Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago de los Caballeros and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago de los Caballeros and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Santiago de los Caballeros is 33.5% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 27.1% cheaper with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Santiago de los Caballeros is 1.7% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 40.2% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.79 DOP 341
$11.99 MX$227
-51.71%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.89 DOP 2,643
$42.47 MX$803
5.70%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.16 DOP 304
$10.47 MX$198
-50.72%
Cappuccino
$1.97 DOP 116
$3.6 MX$68.2
-45.28%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.8 DOP 47.11
$1.44 MX$27.16
-44.44%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 DOP 40.75
$0.89 MX$16.79
-22.47%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.48 DOP 146
$3.09 MX$58.5
-19.74%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.17 DOP 304
$4.58 MX$86.6
12.88%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.07 DOP 62.9
$1.38 MX$26.04
-22.46%
White Bread (500g)
$1.5 DOP 88.3
$1.85 MX$34.9
-18.92%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.45 DOP 85.5
$1.57 MX$29.68
-7.64%
Eggs
$1.35 DOP 79.3
$2.55 MX$48.3
-47.06%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.27 DOP 428
$8.61 MX$163
-15.56%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.25 DOP 368
$8.54 MX$161
-26.81%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.94 DOP 644
$10.98 MX$208
-0.36%
Apples (1kg)
$2.21 DOP 130
$2.72 MX$51.4
-18.75%
Banana (1kg)
$0.91 DOP 53.4
$1.51 MX$28.57
-39.74%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.98 DOP 117
$1.88 MX$35.63
5.32%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.86 DOP 109
$2.19 MX$41.42
-15.07%
Potato (1kg)
$2.24 DOP 132
$1.87 MX$35.3
19.79%
Onion (1kg)
$2.41 DOP 142
$2.19 MX$41.37
10.05%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.86 DOP 50.9
$1.07 MX$20.23
-19.63%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.89 DOP 52.5
$1.09 MX$20.64
-18.35%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.88 DOP 229
$3.96 MX$74.9
-2.02%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.15 DOP 715
$8.86 MX$167
37.13%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.52 DOP 148
$1.72 MX$32.53
46.51%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.12 DOP 184
$2.61 MX$49.37
19.54%
🚌 Getting Around
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.61 DOP 36.06
$0.52 MX$9.74
17.31%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.59 MX$503
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.49 DOP 205
$3.24 MX$61.2
7.72%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.18 DOP 128
$2.38 MX$44.94
-8.40%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.84 DOP 344
$3.11 MX$58.7
87.78%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.33 DOP 78
$1.31 MX$24.85
1.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$17.1K DOP 1M
$30.3K MX$573K
-43.61%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$18.9K DOP 1.1M
$24K MX$453.6K
-21.37%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$77 DOP 4,532
$84.2 MX$1,592
-8.61%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.68 DOP 1,100
$22.14 MX$419
-15.63%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$36.44 DOP 2,146
$30.14 MX$570
20.90%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$26.09 DOP 1,536
$52 MX$983
-49.81%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$16.85 DOP 992
$18.72 MX$354
-9.99%
Cinema Ticket
$6.1 DOP 359
$5.07 MX$95.9
20.32%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$255 DOP 15K
$200 MX$3,787
27.07%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$1,939 DOP 114.2K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
-63.63%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$60 DOP 3,533
$35.74 MX$676
67.91%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.74 DOP 2,163
$39.8 MX$753
-7.69%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.1 DOP 4,718
$79 MX$1,493
1.48%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$67.2 DOP 3,954
$88.4 MX$1,671
-23.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$426 DOP 25.1K
$965 MX$18.3K
-55.90%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$273 DOP 16.1K
$474 MX$8,968
-42.37%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$669 DOP 39.4K
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-59.50%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$369 DOP 21.7K
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-69.30%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$899 DOP 52.9K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-70.83%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$733 DOP 43.1K
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-90.27%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$429 DOP 25.3K
$792 MX$15K
-45.80%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
12.9
11.42
12.96%

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

Last update for Santiago de los Caballeros: October 27, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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