Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Vinh Yen

For one person, living is cheaper in Vinh Yen: $785 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Vinh Yen
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Vinh Yen Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Vinh Yen

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$785

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Vinh Yen

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $785 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Vinh Yen $785

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,201 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Vinh Yen $1,201

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,618 in Vinh Yen, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Vinh Yen $1,618

Playa del Carmen costs about 53% more than Vinh Yen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Vinh Yen are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Vinh Yen 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$1.97 ₫50.7K

441.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$21.01 ₫541.1K

108.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$4.31 ₫110.9K

173.55%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.69 ₫43.5K

124.26%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.55 ₫14.2K

136.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.31 ₫7,868

167.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$0.84 ₫21.7K

275.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$1.40 ₫36.0K

252.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.46 ₫37.5K

-3.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.11 ₫28.7K

98.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.72 ₫18.5K

104.17%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$1.54 ₫39.6K

62.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$12.80 ₫329.7K

-43.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.30 ₫84.9K

140.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$10.16 ₫261.8K

26.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.53 ₫65.1K

14.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.00 ₫25.8K

38.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$1.26 ₫32.4K

97.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$1.15 ₫29.5K

76.52%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.00 ₫25.7K

102.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.32 ₫34.1K

43.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.63 ₫16.2K

80.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.55 ₫14.2K

125.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$1.22 ₫31.4K

250.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$6.76 ₫174.2K

45.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$0.79 ₫20.4K

101.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.58 ₫40.6K

74.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.33 ₫8,583

54.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$7.13 ₫183.6K

284.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.86 ₫22.2K

453.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.60 ₫15.5K

441.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$2.20 ₫56.7K

145.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.00 ₫25.8K

53.00%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$32.0K ₫823.6M

-33.65%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$26.0K ₫670.7M

-10.64%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$86.6 ₫2.2M

-3.62%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$5.40 ₫139.1K

329.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$9.44 ₫243.3K

192.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$22.96 ₫591.4K

145.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$7.74 ₫199.5K

264.21%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$2.65 ₫68.1K

88.68%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$364 ₫9.4M

-43.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$15.5K ₫399.2M

-66.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$37.27 ₫960.1K

16.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$24.38 ₫628.0K

74.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$91.3 ₫2.4M

-20.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$65.1 ₫1.7M

35.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$389 ₫10.0M

156.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$300 ₫7.7M

27.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$740 ₫19.1M

126.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$549 ₫14.2M

96.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$2,290 ₫59.0M

70.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$1,390 ₫35.8M

341.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.17

40.15%

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 Vinh Yen: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Vinh Yen

$300 38.3% 21.5% $82

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Vinh Yen

$185 23.6% 28.2% $73

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Vinh Yen

$59 7.6% 70.4% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Vinh Yen

$101 12.9% 24.4% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Vinh Yen

$98 12.5% 11.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Vinh Yen

$28 3.6% 57.5% $38

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Vinh Yen

$12 1.6% 75.6% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $389 in Vinh Yen. 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $21 in Vinh Yen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $185 – making Vinh Yen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇻🇳 Vinh Yen

🕒 Local time

11:45 11:45 AM

23:45 11:45 PM

12 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

125,858

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.46 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 25,761 VND (100,000 VND = 3.88 USD). 1 EUR = 28,880 VND (100,000 VND = 3.46 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Vinh Yen 15,150 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Vinh Yen

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 Vinh Yen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 53%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,177 in Vinh Yen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Vinh Yen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $389 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $785 in Vinh Yen. That makes Vinh Yen about 35% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 74% less in Vinh Yen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $785 in Vinh Yen to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Vinh Yen is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 35% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.