Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Thiva

For one person, living is cheaper in Thiva: $1,154 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $580 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Thiva
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Thiva Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Thiva

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,154

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,154 in Thiva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Thiva $1,154

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,582 in Thiva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Thiva $1,582

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,010 in Thiva, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Thiva $2,010

Playa del Carmen costs about 4% more than Thiva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Playa del Carmen and Thiva are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Thiva 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$11.15 €9.95

-4.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$59.7 €53.2

-26.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$6.73 €6.00

75.19%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$2.46 €2.20

54.07%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$2.39 €2.13

-45.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$0.51 €0.46

62.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$4.51 €4.03

-30.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$2.74 €2.44

79.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$1.67 €1.49

-15.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$1.43 €1.27

53.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$2.48 €2.21

-40.73%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$5.04 €4.49

-50.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$12.20 €10.88

-40.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$10.06 €8.98

-20.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$14.28 €12.74

-9.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$1.64 €1.46

76.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$1.85 €1.65

-25.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$1.03 €0.92

141.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$1.87 €1.67

8.56%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$0.94 €0.83

114.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.16 €1.03

63.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$0.85 €0.76

34.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$0.63 €0.56

96.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$4.57 €4.08

-6.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$7.35 €6.56

33.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$1.73 €1.54

-8.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$1.88 €1.68

46.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$1.32 €1.18

-61.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$3.60 €3.21

32.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$0.99 €0.89

228.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$22.49 €20.06

-76.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$2.09 €1.86

-26.79%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$27.7K €24.7K

-23.28%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$24.4K €21.8K

-4.83%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$168 €150

-50.44%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$25.29 €22.56

-8.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$27.78 €24.78

-0.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$51.4 €45.81

9.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

$24.96 €22.26

12.94%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$8.30 €7.41

-39.76%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$336 €299

-38.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$4,218 €3,763

24.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$57.8 €51.5

-24.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$39.75 €35.46

7.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$82.0 €73.2

-11.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$106 €94.8

-16.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$340 €303

192.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$277 €247

38.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$620 €553

170.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

$1,743 €1,555

124.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$1,404 €1,252

337.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$1,133 €1,010

-26.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.38

161.42%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Thiva: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Thiva

$277 24% 27.6% $105

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Thiva

$267 23.1% 3.6% $9.3

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Thiva

$179 15.5% 10.8% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Thiva

$222 19.2% 65% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Thiva

$129 11.1% 15.6% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Thiva

$68 5.9% 2.3% $1.5

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Thiva

$14 * 1.2% 72.5% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $340 in Thiva. 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 36% higher in Thiva, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $60 in Thiva. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $267 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇷 Thiva

🕒 Local time

02:22 2:22 AM

09:22 9:22 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

22,883

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Thiva 10,250 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Thiva

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 Thiva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 4%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,732 in Thiva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Thiva, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $340 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,154 in Thiva. That makes Thiva about 4% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $336 in Thiva. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,154 in Thiva. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,154 in Thiva to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.