Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puerto Rico and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,716 in Puerto Rico, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Rico
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Puerto Rico Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Puerto Rico

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,716

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Puerto Rico and in Playa del Carmen

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Puerto Rico and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,716 per month in Puerto Rico vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Puerto Rico $1,716
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,564 per month in Puerto Rico vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Puerto Rico $2,564
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,412 per month in Puerto Rico vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Puerto Rico $3,412
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Puerto Rico costs about 42% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Puerto Rico sits 26% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.45 €18.37

$10.92 MX$204

87.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.8

$43.37 MX$808

40.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.30 €10.15

$11.78 MX$220

-4.07%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.84

$3.81 MX$71.0

-46.46%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.28 MX$23.90

47.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.16

$0.78 MX$14.59

65.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.72 €2.44

$3.17 MX$59.0

-14.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 €3.07

$4.93 MX$92.0

-30.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 €1.24

$1.41 MX$26.22

-2.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.40 €2.16

$2.22 MX$41.33

8.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.42 MX$26.42

7.75%

Eggs

$4.25 €3.82

$2.52 MX$47.03

68.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.32 €17.35

$7.26 MX$135

166.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.01 €8.99

$7.70 MX$143

30.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.41 €15.64

$12.69 MX$237

37.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 €2.40

$2.78 MX$51.9

-3.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.32 €2.09

$1.37 MX$25.50

69.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.15 €1.93

$2.55 MX$47.55

-15.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.49 €2.24

$2.12 MX$39.58

17.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 €1.95

$1.94 MX$36.13

11.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.82

$1.89 MX$35.16

6.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 €1.46

$1.15 MX$21.37

40.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$1.18 MX$21.98

-17.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.63 €4.16

$4.30 MX$80.1

7.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.87 €7.07

$9.95 MX$185

-20.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.53

$1.58 MX$29.52

7.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.51

$2.67 MX$49.79

-36.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.66 €1.49

$0.55 MX$10.31

201.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.24 €28.96

$26.62 MX$496

21.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 €3.89

$4.97 MX$92.6

-12.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.67 €1.50

$3.33 MX$62.1

-49.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.83 €15.12

$5.36 MX$99.8

213.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.44 MX$26.92

20.83%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$34.9K €31.3K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

68.77%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$31.9K €28.7K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

36.14%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$129 €116

$84.8 MX$1,581

52.18%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$22.38 €20.10

$23.41 MX$436

-4.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.85 €32.21

$28.66 MX$534

25.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.45 €39.93

$57.1 MX$1,063

-22.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.59 €14.01

$28.91 MX$539

-46.07%

Cinema Ticket

$9.91 €8.90

$5.14 MX$95.8

92.80%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$403 €362

$207 MX$3,851

95.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,970 €4,465

$3,927 MX$73.2K

26.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.8 €82.4

$43.35 MX$808

111.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.61 €38.27

$41.44 MX$772

2.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 €81.4

$74.2 MX$1,383

22.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €102

$89.3 MX$1,664

27.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$874 €785

$980 MX$18.3K

-10.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$679 €610

$381 MX$7,099

78.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,331 €1,196

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-22.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,010 €907

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-6.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,233 €2,904

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-18.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,186 €1,964

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-64.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

11.45

-68.91%

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

Last update for Puerto Rico: October 26, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Puerto Rico

$679 39.6%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 43.9% $299

Groceries & Markets

Puerto Rico

$326 19%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 21.8% $71

Eating Out

Puerto Rico

$255 14.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 20.7% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puerto Rico

$187 10.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 26.9% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Puerto Rico

$152 8.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 26.7% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Puerto Rico

$64 3.8%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 4.8% $3.1

Getting Around

Puerto Rico

$52 3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 2.1% $1.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $874 in Puerto Rico versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Puerto Rico versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $326 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Puerto Rico

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:04 4:04 PM

11:04 11:04 AM

5 h behind Puerto Rico

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,500

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Puerto Rico Playa del Carmen 7,180 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Puerto Rico
Playa del Carmen

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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

Puerto Rico vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Puerto Rico is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,574 per month in Puerto Rico and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Puerto Rico, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $874 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,716 in Puerto Rico and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 42%.

Public transport costs about 17% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Puerto Rico at $1,716. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Puerto Rico it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,716 in Puerto Rico. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.