Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Xai-Xai

For one person, living is cheaper in Xai-Xai: $682 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Xai-Xai
Learn more

Xai-Xai Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Xai-Xai

🇲🇿 Mozambique

$682

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Xai-Xai

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $682 in Xai-Xai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Xai-Xai $682

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,151 in Xai-Xai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Xai-Xai $1,151

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,620 in Xai-Xai, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Xai-Xai $1,620

Playa del Carmen costs about 77% more than Xai-Xai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Xai-Xai are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Xai-Xai 50% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$10.16 MZN 642

7.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$805

$63.7 MZN 4,029

-31.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$7.21 MZN 456

63.38%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.7

$2.16 MZN 137

76.39%

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

$1.28 MX$23.81

$0.86 MZN 54.5

48.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.54

$0.73 MZN 46.29

6.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$58.8

$1.60 MZN 101

98.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.7

$2.33 MZN 147

111.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.12

$1.54 MZN 97.6

-8.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.17

$1.03 MZN 65.4

115.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.32

$1.60 MZN 101

-11.25%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.85

$2.50 MZN 158

0.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$21.24 MZN 1,343

-65.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$5.72 MZN 362

34.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$5.80 MZN 367

118.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.7

$1.99 MZN 126

39.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.41

$0.75 MZN 47.22

82.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.37

$1.68 MZN 107

51.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$1.08 MZN 68.4

96.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.00

$1.04 MZN 65.5

86.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.02

$0.79 MZN 50.1

139.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.29

$0.92 MZN 58.0

25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.89

$0.90 MZN 57.1

31.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$79.8

$2.79 MZN 176

54.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$10.08 MZN 637

-1.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.41

$0.97 MZN 61.6

62.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.60

$1.27 MZN 80.4

110.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.28

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$494

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.3

$1.53 MZN 96.6

224.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$61.9

$1.19 MZN 75.4

179.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.5

$24.19 MZN 1,530

-77.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.82

$1.40 MZN 88.8

2.86%

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

$20.7K MX$383.8K

$32.0K MZN 2.0M

-35.52%

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

$23.5K MX$435.8K

$22.7K MZN 1.4M

3.22%

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

$84.8 MX$1,575

$71.4 MZN 4,518

18.70%

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

$23.41 MX$435

$7.74 MZN 490

202.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$532

$88.5 MZN 5,596

-67.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,059

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.4

$7.72 MZN 488

-33.42%

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

$207 MX$3,836

$178 MZN 11.2K

16.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$72.9K

$5,082 MZN 321.4K

-22.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$805

$49.75 MZN 3,146

-12.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$770

$57.0 MZN 3,606

-27.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,378

$77.2 MZN 4,881

-3.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,657

$79.3 MZN 5,017

12.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,072

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.7K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-54.20%

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 Xai-Xai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Xai-Xai

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Xai-Xai

$225 33% 11.6% $30

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Xai-Xai

$148 21.7% 26.9% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Xai-Xai

$168 24.6% 22.5% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Xai-Xai

$118 17.4% 6% $6.8

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Xai-Xai

$15 * 2.3% 77% $52

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Xai-Xai

$7.5 * 1.1% 85.2% $43

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $64 in Xai-Xai. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $225 in Xai-Xai – so Xai-Xai wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇿 Xai-Xai

🕒 Local time

23:35 11:35 PM

06:35 6:35 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

116,343

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Mozambican Metical MZN MT

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

100 MZN = 1.58 USD

100 MZN = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MZN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.89 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Xai-Xai 13,970 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Xai-Xai

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 Xai-Xai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 77%, 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 $1,023 in Xai-Xai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $682 in Xai-Xai. That makes Xai-Xai about 43% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $178 in Xai-Xai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Xai-Xai, where all-in costs run around $682, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Xai-Xai 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 $682 in Xai-Xai to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.