Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Timbo

For one person, living is cheaper in Timbo: $717 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Timbo
Learn more

Timbo Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Timbo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$717

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $717 in Timbo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Timbo $717

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,165 in Timbo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Timbo $1,165

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,614 in Timbo, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Timbo $1,614

Playa del Carmen costs about 68% more than Timbo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Timbo are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Timbo 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$4.62 R$25.22

130.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$36.83 R$201

18.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$3.81 R$20.78

209.45%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.88 R$10.24

101.60%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.99 R$5.42

31.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.68 R$3.72

22.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.80 R$9.82

75.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.19 R$11.93

125.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.81 R$4.41

74.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.43 R$7.81

53.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.81 R$4.41

81.48%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.67 R$9.12

49.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$7.65 R$41.77

-4.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.24 R$17.70

145.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$6.93 R$37.86

85.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.68 R$9.20

72.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.67 R$3.68

105.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$0.77 R$4.21

223.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.29 R$7.04

57.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.81 R$4.43

149.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.75 R$4.09

153.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.63 R$3.44

80.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.78 R$4.26

58.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$1.46 R$8.00

192.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$4.52 R$24.66

117.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.00 R$5.48

59.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.90 R$10.38

44.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.94 R$5.16

-45.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$41.54 R$227

-34.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.18 R$6.44

303.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.78 R$4.23

316.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$5.79 R$31.63

-6.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.92 R$5.01

66.30%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$21.4K R$116.7K

-0.75%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$25.5K R$139.4K

-8.86%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$52.5 R$286

59.15%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$11.97 R$65.4

93.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$21.39 R$117

29.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$24.49 R$134

130.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$25.53 R$139

10.42%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$5.52 R$30.13

-9.42%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$225 R$1,229

-8.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$2,629 R$14.4K

98.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$29.98 R$164

44.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$36.59 R$200

16.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$56.4 R$308

29.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$45.64 R$249

93.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$340 R$1,857

192.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$231 R$1,260

65.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$625 R$3,413

167.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$443 R$2,418

144.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$1,569 R$8,567

149.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,128 R$6,162

443.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$640 R$3,495

30.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.09%

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 Timbo: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Timbo

$231 32.2% 39.7% $152

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Timbo

$148 20.6% 42.5% $110

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Timbo

$91 12.7% 54.6% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Timbo

$86 12% 36.1% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Timbo

$76 10.6% 31.8% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Timbo

$36 5% 46.5% $31

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Timbo

$50 7% 0.1% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $340 in Timbo. 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 30% higher in Playa del Carmen, 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $37 in Timbo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $148 – making Timbo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇷 Timbo

🕒 Local time

17:56 5:56 PM

19:56 7:56 PM

2 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

46,099

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 5.46 BRL (1 BRL = 0.183 USD). 1 EUR = 6.11 BRL (1 BRL = 0.164 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Timbo 6,670 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Timbo

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 Timbo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 68%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,076 in Timbo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Timbo, 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 $717 in Timbo. That makes Timbo about 40% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 34% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Timbo, where all-in costs run around $717, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Timbo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen 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 $717 in Timbo to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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