 MX$197

$9.66 MYR 38.17

14.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 MX$49.22

$2.88 MYR 11.39

-4.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$25.56

$1.52 MYR 6.02

-5.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MX$33.52

$2.51 MYR 9.92

-25.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 MX$38.80

$1.39 MYR 5.48

56.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 MX$33.70

$1.19 MYR 4.68

57.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 MX$40.21

$1.28 MYR 5.05

75.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 MX$19.11

$1.04 MYR 4.12

2.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 MX$19.22

$0.52 MYR 2.06

105.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MX$74.4

$4.25 MYR 16.80

-2.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.34 MX$185

$18.73 MYR 74.0

-44.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 MX$30.06

$2.87 MYR 11.32

-41.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 MX$44.46

$3.00 MYR 11.83

-17.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$9.93

$0.73 MYR 2.88

-24.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.53 MX$475

$11.76 MYR 46.46

125.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 MX$57.6

$1.21 MYR 4.78

166.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 MX$44.42

$0.99 MYR 3.93

150.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 MX$55.7

$6.02 MYR 23.78

-48.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 MX$22.48

$0.50 MYR 1.99

152.00%

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

$30.7K MX$548.8K

$34.8K MYR 137.5K

-11.90%

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

$24.0K MX$430.3K

$31.4K MYR 124.0K

-23.41%

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

$82.5 MX$1,476

$44.25 MYR 175

86.40%

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

$22.29 MX$399

$9.08 MYR 35.86

145.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 MX$537

$28.91 MYR 114

3.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 MX$921

$37.15 MYR 147

38.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 MX$327

$5.85 MYR 23.10

212.65%

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 MX$89.2

$2.86 MYR 11.30

74.13%

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

$200 MX$3,580

$187 MYR 740

6.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,304 MX$94.9K

$6,821 MYR 26.9K

-22.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.71 MX$639

$60.3 MYR 238

-40.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.56 MX$708

$27.11 MYR 107

45.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 MX$1,442

$72.6 MYR 287

10.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.3 MX$1,581

$50.5 MYR 199

74.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 MX$17.4K

$386 MYR 1,526

150.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 MX$8,632

$273 MYR 1,080

76.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 MX$28.6K

$632 MYR 2,498

152.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 MX$21.2K

$466 MYR 1,841

153.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 MX$72.5K

$1,850 MYR 7,308

118.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,522 MX$116.7K

$981 MYR 3,876

564.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$756 MX$13.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

4.07

180.59%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

Last update for Tawau: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Kuta, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Ankara

🇹🇷 Turkey

Izmir

🇹🇷 Turkey

Chisinau

🇲🇩 Moldova