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

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 3.1% cheaper than Thames without rent, and 33.9% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 33.4% cheaper than Thames without rent, and 23.7% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$15.31 NZ$25.25
-21.69%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$79.9 NZ$132
-46.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$9.94 NZ$16.39
5.33%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$3.52 NZ$5.8
2.27%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$2.26 NZ$3.73
-36.28%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$2.29 NZ$3.78
-61.14%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$7.12 NZ$11.75
-56.60%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$7.29 NZ$12.02
-37.17%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.8 NZ$2.96
-23.33%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$2.07 NZ$3.41
-10.63%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.99 NZ$3.29
-21.11%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$6.88 NZ$11.35
-62.94%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$8.48 NZ$13.99
1.53%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$9.8 NZ$16.16
-12.86%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$12.97 NZ$21.4
-15.34%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.93 NZ$4.83
-7.17%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$2.18 NZ$3.59
-30.73%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$3.37 NZ$5.56
-44.21%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$4.12 NZ$6.79
-46.84%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.99 NZ$3.29
-6.03%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.69 NZ$2.79
29.59%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.94 NZ$3.21
-44.85%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$1.27 NZ$2.1
-14.17%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$24.93 NZ$41.11
-84.12%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$11.35 NZ$18.73
-21.94%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$2.98 NZ$4.92
-42.28%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$3.93 NZ$6.49
-33.59%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$2.06 NZ$3.4
-74.76%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$64.8 NZ$107
-58.97%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$2.16 NZ$3.56
50.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$2.01 NZ$3.32
18.41%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$35.55 NZ$58.6
-91.25%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.71 NZ$2.82
-23.39%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$28.7K NZ$47.3K
5.71%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$21.8K NZ$35.9K
10.16%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$144 NZ$237
-41.37%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$29.96 NZ$49.41
-26.10%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$49.04 NZ$80.9
-38.54%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$36.59 NZ$60.4
42.06%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$12.04 NZ$19.86
55.48%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$14.99 NZ$24.72
-66.18%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$893 NZ$1,472
-77.56%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$13.5K NZ$22.3K
-60.49%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$70.2 NZ$116
-49.10%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$50.6 NZ$83.5
-21.39%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$96.7 NZ$159
-18.30%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$126 NZ$208
-30.08%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$958 NZ$1,581
0.73%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$773 NZ$1,275
-38.65%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$1,590 NZ$2,622
3.97%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$1,416 NZ$2,335
-15.10%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$4,813 NZ$7,937
-35.97%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$3,741 NZ$6,169
101.28%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Thames
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
6.37
79.28%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Thames: October 28, 2025

Similar cities

Join the CityCost newsletter – low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.