Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Zhubei City

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhubei City: $1,029 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Zhubei City
Learn more

Zhubei City Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Zhubei City

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,029

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Zhubei City

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,029 in Zhubei City, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Zhubei City $1,029

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,814 in Zhubei City, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Zhubei City $1,814

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,599 in Zhubei City, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Zhubei City $2,599

Playa del Carmen costs about 17% more than Zhubei City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Zhubei City are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Zhubei City 24% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$4.73 NT$154

130.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$27.28 NT$890

58.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$5.11 NT$167

130.53%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$2.79 NT$90.8

36.56%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.91 NT$29.51

40.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.57 NT$18.62

36.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.86 NT$60.7

70.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.20 NT$71.9

124.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$2.76 NT$90.1

-48.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$1.77 NT$57.8

25.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$4.50 NT$147

-68.44%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$2.74 NT$89.3

-8.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$24.58 NT$801

-70.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$8.13 NT$265

-5.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$24.77 NT$808

-48.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$4.08 NT$133

-31.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$2.44 NT$79.5

-43.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$2.73 NT$88.9

-6.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$3.31 NT$108

-35.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$3.05 NT$99.4

-36.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$2.02 NT$65.7

-6.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$1.97 NT$64.3

-41.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$1.32 NT$43.00

-10.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$3.94 NT$129

9.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$9.10 NT$297

9.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$1.41 NT$45.88

12.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$2.25 NT$73.5

18.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.59 NT$19.18

-6.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$3.08 NT$101

61.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.59 NT$19.10

464.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$9.28 NT$302

-42.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.02 NT$33.33

41.18%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$33.2K NT$1.1M

-37.84%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$24.0K NT$783.2K

-2.31%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$98.5 NT$3,211

-13.91%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$18.80 NT$613

24.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$22.96 NT$749

24.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$31.27 NT$1,019

82.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$9.95 NT$325

-48.34%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$642 NT$20.9K

-67.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$16.5K NT$537.1K

-76.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$56.1 NT$1,830

-22.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$30.46 NT$993

36.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$89.7 NT$2,926

-17.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$98.4 NT$3,207

-9.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$495 NT$16.1K

97.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$208 NT$6,773

83.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$1,060 NT$34.6K

61.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$776 NT$25.3K

38.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$15.8K NT$514.7K

-75.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$9,406 NT$306.7K

-34.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$2,393 NT$78.0K

-69.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

2.4

377.08%

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 Zhubei City: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Zhubei City

$208 20.2% 45.5% $173

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Zhubei City

$392 38.1% 53.9% $137

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Zhubei City

$106 10.3% 47.5% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Zhubei City

$140 13.6% 2.5% $3.4

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Zhubei City

$124 12% 10.7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Zhubei City

$51 5% 24% $16

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Zhubei City

$8.4 * 0.8% 83.4% $42

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 $495 in Zhubei City. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Zhubei City are about 3.3 times higher, 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 $27 in Zhubei City. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $392 in Zhubei City – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇹🇼 Zhubei City

🕒 Local time

02:11 2:11 AM

15:11 3:11 PM

13 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

211,746

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 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 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Zhubei City 14,120 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Zhubei City

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 Zhubei City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 17%, 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 $1,544 in Zhubei City. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Zhubei City, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $495 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,029 in Zhubei City. That makes Zhubei City about 15% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $642 in Zhubei City. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,029 in Zhubei City. 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 $1,029 in Zhubei City to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.