Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saguenay and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,427 in Saguenay, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Saguenay, Canada
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Saguenay
🇨🇦 Canada
$1,427
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,427 per month in Saguenay vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Saguenay $1,427
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,280 per month in Saguenay vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Saguenay $2,280
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,132 per month in Saguenay vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Saguenay $3,132
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Saguenay costs about 18% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Saguenay sits 5% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$15.39 CA$21.50
$10.92 MX$205
40.93%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.46 CA$60.7
$43.37 MX$815
0.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.53 CA$14.72
$11.78 MX$221
-10.61%
Cappuccino
$3.84 CA$5.36
$3.81 MX$71.6
0.79%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.53 CA$2.14
$1.28 MX$24.10
19.53%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.23 CA$1.71
$0.78 MX$14.71
57.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.45 CA$7.61
$3.17 MX$59.5
71.92%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.30 CA$7.40
$4.93 MX$92.7
7.51%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.14 CA$2.99
$1.41 MX$26.43
51.77%
White Bread (500g)
$2.88 CA$4.02
$2.22 MX$41.66
29.73%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$4.29 CA$6.00
$1.42 MX$26.64
202.11%
Eggs
$2.79 CA$3.90
$2.52 MX$47.41
10.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.63 CA$12.06
$7.26 MX$137
18.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.17 CA$10.02
$7.70 MX$145
-6.88%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.63 CA$14.85
$12.69 MX$239
-16.23%
Apples (1kg)
$4.09 CA$5.72
$2.78 MX$52.3
47.12%
Banana (1kg)
$1.41 CA$1.97
$1.37 MX$25.71
2.92%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.87 CA$5.41
$2.55 MX$47.94
51.76%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.14 CA$5.79
$2.12 MX$39.90
95.28%
Potato (1kg)
$2.91 CA$4.06
$1.94 MX$36.43
50.00%
Onion (1kg)
$2.80 CA$3.92
$1.89 MX$35.44
48.15%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.45 CA$3.43
$1.15 MX$21.55
113.04%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.76 CA$1.06
$1.18 MX$22.16
-35.59%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$12.22 CA$17.08
$4.30 MX$80.7
184.19%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.61 CA$16.22
$9.95 MX$187
16.68%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.20 CA$4.46
$1.58 MX$29.76
102.53%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.40 CA$4.74
$2.67 MX$50.2
27.34%
🚌 Getting Around
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.61 CA$3.64
$0.55 MX$10.40
374.55%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$56.5 CA$79.0
$26.62 MX$500
112.32%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.95 CA$4.12
$4.97 MX$93.4
-40.64%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.43 CA$2.00
$3.33 MX$62.6
-57.06%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$28.38 CA$39.65
$5.36 MX$101
429.48%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.21 CA$1.69
$1.44 MX$27.14
-15.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.8K CA$38.9K
$20.7K MX$388.4K
34.73%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.6K CA$27.4K
$23.5K MX$441.0K
-16.41%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$64.4 CA$90.0
$84.8 MX$1,594
-24.02%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$32.29 CA$45.11
$23.41 MX$440
37.93%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$45.01 CA$62.9
$28.66 MX$539
57.05%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$25.03 CA$34.96
$57.1 MX$1,072
-56.13%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.54 CA$27.30
$28.91 MX$543
-32.41%
Cinema Ticket
$9.52 CA$13.31
$5.14 MX$96.6
85.21%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$702 CA$981
$207 MX$3,882
239.94%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,123 CA$12.7K
$3,927 MX$73.8K
132.29%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$56.2 CA$78.6
$43.35 MX$815
29.73%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.19 CA$50.6
$41.44 MX$779
-12.67%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$83.9 CA$117
$74.2 MX$1,394
13.13%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$108 CA$150
$89.3 MX$1,677
20.50%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$618 CA$864
$980 MX$18.4K
-36.87%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$470 CA$657
$381 MX$7,157
23.49%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,190 CA$1,663
$1,708 MX$32.1K
-30.30%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$970 CA$1,355
$1,075 MX$20.2K
-9.82%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,670 CA$7,921
$3,943 MX$74.1K
43.79%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,522 CA$4,921
$6,158 MX$115.7K
-42.80%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Saguenay
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,554 CA$3,567
$735 MX$13.8K
247.65%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.44
11.45
-61.22%

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

Last update for Saguenay: October 27, 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
Saguenay
$470
Playa del Carmen
$381 19% $89
Groceries & Markets
Saguenay
$317
Playa del Carmen
$255 19.5% $62
Eating Out
Saguenay
$250
Playa del Carmen
$202 18.9% $47
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Saguenay
$142
Playa del Carmen
$137 3.4% $4.9
Clothing & Footwear
Saguenay
$128
Playa del Carmen
$112 12.6% $16
Getting Around
Saguenay
$77
Playa del Carmen
$50 34.5% $27
Sport & Entertainment
Saguenay
$44
Playa del Carmen
$67 52.8% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $618 in Saguenay 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.

Salaries in Saguenay are about 3.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Saguenay versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $317 in Saguenay vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇨🇦 Saguenay
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
23:31 11:31 PM
23:31 11:31 PM
Same time as Saguenay
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
144,723
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Saguenay Playa del Carmen 3,400 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Saguenay
  • 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
Saguenay vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Saguenay?
Yes – Saguenay is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,140 per month in Saguenay and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Saguenay, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $618 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
What are total monthly expenses in Saguenay and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,427 in Saguenay and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 16% cheaper.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $702 per month in Saguenay and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is it better to live in Saguenay or in Playa del Carmen?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,427 in Saguenay. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Saguenay makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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