Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Yilan

For one person, living is cheaper in Yilan: $984 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Yilan
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Yilan Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Yilan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$984

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $984 in Yilan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Yilan $984

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,699 in Yilan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Yilan $1,699

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,413 in Yilan, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Yilan $2,413

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

Both Playa del Carmen and Yilan are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Yilan 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$3.43 NT$112

218.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$29.68 NT$968

46.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$4.84 NT$158

143.39%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$2.86 NT$93.2

33.22%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$0.99 NT$32.29

29.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$0.69 NT$22.42

13.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.47 NT$47.96

115.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.57 NT$83.7

91.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$3.07 NT$100

-54.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$1.74 NT$56.7

27.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$2.65 NT$86.4

-46.42%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.52 NT$82.0

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$28.23 NT$920

-74.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$7.94 NT$259

-3.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$16.10 NT$525

-21.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$4.31 NT$140

-35.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.83 NT$59.8

-25.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$2.95 NT$96.2

-13.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$2.13 NT$69.5

-0.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$1.20 NT$39.13

61.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.94 NT$63.4

-2.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$2.35 NT$76.5

-51.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.88 NT$28.81

34.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$3.74 NT$122

14.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$15.68 NT$511

-36.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$1.36 NT$44.45

16.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$2.50 NT$81.7

6.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.76 NT$24.75

-27.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$33.33 NT$1,087

-20.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$2.69 NT$87.6

84.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$0.95 NT$31.09

250.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$9.33 NT$304

-42.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$0.95 NT$30.96

51.58%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$25.1K NT$817.2K

-17.55%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$19.1K NT$621.9K

23.02%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$45.67 NT$1,489

85.66%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$14.60 NT$476

60.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$20.72 NT$676

38.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$30.18 NT$984

89.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$7.76 NT$253

-33.76%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$329 NT$10.7K

-37.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$16.1K NT$525.0K

-75.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$54.4 NT$1,773

-20.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$30.53 NT$995

35.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$84.1 NT$2,742

-11.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$61.7 NT$2,013

44.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$264 NT$8,607

271.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$247 NT$8,066

53.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$1,047 NT$34.1K

63.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$722 NT$23.5K

48.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$7,590 NT$247.5K

-48.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$4,807 NT$156.7K

28.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$1,016 NT$33.1K

-27.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.27

404.41%

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 Yilan: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Yilan

$247 25.1% 35% $133

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Yilan

$367 37.3% 44.1% $112

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Yilan

$95 9.7% 52.8% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Yilan

$81 8.2% 40.8% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Yilan

$104 10.6% 7.1% $7.9

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Yilan

$46 4.6% 32.1% $22

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Yilan

$44 4.5% 13.1% $6.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $264 in Yilan. 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 38% higher in Yilan, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $30 in Yilan. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $367 in Yilan – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇼 Yilan

🕒 Local time

21:46 9:46 PM

10:46 10:46 AM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

95,907

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, 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).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.41 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Yilan 14,080 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Yilan

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 Yilan: 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 eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,476 in Yilan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Yilan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $264 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $984 in Yilan. That makes Yilan about 18% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 20% less in Playa del Carmen. 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 $984 in Yilan to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.