Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quetzaltenango and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Quetzaltenango: $1,138 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $790 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Quetzaltenango
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Quetzaltenango Living Index
58

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

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Quetzaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,138

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,138 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,138
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,443 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,443
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,747 per month in Quetzaltenango vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Quetzaltenango $1,747
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Quetzaltenango is about 6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Quetzaltenango and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Quetzaltenango 16% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.77 Q 51.7

$10.92 MX$205

-38.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.9 Q 389

$43.37 MX$814

17.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.68 Q 58.7

$11.78 MX$221

-34.80%

Cappuccino

$3.36 Q 25.69

$3.81 MX$71.5

-11.81%

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

$1.10 Q 8.40

$1.28 MX$24.07

-14.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.97 Q 7.44

$0.78 MX$14.70

24.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 Q 25.45

$3.17 MX$59.5

5.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.62 Q 35.27

$4.93 MX$92.7

-6.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 Q 16.01

$1.41 MX$26.40

48.94%

White Bread (500g)

$2.57 Q 19.64

$2.22 MX$41.62

15.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 Q 15.69

$1.42 MX$26.61

44.37%

Eggs

$2.36 Q 18.05

$2.52 MX$47.36

-6.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.37 Q 48.69

$7.26 MX$136

-12.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.92 Q 60.5

$7.70 MX$144

2.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.09 Q 100

$12.69 MX$238

3.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 Q 22.58

$2.78 MX$52.3

6.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 Q 13.14

$1.37 MX$25.68

25.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 Q 22.34

$2.55 MX$47.89

14.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.60 Q 12.20

$2.12 MX$39.86

-24.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 Q 11.73

$1.94 MX$36.39

-20.62%

Onion (1kg)

$2.20 Q 16.79

$1.89 MX$35.41

16.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 Q 5.65

$1.15 MX$21.53

-35.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 Q 8.90

$1.18 MX$22.13

-1.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.35 Q 25.61

$4.30 MX$80.6

-22.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.04 Q 61.5

$9.95 MX$187

-19.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 Q 13.57

$1.58 MX$29.73

12.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 Q 19.84

$2.67 MX$50.1

-2.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.12 Q 39.12

$4.97 MX$93.3

3.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 Q 13.16

$3.33 MX$62.5

-48.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.34 Q 79.0

$5.36 MX$101

92.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 Q 10.14

$1.44 MX$27.11

-7.64%

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

$27.6K Q 210.6K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

33.39%

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

$25.8K Q 197.5K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

10.15%

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

$72.2 Q 551

$84.8 MX$1,592

-14.90%

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

$12.97 Q 99.1

$23.41 MX$439

-44.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.36 Q 354

$28.66 MX$538

61.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.27 Q 254

$57.1 MX$1,071

-41.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 Q 48.46

$5.14 MX$96.5

23.35%

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

$342 Q 2,613

$207 MX$3,878

65.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,808 Q 52.0K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

73.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.78 Q 373

$43.35 MX$814

12.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.81 Q 365

$41.44 MX$778

15.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Q 839

$74.2 MX$1,393

48.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 Q 853

$89.3 MX$1,676

25.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$399 Q 3,052

$980 MX$18.4K

-59.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 Q 2,971

$381 MX$7,150

2.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.62

11.45

1.48%

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

Last update for Quetzaltenango: October 26, 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

Quetzaltenango

$389 34.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 2.1% $8

Groceries & Markets

Quetzaltenango

$263 23.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 3.2% $8.4

Eating Out

Quetzaltenango

$152 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 33.4% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Quetzaltenango

$143 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 22% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quetzaltenango

$131 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 4.1% $5.4

Sport & Entertainment

Quetzaltenango

$46 4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 46.5% $21

Getting Around

Quetzaltenango

$14 * 1.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 267% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $399 in Quetzaltenango 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 $51 in Quetzaltenango versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Quetzaltenango

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:20 4:20 PM

17:20 5:20 PM

1 h ahead of Quetzaltenango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

500,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GTQ – Guatemalan Quetzal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.53 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

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).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Quetzaltenango Playa del Carmen 800 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Quetzaltenango
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 6%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,707 per month in Quetzaltenango 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 Quetzaltenango, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $399 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,138 in Quetzaltenango and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Quetzaltenango about 6% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $342 per month in Quetzaltenango and $207 in Playa del Carmen. 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 $1,138 in Quetzaltenango and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. 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 $1,138 in Quetzaltenango to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.