Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz del Seibo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz del Seibo: $644 a month against $1,203 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Santa Cruz del Seibo

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$644

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,203

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $644 per month in Santa Cruz del Seibo vs $1,203 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Santa Cruz del Seibo $644
Playa del Carmen $1,203

A couple spends around $1,035 per month in Santa Cruz del Seibo vs $2,084 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Santa Cruz del Seibo $1,035
Playa del Carmen $2,084

A family of three spends $1,426 per month in Santa Cruz del Seibo vs $2,965 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Santa Cruz del Seibo $1,426
Playa del Carmen $2,965

Santa Cruz del Seibo is about 46% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Santa Cruz del Seibo and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Santa Cruz del Seibo 52% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.35 DOP 505

$10.72 MX$199

-22.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.81 DOP 2,466

$42.71 MX$792

-4.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.94 DOP 298

$11.86 MX$220

-58.35%

Cappuccino

$1.82 DOP 110

$3.80 MX$70.4

-52.11%

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

$0.70 DOP 42.55

$1.29 MX$23.85

-45.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 DOP 24.38

$0.82 MX$15.25

-51.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 DOP 148

$3.07 MX$56.9

-20.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.06 DOP 245

$4.99 MX$92.4

-18.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 DOP 69.3

$1.49 MX$27.58

-22.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 DOP 103

$2.26 MX$41.93

-24.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 DOP 93.8

$1.40 MX$25.88

10.71%

Eggs

$1.50 DOP 90.8

$2.47 MX$45.81

-39.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.13 DOP 371

$7.25 MX$134

-15.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.46 DOP 209

$8.09 MX$150

-57.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.70 DOP 284

$12.87 MX$239

-63.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.74 DOP 226

$2.89 MX$53.6

29.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 DOP 86.7

$1.44 MX$26.67

-0.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.24 DOP 195

$2.61 MX$48.36

24.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 DOP 132

$2.13 MX$39.48

2.82%

Potato (1kg)

$3.61 DOP 218

$1.99 MX$36.87

81.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.90 DOP 175

$1.89 MX$35.10

53.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 DOP 56.4

$1.15 MX$21.39

-19.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 DOP 95.2

$1.23 MX$22.88

28.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.83 DOP 292

$4.45 MX$82.5

8.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.50 DOP 997

$9.61 MX$178

71.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.04 DOP 184

$1.60 MX$29.66

90.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 DOP 201

$2.68 MX$49.72

23.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.48

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.54 MX$492

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 DOP 152

$4.79 MX$88.8

-47.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 DOP 203

$3.29 MX$61.0

2.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$99.9

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 DOP 87.4

$1.46 MX$27.13

-0.68%

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

$14.6K DOP 881.7K

$21.1K MX$390.8K

-30.79%

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

$25.9K DOP 1.6M

$23.4K MX$434.3K

10.35%

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

$95.4 DOP 5,762

$83.9 MX$1,555

13.64%

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

$26.84 DOP 1,622

$23.11 MX$428

16.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.80 DOP 2,345

$28.32 MX$525

37.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 MX$977

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.94 MX$574

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 DOP 300

$4.96 MX$91.9

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

$149 DOP 9,009

$203 MX$3,769

-26.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,335 DOP 322.4K

$5,245 MX$97.2K

1.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.42 DOP 1,596

$44.12 MX$818

-40.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.56 DOP 2,692

$41.37 MX$767

7.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.8 DOP 3,736

$73.8 MX$1,368

-16.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.5 DOP 4,017

$90.0 MX$1,668

-26.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$988 MX$18.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,088

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,667 MX$30.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,085 MX$20.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,942 MX$73.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,102 MX$113.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$907 MX$16.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-3.93%

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

Last update for Santa Cruz del Seibo: November 10, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 8, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Groceries & Markets

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.6%

Eating Out

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$201 16.7%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$135 11.3%

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$63 5.2%

Getting Around

Santa Cruz del Seibo

–

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $41 in Santa Cruz del Seibo versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $236 vs $260 – making Santa Cruz del Seibo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Santa Cruz del Seibo

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:07 2:07 PM

13:07 1:07 PM

1 h behind Santa Cruz del Seibo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

23,547

149,923

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.66 USD

100 DOP = 1.47 EUR

100 MXN = 5.4 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to DOP – Dominican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇴 Dominican Peso ($)

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of November 10, 2026: 1 USD = 60.42 DOP (100 DOP = 1.66 USD). 1 EUR = 67.82 DOP (100 DOP = 1.47 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.53 MXN (100 MXN = 5.4 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to DOP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Cruz del Seibo Playa del Carmen 1,900 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Santa Cruz del Seibo
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

Santa Cruz del Seibo vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 87%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $966 per month in Santa Cruz del Seibo and $1,805 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $644 in Santa Cruz del Seibo and $1,203 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Santa Cruz del Seibo about 46% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $149 per month in Santa Cruz del Seibo and $203 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Santa Cruz del Seibo, where all-in costs run around $644, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,203. In Santa Cruz del Seibo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $644 in Santa Cruz del Seibo to $1,203 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.