Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quesada and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,678 in Quesada, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Quesada
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Quesada Living Index
59

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

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Quesada

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,678

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Quesada 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 Quesada and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,678 per month in Quesada vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quesada $1,678
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $2,663 per month in Quesada vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quesada $2,663
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $3,648 per month in Quesada vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quesada $3,648
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Quesada costs about 39% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Quesada sits 24% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.24 ₡5,499

$10.76 MX$199

13.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.1 ₡27.9K

$43.03 MX$794

44.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.41 ₡5,128

$11.79 MX$218

-3.22%

Cappuccino

$4.48 ₡2,013

$3.87 MX$71.4

15.76%

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

$2.76 ₡1,242

$1.37 MX$25.26

101.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 ₡873

$0.84 MX$15.43

130.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 ₡1,440

$3.10 MX$57.2

3.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 ₡1,075

$5.07 MX$93.5

-52.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.40 ₡1,079

$1.44 MX$26.52

66.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.83 ₡1,271

$2.23 MX$41.19

26.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 ₡1,136

$1.47 MX$27.14

72.11%

Eggs

$2.57 ₡1,154

$2.53 MX$46.66

1.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.84 ₡4,870

$7.30 MX$135

48.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.25 ₡4,604

$7.86 MX$145

30.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.09 ₡6,330

$12.79 MX$236

10.16%

Apples (1kg)

$5.04 ₡2,265

$2.90 MX$53.5

73.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 ₡735

$1.44 MX$26.50

13.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.08 ₡483

$2.55 MX$47.02

-57.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.93 ₡1,768

$2.06 MX$37.99

90.78%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,757

$2.00 MX$36.93

95.50%

Onion (1kg)

$3.56 ₡1,600

$2.01 MX$37.03

77.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ₡505

$1.19 MX$21.99

-5.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.20 ₡1,437

$1.26 MX$23.20

153.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.01 ₡2,700

$4.40 MX$81.3

36.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.29 ₡6,873

$9.59 MX$177

59.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.83 ₡1,273

$1.59 MX$29.38

77.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ₡1,636

$2.81 MX$51.9

29.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.34 ₡602

$0.57 MX$10.46

135.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 ₡700

$4.98 MX$92.0

-68.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 ₡699

$3.50 MX$64.6

-55.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.94 ₡4,017

$5.40 MX$99.7

65.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡681

$1.47 MX$27.05

3.40%

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

$22.0K ₡9.9M

$21.0K MX$387.4K

5.03%

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

$35.5K ₡15.9M

$23.9K MX$441.3K

48.34%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$84.2 MX$1,554

14.30%

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

$29.69 ₡13.3K

$23.99 MX$443

23.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 ₡24.9K

$29.02 MX$536

90.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.0 ₡32.4K

$63.0 MX$1,163

14.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.14 ₡7,253

$29.14 MX$538

-44.61%

Cinema Ticket

$5.53 ₡2,483

$4.94 MX$91.2

11.94%

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

$255 ₡114.8K

$204 MX$3,759

25.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,187 ₡1.9M

$3,941 MX$72.8K

6.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.2 ₡32.0K

$43.60 MX$805

63.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.0 ₡24.7K

$43.12 MX$796

27.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$126 ₡56.7K

$75.8 MX$1,399

66.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 ₡49.0K

$88.6 MX$1,635

23.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$807 ₡362.7K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-19.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$639 ₡287.1K

$374 MX$6,904

70.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,882 ₡845.6K

$1,708 MX$31.5K

10.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,263 ₡567.5K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

14.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,173 ₡1.9M

$3,944 MX$72.8K

5.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,149 ₡965.8K

$6,169 MX$113.9K

-65.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

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 Quesada: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quesada

$639 38.1%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 41.5% $265

Groceries & Markets

Quesada

$371 22.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 30.4% $113

Eating Out

Quesada

$226 13.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 10.3% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quesada

$181 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 24.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Quesada

$163 9.7%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 30.5% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Quesada

$83 5%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 12.3% $10

Getting Around

Quesada

$15 * 0.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 258% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $807 in Quesada versus $1,008 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 $62.0 in Quesada versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $371 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Quesada

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:35 3:35 AM

04:35 4:35 AM

1 h ahead of Quesada

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

42,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 MXN = 5.42 USD

100 MXN = 4.84 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 18.46 MXN (100 MXN = 5.42 USD). 1 EUR = 20.67 MXN (100 MXN = 4.84 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Quesada Playa del Carmen 1,180 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Quesada
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

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

Yes – Quesada is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,517 per month in Quesada and $1,816 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,678 in Quesada and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 39%.

Kindergarten costs $255 per month in Quesada and $204 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 $1,210, than in Quesada at $1,678. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Quesada 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Quesada makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.