Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Tunapuna

For one person, living is cheaper in Tunapuna: $991 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Tunapuna
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Tunapuna Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Tunapuna

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$991

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $991 in Tunapuna, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Tunapuna $991

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,746 in Tunapuna, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Tunapuna $1,746

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,502 in Tunapuna, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Tunapuna $2,502

Playa del Carmen costs about 22% more than Tunapuna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Playa del Carmen and Tunapuna are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Tunapuna 27% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$10.21 TTD 68.5

6.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$75.2 TTD 504

-42.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$8.05 TTD 54.0

46.34%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$3.81 TTD 25.57

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.99 TTD 6.64

29.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.71 TTD 4.77

9.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.81 TTD 12.16

75.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.91 TTD 19.55

69.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$2.09 TTD 14.03

-32.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$2.25 TTD 15.09

-1.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$2.87 TTD 19.29

-50.52%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$3.73 TTD 25.01

-32.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$6.47 TTD 43.44

12.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$10.05 TTD 67.4

-23.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$9.02 TTD 60.5

40.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$5.46 TTD 36.65

-49.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$2.54 TTD 17.05

-46.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$3.65 TTD 24.50

-30.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$4.17 TTD 27.96

-49.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$0.77 TTD 5.15

151.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$0.71 TTD 4.79

166.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.47 TTD 9.84

-21.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$1.15 TTD 7.72

2.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$5.30 TTD 35.59

-18.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$18.99 TTD 127

-47.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$1.54 TTD 10.32

2.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$2.98 TTD 20.00

-10.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$0.86 TTD 5.78

477.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.90 TTD 6.05

270.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$14.81 TTD 99.4

-63.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.11 TTD 7.45

29.73%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$37.5K TTD 251.4K

-44.85%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$41.3K TTD 277.4K

-43.24%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$43.39 TTD 291

95.41%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$41.96 TTD 282

-44.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$45.57 TTD 306

-37.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$8.66 TTD 58.1

-40.65%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$402 TTD 2,699

-48.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$10.9K TTD 72.8K

-63.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$54.0 TTD 362

-19.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$36.71 TTD 246

12.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$88.0 TTD 590

-15.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$59.5 TTD 399

50.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$282 TTD 1,894

247.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$237 TTD 1,592

60.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$675 TTD 4,530

152.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$591 TTD 3,963

82.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.75

99.13%

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 Tunapuna: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Tunapuna

$237 24% 37.7% $144

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Tunapuna

$320 32.2% 25.4% $65

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Tunapuna

$173 17.5% 14.4% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Tunapuna

$131 13.2% 4.3% $5.9

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Tunapuna

$107 10.8% 4.1% $4.5

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Tunapuna

$17 * 1.8% 74.3% $50

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Tunapuna

$5.4 * 0.5% 89.4% $45

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $282 in Tunapuna. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $75 in Tunapuna. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $320 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇹 Tunapuna

🕒 Local time

22:07 10:07 PM

23:07 11:07 PM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

17,758

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.71 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 TTD (1 TTD = 0.133 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Tunapuna 2,960 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Tunapuna

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 Tunapuna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 22%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,486 in Tunapuna. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tunapuna, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $282 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $991 in Tunapuna. That makes Tunapuna about 18% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $402 in Tunapuna. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $991 in Tunapuna. 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 $991 in Tunapuna to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.