Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Thun

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $3,388 in Thun, rent and utilities included – about $26,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
166

Cost of Living Index in Thun
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Thun Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Thun

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,388

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,388 in Thun, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Thun $3,388

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,170 in Thun, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Thun $5,170

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $6,952 in Thun, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Thun $6,952

Playa del Carmen is about 64% cheaper than Thun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while Thun is 151% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$28.31 CHF 23.32

-61.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$122 CHF 100

-64.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$15.51 CHF 12.77

-23.98%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$6.45 CHF 5.31

-40.00%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$6.28 CHF 5.17

-78.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$5.88 CHF 4.84

-85.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$8.85 CHF 7.29

-64.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$7.67 CHF 6.32

-33.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$2.13 CHF 1.76

-32.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$2.99 CHF 2.46

-25.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$3.13 CHF 2.58

-53.04%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$7.60 CHF 6.26

-66.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$23.82 CHF 19.62

-69.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$26.88 CHF 22.14

-70.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$39.26 CHF 32.34

-67.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$3.55 CHF 2.92

-18.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$1.96 CHF 1.61

-26.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$2.65 CHF 2.18

-3.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$4.73 CHF 3.90

-56.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$1.56 CHF 1.28

28.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$2.00 CHF 1.65

0.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.19 CHF 1.80

-45.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$1.28 CHF 1.05

-1.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$11.25 CHF 9.26

-60.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$12.09 CHF 9.96

-20.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$2.26 CHF 1.86

-29.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$2.92 CHF 2.41

-3.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$4.49 CHF 3.70

-87.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$100 CHF 82.6

-72.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$8.04 CHF 6.62

-38.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$4.53 CHF 3.73

-22.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$82.9 CHF 68.3

-93.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$2.38 CHF 1.96

-38.24%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

-50.66%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$39.4K CHF 32.5K

-39.39%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$289 CHF 238

-70.88%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$46.36 CHF 38.18

-48.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$62.8 CHF 51.7

-53.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$89.8 CHF 74.0

-29.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$46.01 CHF 37.89

-36.67%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$23.22 CHF 19.12

-78.73%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$3,058 CHF 2,519

-93.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$30.5K CHF 25.1K

-87.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$144 CHF 119

-69.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$78.8 CHF 64.9

-45.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$159 CHF 131

-52.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$192 CHF 158

-53.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$1,685 CHF 1,388

-40.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$1,432 CHF 1,180

-73.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$2,842 CHF 2,341

-39.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$2,457 CHF 2,023

-54.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$16.2K CHF 13.4K

-75.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$11.8K CHF 9,721

-47.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$5,785 CHF 4,765

-86.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.42

373.14%

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 Thun: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Thun

$1.4K 42.3% 283% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Thun

$556 16.4% 115% $297

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Thun

$459 13.5% 127% $256

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Thun

$398 11.8% 190% $261

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Thun

$258 7.6% 129% $145

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Thun

$136 4% 87% $63

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Thun

$149 4.4% 183% $96

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,685 in Thun. 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 667% higher in Thun, 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 $122 in Thun. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $556 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇭 Thun

🕒 Local time

04:17 4:17 AM

11:17 11:17 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

43,905

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Thun 8,700 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Thun

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 Thun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Thun is pricier by about 180%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $5,083 in Thun. 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. 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 $3,388 in Thun. That's a gap of about 180%.

Public transport costs about 260% 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 $1,210, than in Thun at $3,388. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Thun 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, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Thun makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.