Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Juan, Argentina and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $891 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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San Juan

🇦🇷 Argentina

$891

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $891 per month in San Juan vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $891
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,398 per month in San Juan vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $1,398
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,904 per month in San Juan vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $1,904
Playa del Carmen $2,959

San Juan is about 26% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both San Juan and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – San Juan 35% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.16 ARS 11.0K

$10.92 MX$204

-34.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.73 ARS 61.1K

$43.37 MX$810

-8.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.51 ARS 19.2K

$11.78 MX$220

6.20%

Cappuccino

$2.62 ARS 4,030

$3.81 MX$71.2

-31.23%

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

$2.19 ARS 3,365

$1.28 MX$23.96

71.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 ARS 2,797

$0.78 MX$14.63

133.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.96 ARS 6,094

$3.17 MX$59.2

24.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.56 ARS 7,011

$4.93 MX$92.2

-7.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 ARS 2,075

$1.41 MX$26.28

-4.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 ARS 2,122

$2.22 MX$41.43

-37.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ARS 2,138

$1.42 MX$26.48

-2.11%

Eggs

$1.45 ARS 2,227

$2.52 MX$47.14

-42.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.90 ARS 4,463

$7.26 MX$136

-60.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.37 ARS 9,800

$7.70 MX$144

-17.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.75 ARS 16.5K

$12.69 MX$237

-15.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,228

$2.78 MX$52.0

-47.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 ARS 2,123

$1.37 MX$25.56

0.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 ARS 2,103

$2.55 MX$47.66

-46.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,224

$2.12 MX$39.67

-31.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ARS 2,244

$1.94 MX$36.22

-24.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ARS 2,127

$1.89 MX$35.24

-26.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 ARS 2,138

$1.15 MX$21.42

20.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 ARS 2,241

$1.18 MX$22.03

23.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.69 ARS 4,138

$4.30 MX$80.3

-37.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.95 ARS 7,616

$9.95 MX$186

-50.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 ARS 2,241

$1.58 MX$29.59

-7.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 ARS 2,205

$2.67 MX$49.91

-46.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.04 ARS 1,596

$0.55 MX$10.34

89.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$497

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.03 ARS 3,126

$4.97 MX$92.9

-59.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 ARS 1,494

$3.33 MX$62.2

-70.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.04 ARS 7,758

$5.36 MX$100

-5.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ARS 1,742

$1.44 MX$26.98

-21.53%

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

$26.8K ARS 41.2M

$20.7K MX$386.2K

29.59%

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

$33.6K ARS 51.7M

$23.5K MX$438.5K

43.32%

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

$141 ARS 216.9K

$84.8 MX$1,584

66.29%

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

$9.91 ARS 15.2K

$23.41 MX$437

-57.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.96 ARS 27.6K

$28.66 MX$535

-37.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.64 ARS 45.6K

$57.1 MX$1,066

-48.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$540

Cinema Ticket

$6.96 ARS 10.7K

$5.14 MX$96.0

35.41%

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

$173 ARS 266.4K

$207 MX$3,860

-16.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,149 ARS 6.4M

$3,927 MX$73.4K

5.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$108 ARS 165.5K

$43.35 MX$810

148.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.19 ARS 64.9K

$41.44 MX$774

1.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.8 ARS 87.4K

$74.2 MX$1,386

-23.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.24 ARS 55.7K

$89.3 MX$1,668

-59.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$248 ARS 380.9K

$980 MX$18.3K

-74.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$198 ARS 303.9K

$381 MX$7,116

-48.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ARS 769.5K

$1,708 MX$31.9K

-70.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$408 ARS 627.1K

$1,075 MX$20.1K

-62.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$696 ARS 1.1M

$735 MX$13.7K

-5.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

371.62%

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

Last update for San Juan: 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

San Juan

$198 22.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 92.8% $183

Groceries & Markets

San Juan

$190 21.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 34.2% $65

Eating Out

San Juan

$171 19.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 18.2% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Juan

$169 19%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 19% $32

Clothing & Footwear

San Juan

$109 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 2.2% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

San Juan

$44 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 54.6% $24

Getting Around

San Juan

$11 * 1.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 357% $39

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $248 in San Juan 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 run about 6% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $40 in San Juan versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $190 vs $255 – making San Juan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇷 San Juan

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:07 8:07 AM

06:07 6:07 AM

2 h behind San Juan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

522,029

149,923

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,538 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,712 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Juan Playa del Carmen 6,130 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

San Juan
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 35%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,337 per month in San Juan 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 San Juan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $248 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $891 in San Juan and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 35%.

Kindergarten costs $173 per month in San Juan and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $891 in San Juan and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

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