Cost of Living Comparison Between Santos and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Santos and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Santos is 33.8% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 24.8% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Santos is 12.3% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 37.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.26 R$29.2
$11.99 MX$227
-56.13%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$26.7 R$148
$42.47 MX$803
-37.13%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.69 R$31.61
$10.47 MX$198
-45.65%
Cappuccino
$2.09 R$11.6
$3.6 MX$68.2
-41.94%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.25 R$6.96
$1.44 MX$27.16
-13.19%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.93 R$5.15
$0.89 MX$16.79
4.49%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.09 R$11.61
$3.09 MX$58.5
-32.36%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.75 R$15.25
$4.58 MX$86.6
-39.96%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.04 R$5.79
$1.38 MX$26.04
-24.64%
White Bread (500g)
$1.53 R$8.47
$1.85 MX$34.9
-17.30%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.33 R$7.39
$1.57 MX$29.68
-15.29%
Eggs
$2.95 R$16.35
$2.55 MX$48.3
15.69%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.43 R$69
$8.61 MX$163
44.37%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.05 R$22.49
$8.54 MX$161
-52.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.85 R$49.12
$10.98 MX$208
-19.40%
Apples (1kg)
$1.69 R$9.38
$2.72 MX$51.4
-37.87%
Banana (1kg)
$1.2 R$6.67
$1.51 MX$28.57
-20.53%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.14 R$11.89
$1.88 MX$35.63
13.83%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.8 R$10.01
$2.19 MX$41.42
-17.81%
Potato (1kg)
$1.33 R$7.36
$1.87 MX$35.3
-28.88%
Onion (1kg)
$1.28 R$7.09
$2.19 MX$41.37
-41.55%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.04 R$5.78
$1.07 MX$20.23
-2.80%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.32 R$7.32
$1.09 MX$20.64
21.10%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.19 R$12.14
$3.96 MX$74.9
-44.70%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.66 R$42.53
$8.86 MX$167
-13.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.41 R$7.83
$1.72 MX$32.53
-18.02%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 R$11.87
$2.61 MX$49.37
-18.01%
🚌 Getting Around
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.96 R$5.31
$0.52 MX$9.74
84.62%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$44.64 R$248
$26.59 MX$503
67.88%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.27 R$7.06
$3.24 MX$61.2
-60.80%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.88 R$4.88
$2.38 MX$44.94
-63.03%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$14.12 R$78.4
$3.11 MX$58.7
354.02%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.04 R$5.8
$1.31 MX$24.85
-20.61%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.1K R$117.1K
$30.3K MX$573K
-30.39%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$29.3K R$162.4K
$24K MX$453.6K
21.92%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$87.7 R$487
$84.2 MX$1,592
4.07%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.01 R$66.7
$22.14 MX$419
-45.75%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$20.7 R$115
$30.14 MX$570
-31.32%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$21.87 R$121
$52 MX$983
-57.93%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$48.99 R$272
$18.72 MX$354
161.70%
Cinema Ticket
$7.89 R$43.78
$5.07 MX$95.9
55.62%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$280 R$1,552
$200 MX$3,787
39.57%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,832 R$43.5K
$5,333 MX$100.8K
46.87%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$46.3 R$257
$35.74 MX$676
29.55%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$40.19 R$223
$39.8 MX$753
0.98%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.4 R$446
$79 MX$1,493
1.76%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$40.83 R$227
$88.4 MX$1,671
-53.80%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$424 R$2,354
$965 MX$18.3K
-56.08%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$321 R$1,782
$474 MX$8,968
-32.33%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$786 R$4,361
$1,653 MX$31.2K
-52.46%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$544 R$3,021
$1,202 MX$22.7K
-54.71%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,787 R$15.5K
$3,081 MX$58.3K
-9.56%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,610 R$8,936
$7,529 MX$142.3K
-78.62%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Santos
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$565 R$3,135
$792 MX$15K
-28.66%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
12
11.42
5.08%

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

Last update for Santos: October 28, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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