Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tonghua

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonghua: $643 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Tonghua
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Tonghua Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Tonghua

🇨🇳 China

$643

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $643 in Tonghua, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Tonghua $643

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,038 in Tonghua, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Tonghua $1,038

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,432 in Tonghua, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Tonghua $1,432

Playa del Carmen costs about 87% more than Tonghua, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Tonghua are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Tonghua 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$2.27 ¥15.08

381.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$22.26 ¥148

94.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$5.23 ¥34.79

125.24%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$2.21 ¥14.72

72.40%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$0.43 ¥2.88

197.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.36 ¥2.38

116.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$0.74 ¥4.90

328.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$1.83 ¥12.17

169.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.69 ¥11.24

-16.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$2.16 ¥14.34

2.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$1.03 ¥6.88

37.86%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$1.05 ¥6.99

140.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$13.73 ¥91.4

-47.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$2.97 ¥19.73

159.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$6.92 ¥46.02

83.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$1.01 ¥6.74

175.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.07 ¥7.15

28.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$0.81 ¥5.38

214.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.07 ¥7.14

98.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$0.86 ¥5.71

125.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.03 ¥6.85

83.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$0.58 ¥3.87

98.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.65 ¥4.32

81.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$3.72 ¥24.77

15.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$11.76 ¥78.3

-15.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$0.69 ¥4.57

128.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$1.15 ¥7.63

132.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.29 ¥1.90

89.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$18.11 ¥121

46.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$0.88 ¥5.87

464.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.39 ¥2.57

753.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$3.01 ¥20.05

78.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.24 ¥8.22

16.13%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$19.4K ¥128.8K

6.75%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$17.1K ¥114.0K

36.94%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$23.30 ¥155

263.91%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$5.98 ¥39.76

291.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$8.88 ¥59.1

222.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$42.23 ¥281

35.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$14.79 ¥98.4

95.47%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$6.05 ¥40.26

-15.04%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$300 ¥1,993

-31.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$14.9K ¥99.0K

-73.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$22.75 ¥151

90.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$33.44 ¥222

23.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$61.0 ¥406

21.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$69.0 ¥459

29.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$285 ¥1,896

243.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$186 ¥1,237

104.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$598 ¥3,978

185.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$361 ¥2,404

197.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$3,262 ¥21.7K

20.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$1,980 ¥13.2K

211.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$501 ¥3,335

46.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

186.25%

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 Tonghua: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Tonghua

$186 28.9% 51.2% $195

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Tonghua

$188 29.2% 26.3% $67

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Tonghua

$71 11% 65% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Tonghua

$38 5.9% 72.1% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Tonghua

$84 13% 25% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Tonghua

$54 8.5% 19.3% $13

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Tonghua

$22 3.4% 56.3% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $285 in Tonghua. 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 47% 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $22 in Tonghua. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $188 – making Tonghua the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇨🇳 Tonghua

🕒 Local time

14:44 2:44 PM

03:44 3:44 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

446,917

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.43 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Tonghua 12,290 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Tonghua

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 Tonghua: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 87%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $964 in Tonghua. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tonghua, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $285 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $643 in Tonghua. That makes Tonghua about 47% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 32% less in Tonghua. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Tonghua, where all-in costs run around $643, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Tonghua 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 $643 in Tonghua to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Tonghua. 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.