Cost of Living Comparison Between Sa Pa and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Sa Pa and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Sa Pa is 36.3% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 42.7% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Sa Pa is 41.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 48.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.87 ₫49.1K

$11.58 MX$212

-83.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.31 ₫561.2K

$42 MX$769

-49.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.49 ₫118.3K

$10.5 MX$192

-57.24%

Cappuccino

$1.75 ₫46.1K

$3.43 MX$62.8

-48.98%

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

$0.5 ₫13.2K

$1.49 MX$27.34

-66.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 ₫7,326

$0.94 MX$17.27

-70.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.91 ₫24.1K

$3.08 MX$56.3

-70.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₫41.7K

$4.37 MX$79.9

-63.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 ₫35.8K

$1.39 MX$25.44

-2.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 ₫26.9K

$1.85 MX$33.81

-44.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1 ₫26.4K

$1.58 MX$28.88

-36.71%

Eggs

$1.45 ₫38.2K

$2.51 MX$46

-42.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.55 ₫304.2K

$8.26 MX$151

39.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.64 ₫95.8K

$8.7 MX$159

-58.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.03 ₫264.2K

$10.73 MX$196

-6.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 ₫71.7K

$2.61 MX$47.74

4.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 ₫28.2K

$1.49 MX$27.28

-28.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.3 ₫34.3K

$1.95 MX$35.72

-33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.12 ₫29.6K

$2.09 MX$38.26

-46.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 ₫28.3K

$1.81 MX$33.05

-40.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 ₫26.8K

$2.16 MX$39.62

-52.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.66 ₫17.3K

$1.03 MX$18.85

-35.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ₫13.6K

$1.08 MX$19.7

-51.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.37 ₫36.2K

$4.14 MX$75.9

-66.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.49 ₫302.7K

$8.88 MX$163

29.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.8 ₫21K

$1.67 MX$30.64

-52.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₫43.2K

$2.53 MX$46.31

-35.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 ₫8,981

$0.51 MX$9.27

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.36 ₫167.6K

$26.68 MX$488

-76.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.72 ₫18.9K

$3.26 MX$59.7

-77.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.4K

$2.51 MX$45.94

-75.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.75 ₫72.4K

$3.12 MX$57.2

-11.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 ₫23.5K

$1.31 MX$23.96

-32.06%

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

$35.2K ₫927.1M

$30.9K MX$565K

14.04%

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

$32.2K ₫849M

$23.9K MX$436.9K

35.04%

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

$75.2 ₫2M

$83 MX$1,520

-9.44%

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

$5.71 ₫150.4K

$22.59 MX$414

-74.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.47 ₫223.2K

$29.51 MX$540

-71.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.72 ₫572.1K

$51.6 MX$944

-57.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.62 ₫200.7K

$18.42 MX$337

-58.63%

Cinema Ticket

$3.16 ₫83.2K

$4.9 MX$89.7

-35.51%

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

$263 ₫6.9M

$200 MX$3,668

31.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ₫305.3M

$5,179 MX$94.8K

123.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.32 ₫1.1M

$36.41 MX$667

10.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.63 ₫622.4K

$39.91 MX$731

-40.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.9 ₫2.3M

$79.9 MX$1,462

10.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.7 ₫1.9M

$87.7 MX$1,605

-15.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$365 ₫9.6M

$983 MX$18K

-62.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$247 ₫6.5M

$470 MX$8,612

-47.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ₫19.2M

$1,610 MX$29.5K

-54.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$538 ₫14.2M

$1,189 MX$21.8K

-54.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,090 ₫55.1M

$3,839 MX$70.3K

-45.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,239 ₫32.6M

$6,205 MX$113.6K

-80.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$724 MX$13.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

11.42

-20.32%

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

Last update for Sa Pa: December 1, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 30, 2025

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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