Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Thetford Mines

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,989 in Thetford Mines, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
96

Cost of Living Index in Thetford Mines
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Thetford Mines Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Thetford Mines

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,989

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Thetford Mines

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,989 in Thetford Mines, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Thetford Mines $1,989

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,415 in Thetford Mines, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Thetford Mines $2,415

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,840 in Thetford Mines, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Thetford Mines $2,840

Playa del Carmen is about 39% cheaper than Thetford Mines, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Thetford Mines is 46% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$11.64 CA$16.26

-6.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$40.40 CA$56.5

7.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$8.62 CA$12.05

36.66%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$3.56 CA$4.98

7.02%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$2.01 CA$2.81

-36.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.92 CA$1.29

-15.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$3.20 CA$4.47

-0.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$4.67 CA$6.53

5.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.61 CA$2.24

-12.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$2.46 CA$3.44

-9.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$2.18 CA$3.05

-34.86%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.47 CA$3.46

2.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$9.89 CA$13.81

-26.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$6.44 CA$9.00

19.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$14.03 CA$19.60

-9.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$2.17 CA$3.03

28.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.50 CA$2.10

-8.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$2.17 CA$3.03

17.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$2.19 CA$3.06

-3.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$1.94 CA$2.70

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.85 CA$2.58

2.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.66 CA$0.93

74.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$1.56 CA$2.18

-24.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$11.35 CA$15.85

-62.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$10.50 CA$14.67

-5.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$1.44 CA$2.01

9.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.92 CA$4.08

-8.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$2.43 CA$3.39

-77.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$62.3 CA$87.1

-57.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$3.23 CA$4.51

53.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$1.45 CA$2.02

129.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$33.06 CA$46.19

-83.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.06 CA$1.49

35.85%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$21.4K CA$29.9K

-3.32%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$21.0K CA$29.3K

11.98%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$79.6 CA$111

6.55%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$34.44 CA$48.13

-32.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$43.75 CA$61.1

-34.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$40.20 CA$56.2

41.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$15.88 CA$22.19

82.05%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$11.30 CA$15.78

-54.51%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$521 CA$727

-60.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$16.3K CA$22.8K

-75.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$46.78 CA$65.4

-7.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$24.79 CA$34.64

67.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$60.0 CA$83.8

23.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$68.6 CA$95.9

30.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$1,308 CA$1,828

-25.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$1,130 CA$1,578

-66.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$869 CA$1,214

96.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$919 CA$1,285

16.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$4,936 CA$6,896

-20.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$3,606 CA$5,039

70.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$1,305 CA$1,824

-43.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.48

155.58%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Thetford Mines: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Thetford Mines

$1.1K 56.8% 197% $749

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Thetford Mines

$268 13.5% 5.1% $13

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Thetford Mines

$199 10% 1.8% $3.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Thetford Mines

$158 7.9% 15.3% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Thetford Mines

$90 4.5% 19.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Thetford Mines

$63 3.2% 6.7% $4.5

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Thetford Mines

$83 4.2% 63.5% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,308 in Thetford Mines. 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 78% higher in Thetford Mines. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $40 in Thetford Mines. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $268 in Thetford Mines – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇦 Thetford Mines

🕒 Local time

19:13 7:13 PM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

26,072

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Thetford Mines 3,170 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Thetford Mines

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 Thetford Mines: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Thetford Mines is pricier by about 65%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,984 in Thetford Mines. 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 $980 there versus $1,308 in Thetford Mines.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,989 in Thetford Mines. That makes Playa del Carmen about 39% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 57% 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 $1,204, than in Thetford Mines at $1,989. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Thetford Mines 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.

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