Cost of Living Comparison Between San Juan del Sur and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between San Juan del Sur and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: San Juan del Sur is 9.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 18.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: San Juan del Sur is 29.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 20.5% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.32 NIO 159
$11.85 MX$205
-63.54%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$33.04 NIO 1,218
$42.16 MX$730
-21.63%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.51 NIO 203
$10.75 MX$186
-48.74%
Cappuccino
$2.43 NIO 89.7
$3.47 MX$60.2
-29.97%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.83 NIO 30.73
$1.45 MX$25.17
-42.76%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.73 NIO 26.83
$0.90 MX$15.64
-18.89%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.30 NIO 47.90
$3.05 MX$52.9
-57.38%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.97 NIO 72.8
$4.42 MX$76.5
-55.43%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.22 NIO 45.01
$1.37 MX$23.72
-10.95%
White Bread (500g)
$1.53 NIO 56.4
$1.87 MX$32.43
-18.18%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.22 NIO 45.13
$1.54 MX$26.74
-20.78%
Eggs
$1.95 NIO 72.1
$2.50 MX$43.36
-22.00%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.75 NIO 286
$8.61 MX$149
-9.99%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.39 NIO 236
$8.63 MX$150
-25.96%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.16 NIO 301
$11.02 MX$191
-25.95%
Apples (1kg)
$3.80 NIO 140
$2.75 MX$47.62
38.18%
Banana (1kg)
$0.91 NIO 33.52
$1.43 MX$24.73
-36.36%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.79 NIO 66.0
$1.87 MX$32.44
-4.28%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 NIO 79.9
$2.17 MX$37.54
-
Potato (1kg)
$3.24 NIO 119
$1.88 MX$32.61
72.34%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 NIO 80.9
$2.25 MX$38.91
-2.67%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.02 NIO 37.71
$1.07 MX$18.49
-4.67%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.05 NIO 38.71
$1.07 MX$18.59
-1.87%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.69 NIO 99.1
$4.15 MX$72.0
-35.18%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.67 NIO 357
$10.34 MX$179
-6.48%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.46 NIO 54.0
$1.68 MX$29.08
-13.10%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 NIO 80.1
$2.48 MX$43.02
-12.50%
🚌 Getting Around
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.55 MX$9.61
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.53 MX$459
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.46 NIO 53.9
$3.22 MX$55.7
-54.66%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$2.48 MX$42.98
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$6.66 NIO 246
$3.11 MX$53.9
114.15%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.30 NIO 47.84
$1.26 MX$21.75
3.17%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.0K NIO 849.3K
$30.7K MX$531.0K
-24.88%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.9K NIO 991.1K
$24.0K MX$416.4K
11.80%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$43.17 NIO 1,592
$82.5 MX$1,429
-47.66%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.60 NIO 391
$22.29 MX$386
-52.45%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.30 NIO 1,302
$30.02 MX$520
17.59%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$30.48 NIO 1,124
$51.4 MX$891
-40.75%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.29 MX$317
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.82 NIO 288
$4.98 MX$86.3
57.03%
🧸 Childcare & Education
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$124 NIO 4,577
$200 MX$3,464
-37.95%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,951 NIO 219.5K
$5,304 MX$91.9K
12.19%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$77.0 NIO 2,840
$35.71 MX$618
115.65%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$71.2 NIO 2,627
$39.56 MX$685
80.08%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$131 NIO 4,841
$80.6 MX$1,395
62.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$109 NIO 4,021
$88.3 MX$1,530
23.44%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$460 NIO 17.0K
$969 MX$16.8K
-52.55%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$415 NIO 15.3K
$482 MX$8,352
-13.90%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$960 NIO 35.4K
$1,595 MX$27.6K
-39.84%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$948 NIO 35.0K
$1,184 MX$20.5K
-19.91%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,050 MX$70.1K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,522 MX$113.0K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$283 NIO 10.4K
$756 MX$13.1K
-62.59%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.25
11.42
-10.25%

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

Last update for San Juan del Sur: February 28, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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