Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Thomas and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Thomas and Playa del Carmen

😐 Solo nomad: St. Thomas is 27.3% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 81.4% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: St. Thomas is 26.1% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 43.9% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$20.54 CA$27.93
$11.85 MX$211
73.33%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$73.0 CA$99.2
$42.16 MX$750
73.03%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.14 CA$15.14
$10.75 MX$191
3.63%
Cappuccino
$3.61 CA$4.90
$3.47 MX$61.8
4.03%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.76 CA$2.39
$1.45 MX$25.85
21.38%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.81 CA$2.47
$0.90 MX$16.06
101.11%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.12 CA$6.97
$3.05 MX$54.3
67.87%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.02 CA$8.19
$4.42 MX$78.6
36.20%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.08 CA$2.82
$1.37 MX$24.36
51.82%
White Bread (500g)
$2.71 CA$3.68
$1.87 MX$33.31
44.92%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.29 CA$4.47
$1.54 MX$27.46
113.64%
Eggs
$3.02 CA$4.11
$2.50 MX$44.53
20.80%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.49 CA$12.91
$8.61 MX$153
10.22%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.34 CA$15.42
$8.63 MX$154
31.40%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.99 CA$21.75
$11.02 MX$196
45.10%
Apples (1kg)
$4.06 CA$5.52
$2.75 MX$48.91
47.64%
Banana (1kg)
$1.24 CA$1.68
$1.43 MX$25.41
-13.29%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.35 CA$4.55
$1.87 MX$33.32
79.14%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.85 CA$5.24
$2.17 MX$38.56
77.42%
Potato (1kg)
$2.99 CA$4.07
$1.88 MX$33.50
59.04%
Onion (1kg)
$2.55 CA$3.47
$2.25 MX$39.96
13.33%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.39 CA$3.25
$1.07 MX$18.99
123.36%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.50 CA$2.04
$1.07 MX$19.10
40.19%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$10.93 CA$14.86
$4.15 MX$73.9
163.37%
Wine (Bottle)
$14.48 CA$19.69
$10.34 MX$184
40.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.12 CA$2.89
$1.68 MX$29.87
26.19%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.60 CA$3.54
$2.48 MX$44.19
4.84%
🚌 Getting Around
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.36 CA$3.20
$0.55 MX$9.87
329.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$61.7 CA$83.9
$26.53 MX$472
132.49%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.34 CA$3.18
$3.22 MX$57.2
-27.33%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.69 CA$2.30
$2.48 MX$44.15
-31.85%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$30.88 CA$42.00
$3.11 MX$55.3
892.93%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.16 CA$1.58
$1.26 MX$22.34
-7.94%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$25.2K CA$34.3K
$30.7K MX$545.4K
-17.75%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.2K CA$27.5K
$24.0K MX$427.6K
-15.85%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$131 CA$179
$82.5 MX$1,467
59.31%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$55.0 CA$74.8
$22.29 MX$396
146.79%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$58.5 CA$79.6
$30.02 MX$534
94.87%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$42.58 CA$57.9
$51.4 MX$915
-17.22%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$18.29 MX$325
-
Cinema Ticket
$11.12 CA$15.12
$4.98 MX$88.7
123.29%
🧸 Childcare & Education
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$559 CA$760
$200 MX$3,558
179.30%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.0K CA$14.9K
$5,304 MX$94.4K
106.82%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$54.6 CA$74.2
$35.71 MX$635
52.84%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.59 CA$52.5
$39.56 MX$704
-2.45%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$83.6 CA$114
$80.6 MX$1,433
3.79%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$82.5 CA$112
$88.3 MX$1,571
-6.65%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,176 CA$1,599
$969 MX$17.2K
21.29%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,189 CA$1,617
$482 MX$8,579
146.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,977 CA$2,689
$1,595 MX$28.4K
23.96%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,835 CA$2,496
$1,184 MX$21.1K
55.03%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,779 CA$6,500
$4,050 MX$72.1K
18.00%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,605 CA$4,903
$6,522 MX$116.0K
-44.72%
💵 Salaries & Financials
St. Thomas
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,033 CA$4,125
$756 MX$13.5K
300.99%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.55
11.42
-42.64%

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

Last update for St. Thomas: March 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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