Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago City and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago City and Playa del Carmen

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: Santiago City is 55% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 47.5% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ™‚ Family of 3: Santiago City is 38.7% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 54.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.8 โ‚ฑ379
$11.99 MX$227
-43.29%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$13.44 โ‚ฑ748
$42.47 MX$803
-68.35%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.45 โ‚ฑ192
$10.47 MX$198
-67.05%
Cappuccino
$0.92 โ‚ฑ51.4
$3.6 MX$68.2
-74.44%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.84 โ‚ฑ46.63
$1.44 MX$27.16
-41.67%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.31 โ‚ฑ17.15
$0.89 MX$16.79
-65.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.08 โ‚ฑ60.4
$3.09 MX$58.5
-65.05%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.82 โ‚ฑ101
$4.58 MX$86.6
-60.26%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.65 โ‚ฑ91.8
$1.38 MX$26.04
19.57%
White Bread (500g)
$1.26 โ‚ฑ69.9
$1.85 MX$34.9
-31.89%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.76 โ‚ฑ42.55
$1.57 MX$29.68
-51.59%
Eggs
$1.58 โ‚ฑ87.9
$2.55 MX$48.3
-38.04%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$2.6 โ‚ฑ145
$8.61 MX$163
-69.80%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.26 โ‚ฑ182
$8.54 MX$161
-61.83%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$5.51 โ‚ฑ307
$10.98 MX$208
-49.82%
Apples (1kg)
$2.67 โ‚ฑ149
$2.72 MX$51.4
-1.84%
Banana (1kg)
$1.07 โ‚ฑ59.5
$1.51 MX$28.57
-29.14%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.73 โ‚ฑ40.48
$1.88 MX$35.63
-61.17%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.42 โ‚ฑ79.3
$2.19 MX$41.42
-35.16%
Potato (1kg)
$3.29 โ‚ฑ183
$1.87 MX$35.3
75.94%
Onion (1kg)
$1.08 โ‚ฑ60.1
$2.19 MX$41.37
-50.68%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.81 โ‚ฑ45.28
$1.07 MX$20.23
-24.30%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.94 โ‚ฑ52.3
$1.09 MX$20.64
-13.76%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.31 โ‚ฑ129
$3.96 MX$74.9
-41.67%
Wine (Bottle)
$4.08 โ‚ฑ227
$8.86 MX$167
-53.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.04 โ‚ฑ57.8
$1.72 MX$32.53
-39.53%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.66 โ‚ฑ92.4
$2.61 MX$49.37
-36.40%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.28 โ‚ฑ15.7
$0.52 MX$9.74
-46.15%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.59 MX$503
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.83 โ‚ฑ46.47
$3.24 MX$61.2
-74.38%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.13 โ‚ฑ7.31
$2.38 MX$44.94
-94.54%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.46 โ‚ฑ193
$3.11 MX$58.7
11.25%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.14 โ‚ฑ63.6
$1.31 MX$24.85
-12.98%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.7K โ‚ฑ1.2M
$30.3K MX$573K
-28.27%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$17K โ‚ฑ947.9K
$24K MX$453.6K
-29.05%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$73.3 โ‚ฑ4,079
$84.2 MX$1,592
-13.05%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$26.84 โ‚ฑ1,494
$22.14 MX$419
21.23%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$23.34 โ‚ฑ1,300
$30.14 MX$570
-22.56%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$34.29 โ‚ฑ1,909
$52 MX$983
-34.03%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.72 MX$354
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.43 โ‚ฑ302
$5.07 MX$95.9
7.10%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$88 โ‚ฑ4,902
$200 MX$3,787
-56.05%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,328 โ‚ฑ241K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
-18.84%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.08 โ‚ฑ2,399
$35.74 MX$676
20.54%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$23.56 โ‚ฑ1,312
$39.8 MX$753
-40.80%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$53.7 โ‚ฑ2,988
$79 MX$1,493
-32.05%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$39.52 โ‚ฑ2,200
$88.4 MX$1,671
-55.28%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$264 โ‚ฑ14.7K
$965 MX$18.3K
-72.65%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$175 โ‚ฑ9,763
$474 MX$8,968
-63.04%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$578 โ‚ฑ32.2K
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-65.02%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$395 โ‚ฑ22K
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-67.10%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,259 โ‚ฑ125.8K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-26.69%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Santiago City
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$233 โ‚ฑ13K
$792 MX$15K
-70.56%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.67
11.42
-41.59%

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

Last update for Santiago City: October 28, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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