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 21.4% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 17.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: San Juan del Sur is 0.4% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 21.7% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.16 NIO 153
$11.61 MX$200
-64.17%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$33.23 NIO 1,222
$42.75 MX$738
-22.27%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.50 NIO 203
$10.60 MX$183
-48.11%
Cappuccino
$2.39 NIO 87.9
$3.59 MX$62.0
-33.43%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.80 NIO 29.42
$1.45 MX$25.08
-44.83%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.67 NIO 24.77
$0.90 MX$15.50
-25.56%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.29 NIO 47.62
$3.03 MX$52.4
-57.43%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.03 NIO 74.6
$4.56 MX$78.8
-55.48%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.26 NIO 46.26
$1.45 MX$25.07
-13.10%
White Bread (500g)
$1.48 NIO 54.3
$1.83 MX$31.55
-19.13%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.18 NIO 43.38
$1.61 MX$27.77
-26.71%
Eggs
$1.91 NIO 70.2
$2.54 MX$43.82
-24.80%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.79 NIO 287
$8.54 MX$148
-8.78%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.53 NIO 240
$8.47 MX$146
-22.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.96 NIO 293
$10.86 MX$188
-26.70%
Apples (1kg)
$3.80 NIO 140
$2.73 MX$47.13
39.19%
Banana (1kg)
$0.89 NIO 32.78
$1.49 MX$25.77
-40.27%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.75 NIO 64.4
$1.94 MX$33.55
-9.79%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.25 NIO 82.9
$2.16 MX$37.38
4.17%
Potato (1kg)
$3.18 NIO 117
$1.85 MX$31.88
71.89%
Onion (1kg)
$2.18 NIO 80.2
$2.19 MX$37.80
-0.46%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 NIO 39.28
$1.07 MX$18.52
-
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.02 NIO 37.35
$1.08 MX$18.71
-5.56%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.72 NIO 99.9
$4.06 MX$70.1
-33.00%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.16 NIO 374
$10.46 MX$181
-2.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.46 NIO 53.8
$1.65 MX$28.56
-11.52%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.26 NIO 83.3
$2.55 MX$44.01
-11.37%
🚌 Getting Around
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.56 MX$9.60
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.20 MX$453
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.48 NIO 54.4
$3.14 MX$54.2
-52.87%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$2.37 MX$40.96
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$6.88 NIO 253
$3.24 MX$56.0
112.35%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.29 NIO 47.54
$1.31 MX$22.70
-1.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.3K NIO 856.7K
$30.5K MX$527.4K
-23.75%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.4K NIO 970.9K
$23.8K MX$411.4K
10.78%
🧾 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)
$42.17 NIO 1,551
$83.1 MX$1,436
-49.28%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.35 NIO 381
$22.15 MX$383
-53.27%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.61 NIO 1,310
$29.37 MX$507
21.25%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$30.39 NIO 1,118
$51.2 MX$884
-40.63%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.69 MX$323
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.89 NIO 290
$4.89 MX$84.4
61.35%
🧸 Childcare & Education
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$125 NIO 4,596
$199 MX$3,431
-37.12%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,941 NIO 218.6K
$5,207 MX$89.9K
14.08%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$76.5 NIO 2,814
$35.93 MX$621
112.86%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$71.4 NIO 2,628
$39.39 MX$680
81.32%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$133 NIO 4,905
$80.3 MX$1,387
66.04%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$107 NIO 3,919
$87.6 MX$1,512
21.65%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$468 NIO 17.2K
$963 MX$16.6K
-51.37%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$402 NIO 14.8K
$482 MX$8,326
-16.59%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$964 NIO 35.5K
$1,645 MX$28.4K
-41.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$968 NIO 35.6K
$1,192 MX$20.6K
-18.76%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$3,957 MX$68.3K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,513 MX$112.5K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
San Juan del Sur
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$278 NIO 10.2K
$726 MX$12.5K
-61.74%
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: April 12, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: April 12, 2026

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 del Sur vs other spots: cost of living compared

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