Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $727 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

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

🇵🇭 Philippines

$727

/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 $727 per month in San Juan vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $727
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,099 per month in San Juan vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $1,099
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,471 per month in San Juan vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

San Juan $1,471
Playa del Carmen $2,959

San Juan is about 40% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both San Juan and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – San Juan 47% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.00 ₱255

$10.92 MX$205

-63.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.19 ₱1,031

$43.37 MX$815

-62.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.80 ₱178

$11.78 MX$221

-76.23%

Cappuccino

$2.61 ₱166

$3.81 MX$71.6

-31.50%

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

$0.61 ₱38.76

$1.28 MX$24.10

-52.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ₱21.30

$0.78 MX$14.71

-57.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₱64.2

$3.17 MX$59.5

-68.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 ₱98.2

$4.93 MX$92.7

-68.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ₱106

$1.41 MX$26.43

18.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 ₱72.3

$2.22 MX$41.66

-49.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 ₱58.1

$1.42 MX$26.64

-35.92%

Eggs

$1.77 ₱113

$2.52 MX$47.41

-29.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.98 ₱317

$7.26 MX$137

-31.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.31 ₱211

$7.70 MX$145

-57.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.98 ₱445

$12.69 MX$239

-45.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 ₱140

$2.78 MX$52.3

-20.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 ₱88.9

$1.37 MX$25.71

2.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.27 ₱145

$2.55 MX$47.94

-10.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.00 ₱63.9

$2.12 MX$39.90

-52.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 ₱110

$1.94 MX$36.43

-10.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.69 ₱108

$1.89 MX$35.44

-10.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 ₱38.16

$1.15 MX$21.55

-47.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₱56.4

$1.18 MX$22.16

-24.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.70 ₱172

$4.30 MX$80.7

-37.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.51 ₱479

$9.95 MX$187

-24.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 ₱59.5

$1.58 MX$29.76

-41.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 ₱111

$2.67 MX$50.2

-34.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.91

$0.55 MX$10.40

-54.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.48 ₱731

$26.62 MX$500

-56.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₱47.54

$4.97 MX$93.4

-84.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.36

$3.33 MX$62.6

-93.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 ₱119

$5.36 MX$101

-65.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ₱74.5

$1.44 MX$27.14

-18.75%

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

$21.0K ₱1.3M

$20.7K MX$388.4K

1.70%

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

$19.2K ₱1.2M

$23.5K MX$441.0K

-18.38%

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

$136 ₱8,678

$84.8 MX$1,594

60.69%

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

$14.17 ₱902

$23.41 MX$440

-39.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.95 ₱1,525

$28.66 MX$539

-16.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.03 ₱1,722

$57.1 MX$1,072

-52.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.16 ₱329

$28.91 MX$543

-82.15%

Cinema Ticket

$5.01 ₱319

$5.14 MX$96.6

-2.53%

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

$70.3 ₱4,480

$207 MX$3,882

-65.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,442 ₱155.5K

$3,927 MX$73.8K

-37.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.72 ₱1,829

$43.35 MX$815

-33.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.22 ₱1,224

$41.44 MX$779

-53.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.0 ₱4,520

$74.2 MX$1,394

-4.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.3 ₱3,521

$89.3 MX$1,677

-38.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$269 ₱17.1K

$980 MX$18.4K

-72.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$170 ₱10.8K

$381 MX$7,157

-55.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$493 ₱31.4K

$1,708 MX$32.1K

-71.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₱22.7K

$1,075 MX$20.2K

-66.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,304 ₱146.8K

$3,943 MX$74.1K

-41.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,186 ₱75.5K

$6,158 MX$115.7K

-80.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$235 ₱15.0K

$735 MX$13.8K

-67.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

11.45

-41.05%

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

Last update for San Juan: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Juan

$174 24%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 21.5% $38

Accommodation & Living

San Juan

$170 23.4%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 124% $211

Groceries & Markets

San Juan

$169 23.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 50.4% $85

Eating Out

San Juan

$84 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 142% $119

Clothing & Footwear

San Juan

$78 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 42.5% $33

Sport & Entertainment

San Juan

$37 5.1%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 81.7% $30

Getting Around

San Juan

$14 2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 253% $36

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $269 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 in Playa del Carmen are about 3.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $16 in San Juan versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $169 vs $255 – making San Juan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 San Juan

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:27 11:27 AM

22:27 10:27 PM

13 h behind San Juan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

126,347

149,923

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 63.69 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.12 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 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).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

San Juan Playa del Carmen 15,040 km ≈ 19 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 66%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,091 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 $269 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $727 in San Juan and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes San Juan about 40% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 57% less in San Juan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in San Juan, where all-in costs run around $727, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In San Juan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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 or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.