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 18.5% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 28.6% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Santiago de los Caballeros is 7.1% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 38.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.11 DOP 365
$11.61 MX$200
-47.37%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.31 DOP 2,647
$42.75 MX$738
3.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.05 DOP 302
$10.60 MX$183
-52.36%
Cappuccino
$1.96 DOP 117
$3.59 MX$62.0
-45.40%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.80 DOP 47.95
$1.45 MX$25.08
-44.83%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 DOP 41.24
$0.90 MX$15.50
-23.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.50 DOP 149
$3.03 MX$52.4
-17.49%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.18 DOP 310
$4.56 MX$78.8
13.60%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.07 DOP 63.9
$1.45 MX$25.07
-26.21%
White Bread (500g)
$1.46 DOP 87.5
$1.83 MX$31.55
-20.22%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.46 DOP 86.9
$1.61 MX$27.77
-9.32%
Eggs
$1.34 DOP 80.2
$2.54 MX$43.82
-47.24%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.31 DOP 437
$8.54 MX$148
-14.40%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.16 DOP 368
$8.47 MX$146
-27.27%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.03 DOP 659
$10.86 MX$188
1.57%
Apples (1kg)
$2.20 DOP 131
$2.73 MX$47.13
-19.41%
Banana (1kg)
$0.85 DOP 50.6
$1.49 MX$25.77
-42.95%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.02 DOP 121
$1.94 MX$33.55
4.12%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.90 DOP 114
$2.16 MX$37.38
-12.04%
Potato (1kg)
$2.21 DOP 132
$1.85 MX$31.88
19.46%
Onion (1kg)
$2.38 DOP 142
$2.19 MX$37.80
8.68%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.88 DOP 52.7
$1.07 MX$18.52
-17.76%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.91 DOP 54.1
$1.08 MX$18.71
-15.74%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.88 DOP 232
$4.06 MX$70.1
-4.43%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.31 DOP 676
$10.46 MX$181
8.13%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.60 DOP 155
$1.65 MX$28.56
57.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.09 DOP 185
$2.55 MX$44.01
21.18%
🚌 Getting Around
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.62 DOP 36.92
$0.56 MX$9.60
10.71%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.20 MX$453
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.47 DOP 207
$3.14 MX$54.2
10.51%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.22 DOP 132
$2.37 MX$40.96
-6.33%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.93 DOP 354
$3.24 MX$56.0
83.02%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 DOP 75.0
$1.31 MX$22.70
-3.82%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$16.7K DOP 998.3K
$30.5K MX$527.4K
-45.28%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$18.5K DOP 1.1M
$23.8K MX$411.4K
-22.25%
🧾 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)
$75.2 DOP 4,491
$83.1 MX$1,436
-9.59%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.92 DOP 1,130
$22.15 MX$383
-14.58%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$36.65 DOP 2,189
$29.37 MX$507
24.79%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$25.94 DOP 1,550
$51.2 MX$884
-49.33%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.03 DOP 1,017
$18.69 MX$323
-8.88%
Cinema Ticket
$6.09 DOP 364
$4.89 MX$84.4
24.54%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$251 DOP 15.0K
$199 MX$3,431
26.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$1,929 DOP 115.3K
$5,207 MX$89.9K
-62.95%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$60.5 DOP 3,614
$35.93 MX$621
68.38%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.75 DOP 2,196
$39.39 MX$680
-6.70%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.2 DOP 4,788
$80.3 MX$1,387
-0.19%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$68.5 DOP 4,091
$87.6 MX$1,512
-21.79%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$423 DOP 25.3K
$963 MX$16.6K
-56.12%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$271 DOP 16.2K
$482 MX$8,326
-43.70%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$666 DOP 39.8K
$1,645 MX$28.4K
-59.50%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$364 DOP 21.7K
$1,192 MX$20.6K
-69.49%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$953 DOP 56.9K
$3,957 MX$68.3K
-75.91%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$910 DOP 54.3K
$6,513 MX$112.5K
-86.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Santiago de los Caballeros
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$500 DOP 29.8K
$726 MX$12.5K
-31.22%
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: April 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: April 12, 2026

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

Santiago de los Caballeros vs other spots: cost of living compared

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