Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and The Woodlands, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,203 a month against $3,148 in The Woodlands, TX, rent and utilities included – about $23,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
151

Cost of Living Index in The Woodlands, TX
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The Woodlands, TX Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,203

/mo nomad

The Woodlands, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$3,148

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in The Woodlands, TX

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 The Woodlands, TX actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,203 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,148 in The Woodlands, TX, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,203
The Woodlands, TX $3,148

A couple spends around $2,084 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,198 in The Woodlands, TX, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,084
The Woodlands, TX $4,198

A family of three spends $2,965 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,247 in The Woodlands, TX, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,965
The Woodlands, TX $5,247

Playa del Carmen is about 62% cheaper than The Woodlands, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while The Woodlands, TX is 135% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.72 MX$198

$20.29 $20.29

-47.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.71 MX$790

$93.4 $93.4

-54.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.86 MX$219

$10.90 $10.90

8.81%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.3

$4.54 $4.54

-16.30%

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

$1.29 MX$23.80

$2.61 $2.61

-50.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.23

$1.79 $1.79

-54.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.07 MX$56.8

$5.00 $5.00

-38.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.99 MX$92.2

$5.57 $5.57

-10.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 MX$27.53

$1.16 $1.16

28.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.26 MX$41.85

$2.37 $2.37

-4.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.83

$3.15 $3.15

-55.56%

Eggs

$2.47 MX$45.72

$2.23 $2.23

10.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.25 MX$134

$8.54 $8.54

-15.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.09 MX$150

$14.13 $14.13

-42.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.87 MX$238

$26.12 $26.12

-50.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.89 MX$53.5

$7.61 $7.61

-62.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.62

$1.02 $1.02

41.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 MX$48.27

$7.35 $7.35

-64.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 MX$39.41

$7.59 $7.59

-71.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.80

$3.22 $3.22

-38.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.03

$2.18 $2.18

-13.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.35

$1.38 $1.38

-16.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 MX$22.84

$3.09 $3.09

-60.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.45 MX$82.3

$5.96 $5.96

-25.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.61 MX$178

$11.52 $11.52

-16.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 MX$29.60

$2.07 $2.07

-22.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 MX$49.63

$1.53 $1.53

75.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.46

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.54 MX$491

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.79 MX$88.6

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.29 MX$60.9

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$99.7

$15.20 $15.20

-64.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$27.08

$0.84 $0.84

73.81%

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

$21.1K MX$390.0K

$48.8K $48.8K

-56.78%

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

$23.4K MX$433.5K

$24.1K $24.1K

-2.92%

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

$83.9 MX$1,552

$196 $196

-57.21%

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

$23.11 MX$428

$58.7 $58.7

-60.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.32 MX$524

$49.68 $49.68

-43.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 MX$975

$34.60 $34.60

52.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.94 MX$572

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 MX$91.8

$17.93 $17.93

-72.34%

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

$203 MX$3,761

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,245 MX$97.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.12 MX$816

$36.88 $36.88

19.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.37 MX$765

$19.90 $19.90

107.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.8 MX$1,366

$62.6 $62.6

17.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.0 MX$1,665

$66.1 $66.1

36.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$988 MX$18.3K

$1,846 $1,846

-46.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,074

$1,951 $1,951

-80.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,667 MX$30.8K

$2,989 $2,989

-44.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,085 MX$20.1K

$2,456 $2,456

-55.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,942 MX$72.9K

$1,847 $1,847

113.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,102 MX$112.9K

$1,876 $1,876

225.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$907 MX$16.8K

$7,907 $7,907

-88.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.71

70.64%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 8, 2026

Last update for The Woodlands, TX: November 7, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

The Woodlands, TX

$2K 62% 410% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.6%

The Woodlands, TX

$436 13.9% 67.8% $176

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$201 16.7%

The Woodlands, TX

$303 9.6% 51.1% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$135 11.3%

The Woodlands, TX

$305 9.7% 125% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

The Woodlands, TX

$83 2.7% 25.6% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$63 5.2%

The Woodlands, TX

$70 2.2% 12.5% $7.8

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

The Woodlands, TX

- * 0% 100%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $988 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,846 in The Woodlands, TX. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in The Woodlands, TX are about 8.7 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 $93 in The Woodlands, TX. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $436 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 The Woodlands, TX

🕒 Local time

15:29 3:29 PM

14:29 2:29 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

93,847

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.5 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.76 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen The Woodlands, TX 1,360 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
The Woodlands, TX

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 The Woodlands, TX: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – The Woodlands, TX is pricier by about 162%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,805 per month in Playa del Carmen and $4,722 in The Woodlands, TX. 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $988 there versus $1,846 in The Woodlands, TX.

Groceries cost about 68% more in The Woodlands, TX, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $93 in The Woodlands, TX. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,203, than in The Woodlands, TX at $3,148. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in The Woodlands, TX it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,203 in Playa del Carmen to $3,148 in The Woodlands, TX. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, The Woodlands, TX makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.