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Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Maria and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Maria and Playa del Carmen

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: Santa Maria is 27.9% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 46.6% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ™‚ Family of 3: Santa Maria is 29% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 50.6% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.46 R$23.9
$11.58 MX$212
-61.49%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$27.15 R$145
$42 MX$769
-35.36%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.19 R$33.18
$10.5 MX$192
-41.05%
Cappuccino
$1.35 R$7.23
$3.43 MX$62.8
-60.64%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.9 R$4.85
$1.49 MX$27.34
-39.60%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.63 R$3.36
$0.94 MX$17.27
-32.98%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.48 R$7.94
$3.08 MX$56.3
-51.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.55 R$19.04
$4.37 MX$79.9
-18.76%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.91 R$4.87
$1.39 MX$25.44
-34.53%
White Bread (500g)
$1.37 R$7.34
$1.85 MX$33.81
-25.95%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.04 R$5.58
$1.58 MX$28.88
-34.18%
Eggs
$1.49 R$7.98
$2.51 MX$46
-40.64%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.44 R$45.2
$8.26 MX$151
2.18%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.62 R$19.4
$8.7 MX$159
-58.39%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.54 R$40.37
$10.73 MX$196
-29.73%
Apples (1kg)
$2 R$10.74
$2.61 MX$47.74
-23.37%
Banana (1kg)
$1.32 R$7.09
$1.49 MX$27.28
-11.41%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.32 R$7.08
$1.95 MX$35.72
-32.31%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.5 R$8.03
$2.09 MX$38.26
-28.23%
Potato (1kg)
$1.1 R$5.87
$1.81 MX$33.05
-39.23%
Onion (1kg)
$1.02 R$5.47
$2.16 MX$39.62
-52.78%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.77 R$4.12
$1.03 MX$18.85
-25.24%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.58 R$3.1
$1.08 MX$19.7
-46.30%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$1.93 R$10.33
$4.14 MX$75.9
-53.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.89 R$36.91
$8.88 MX$163
-22.41%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.98 R$5.25
$1.67 MX$30.64
-41.32%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.83 R$9.79
$2.53 MX$46.31
-27.67%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.92 R$4.91
$0.51 MX$9.27
80.39%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.24 R$146
$26.68 MX$488
2.10%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.63 R$8.76
$3.26 MX$59.7
-50.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.01 R$5.41
$2.51 MX$45.94
-59.76%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.55 R$29.76
$3.12 MX$57.2
77.88%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.99 R$5.28
$1.31 MX$23.96
-24.43%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.2K R$124.3K
$30.9K MX$565K
-24.80%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$28K R$150.1K
$23.9K MX$436.9K
17.37%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$48.45 R$260
$83 MX$1,520
-41.64%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.61 R$78.2
$22.59 MX$414
-35.33%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$16.16 R$86.6
$29.51 MX$540
-45.24%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$21.9 R$117
$51.6 MX$944
-57.53%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.77 R$57.7
$18.42 MX$337
-41.53%
Cinema Ticket
$5.16 R$27.65
$4.9 MX$89.7
5.31%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$143 R$767
$200 MX$3,668
-28.55%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,732 R$14.6K
$5,179 MX$94.8K
-47.26%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$48.07 R$258
$36.41 MX$667
32.02%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.92 R$209
$39.91 MX$731
-2.48%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79.2 R$424
$79.9 MX$1,462
-0.79%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$56.5 R$303
$87.7 MX$1,605
-35.57%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$275 R$1,472
$983 MX$18K
-72.03%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$156 R$836
$470 MX$8,612
-66.84%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$577 R$3,092
$1,610 MX$29.5K
-64.15%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$326 R$1,746
$1,189 MX$21.8K
-72.59%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,902 R$10.2K
$3,839 MX$70.3K
-50.47%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$633 R$3,392
$6,205 MX$113.6K
-89.80%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Santa Maria
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$602 R$3,227
$724 MX$13.2K
-16.77%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10
11.42
-12.43%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Santa Maria: December 1, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 30, 2025

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