Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa Flamingo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,686 in Playa Flamingo, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Playa Flamingo
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Playa Flamingo Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Playa Flamingo

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,686

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa Flamingo and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,686 per month in Playa Flamingo vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Playa Flamingo $1,686
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,670 per month in Playa Flamingo vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Playa Flamingo $2,670
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,654 per month in Playa Flamingo vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Playa Flamingo $3,654
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Playa Flamingo costs about 40% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa Flamingo sits 24% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 ₡5,314

$10.92 MX$204

7.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 ₡28.1K

$43.37 MX$808

43.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.89 ₡4,463

$11.78 MX$220

-16.04%

Cappuccino

$4.36 ₡1,968

$3.81 MX$71.0

14.44%

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

$2.74 ₡1,235

$1.28 MX$23.90

114.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 ₡830

$0.78 MX$14.59

135.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,479

$3.17 MX$59.0

3.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 ₡1,958

$4.93 MX$92.0

-11.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.03 ₡915

$1.41 MX$26.22

43.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.12 ₡1,406

$2.22 MX$41.33

40.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,130

$1.42 MX$26.42

76.76%

Eggs

$3.05 ₡1,374

$2.52 MX$47.03

21.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.82 ₡4,881

$7.26 MX$135

49.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.15 ₡4,580

$7.70 MX$143

31.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.80 ₡5,327

$12.69 MX$237

-7.01%

Apples (1kg)

$5.27 ₡2,380

$2.78 MX$51.9

89.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 ₡711

$1.37 MX$25.50

15.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.86 ₡2,193

$2.55 MX$47.55

90.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.92 ₡1,768

$2.12 MX$39.58

84.91%

Potato (1kg)

$3.85 ₡1,739

$1.94 MX$36.13

98.45%

Onion (1kg)

$3.62 ₡1,632

$1.89 MX$35.16

91.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 ₡459

$1.15 MX$21.37

-11.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 ₡1,396

$1.18 MX$21.98

161.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.09 ₡2,296

$4.30 MX$80.1

18.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.33 ₡9,176

$9.95 MX$185

104.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.77 ₡1,252

$1.58 MX$29.52

75.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ₡1,658

$2.67 MX$49.79

37.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.39 ₡627

$0.55 MX$10.31

152.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 ₡1,134

$4.97 MX$92.6

-49.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$3.33 MX$62.1

-53.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 ₡3,971

$5.36 MX$99.8

64.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 ₡693

$1.44 MX$26.92

6.94%

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

$34.0K ₡15.3M

$20.7K MX$385.2K

64.52%

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

$42.2K ₡19.0M

$23.5K MX$437.4K

79.79%

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

$94.5 ₡42.6K

$84.8 MX$1,581

11.43%

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

$20.06 ₡9,050

$23.41 MX$436

-14.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$58.9 ₡26.6K

$28.66 MX$534

105.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 ₡25.3K

$57.1 MX$1,063

-1.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.92 ₡4,475

$28.91 MX$539

-65.69%

Cinema Ticket

$7.75 ₡3,498

$5.14 MX$95.8

50.78%

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

$994 ₡448.6K

$207 MX$3,851

381.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,017 ₡4.1M

$3,927 MX$73.2K

129.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 ₡32.0K

$43.35 MX$808

63.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.3 ₡25.4K

$41.44 MX$772

35.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$130 ₡58.6K

$74.2 MX$1,383

74.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 ₡60.6K

$89.3 MX$1,664

50.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,604 ₡723.7K

$980 MX$18.3K

63.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 ₡288.9K

$381 MX$7,099

68.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,962 ₡1.3M

$1,708 MX$31.8K

73.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,259 ₡568.1K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

17.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,601 ₡1.6M

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-8.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.45

-24.72%

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

Last update for Playa Flamingo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa Flamingo

$640 38%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 40.5% $259

Groceries & Markets

Playa Flamingo

$389 23.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 34.5% $134

Eating Out

Playa Flamingo

$220 13%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 7.8% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Playa Flamingo

$176 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 36.6% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa Flamingo

$173 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 21.1% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Playa Flamingo

$72 4.2%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 5.9% $4.2

Getting Around

Playa Flamingo

$16 * 0.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 219% $35

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,604 in Playa Flamingo versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. 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 $62 in Playa Flamingo versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $389 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Playa Flamingo

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:56 4:56 PM

17:56 5:56 PM

1 h ahead of Playa Flamingo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa Flamingo Playa del Carmen 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa Flamingo
Playa del Carmen

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 Flamingo vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa Flamingo is pricier by about 40%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,528 per month in Playa Flamingo and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,604 in Playa Flamingo.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,686 in Playa Flamingo and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 29% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $994 per month in Playa Flamingo and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Playa Flamingo at $1,686. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa Flamingo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.