Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Varadero Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Varadero

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 21.7% more expensive than Varadero without rent, and 21.3% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 4.5% cheaper than Varadero without rent, and 29.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$5.68 CUP 136
111.09%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$47.31 CUP 1,136
-10.23%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$9.14 CUP 219
14.55%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$1.02 CUP 24.56
252.94%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$1.91 CUP 45.77
-24.61%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$1 CUP 23.98
-11.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$3.65 CUP 87.7
-15.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$2.56 CUP 61.4
78.91%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$2.96 CUP 71.2
-53.38%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.25 CUP 29.98
48.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.5 CUP 36.09
4.67%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$2.39 CUP 57.3
6.69%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$5.84 CUP 140
47.43%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$5.1 CUP 122
67.45%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$12.21 CUP 293
-10.07%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$5.12 CUP 123
-46.88%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$0.58 CUP 13.92
160.34%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$1.01 CUP 24.31
86.14%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$1.14 CUP 27.25
92.11%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$0.95 CUP 22.9
96.84%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$5.57 CUP 134
-60.68%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$0.38 CUP 9.19
181.58%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$0.54 CUP 12.94
101.85%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$3.72 CUP 89.2
6.45%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$5.34 CUP 128
65.92%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$0.8 CUP 19.25
115.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$0.71 CUP 16.99
267.61%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$19.88 CUP 477
33.75%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$2.01 CUP 48.35
61.19%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$1.01 CUP 24.34
135.64%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$20.32 CUP 488
-84.69%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.26 CUP 30.28
3.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$70.1K CUP 1.7M
-56.73%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$81.5K CUP 2M
-70.57%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$40.33 CUP 968
108.88%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$39.96 CUP 959
-44.59%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$217 CUP 5,202
-86.09%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$39.84 CUP 956
30.47%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$14.96 CUP 359
25.13%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$0.97 CUP 23.39
422.68%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$88.5 CUP 2,124
126.28%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$14.8K CUP 355.2K
-63.97%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$40.03 CUP 961
-10.72%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$30.36 CUP 729
31.09%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$76.3 CUP 1,830
3.55%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$83.3 CUP 2,000
6.04%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$396 CUP 9,512
143.61%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$806 CUP 19.4K
-41.18%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$1,213 CUP 29.1K
36.28%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$646 CUP 15.5K
86.16%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$394 CUP 9,465
681.31%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$356 CUP 8,548
2014.06%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Varadero
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$19.57 CUP 470
3945.84%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
15
-23.87%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Varadero: October 28, 2025

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