Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tetouan

For one person, living is cheaper in Tetouan: $662 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Tetouan
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Tetouan Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Tetouan

🇲🇦 Morocco

$662

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $662 in Tetouan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Tetouan $662

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $999 in Tetouan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Tetouan $999

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,336 in Tetouan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Tetouan $1,336

Playa del Carmen costs about 83% more than Tetouan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Tetouan are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 10% lower, Tetouan 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$3.04 MAD 29.61

253.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$17.99 MAD 175

139.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$8.23 MAD 80.2

43.26%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$1.86 MAD 18.09

108.06%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$0.75 MAD 7.27

82.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$0.33 MAD 3.21

154.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$2.62 MAD 25.54

18.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$3.06 MAD 29.82

65.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$0.89 MAD 8.70

61.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$0.19 MAD 1.85

1073.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.96 MAD 19.14

-25.00%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$1.60 MAD 15.58

58.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$5.90 MAD 57.5

23.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$6.93 MAD 67.5

13.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$12.23 MAD 119

4.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$1.63 MAD 15.88

77.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$1.38 MAD 13.48

4.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$0.88 MAD 8.63

189.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$0.86 MAD 8.42

139.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$0.90 MAD 8.80

122.22%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$0.73 MAD 7.16

175.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$0.53 MAD 5.16

124.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$0.63 MAD 6.13

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$3.83 MAD 37.32

14.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$8.34 MAD 81.3

14.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$2.15 MAD 20.99

-26.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$2.54 MAD 24.72

10.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$0.54 MAD 5.23

5.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$12.56 MAD 122

121.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$0.75 MAD 7.34

564.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$0.85 MAD 8.29

311.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$3.30 MAD 32.20

63.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$1.53 MAD 14.95

-3.92%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$33.9K MAD 330.4K

-38.08%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$30.8K MAD 300.3K

-22.38%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$43.42 MAD 423

93.94%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$10.72 MAD 105

123.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$41.31 MAD 403

-29.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$15.00 MAD 146

319.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$12.02 MAD 117

142.43%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$3.83 MAD 37.34

28.98%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$48.53 MAD 473

319.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$5,823 MAD 56.8K

-32.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$18.06 MAD 176

141.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$47.28 MAD 461

-8.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$55.8 MAD 544

35.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$65.1 MAD 635

36.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$202 MAD 1,969

399.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$160 MAD 1,565

133.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$405 MAD 3,952

321.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$254 MAD 2,481

334.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$1,092 MAD 10.6K

261.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$744 MAD 7,251

729.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$405 MAD 3,945

86.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.5

108.18%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Tetouan: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Tetouan

$160 24.3% 57.1% $214

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Tetouan

$185 27.9% 28.5% $74

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Tetouan

$95 14.3% 53.2% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Tetouan

$95 14.4% 30.4% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Tetouan

$84 12.7% 25.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Tetouan

$23 3.4% 68.9% $50

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Tetouan

$20 3% 62.5% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $202 in Tetouan. 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 86% 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 $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $18.00 in Tetouan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $185 – making Tetouan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇦 Tetouan

🕒 Local time

15:14 3:14 PM

21:14 9:14 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

380,787

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Tetouan 7,970 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Tetouan

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 Tetouan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 83%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $992 in Tetouan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tetouan, 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 $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $662 in Tetouan. That's a gap of about 83%.

Public transport costs about 121% less in Tetouan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Tetouan, where all-in costs run around $662, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Tetouan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tetouan – 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 Tetouan. 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.