Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sun City Center, FL and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,492 in Sun City Center, FL, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Sun City Center, FL
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Sun City Center, FL Living Index
58

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

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Sun City Center, FL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,492

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sun City Center, FL 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 Sun City Center, FL and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,492 per month in Sun City Center, FL vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Sun City Center, FL $2,492
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,720 per month in Sun City Center, FL vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Sun City Center, FL $3,720
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,948 per month in Sun City Center, FL vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Sun City Center, FL $4,948
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Sun City Center, FL costs about 107% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sun City Center, FL sits 83% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.50 $22.50

$10.92 MX$204

106.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.4 $69.4

$43.37 MX$808

59.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.90 $11.90

$11.78 MX$220

1.02%

Cappuccino

$5.55 $5.55

$3.81 MX$71.0

45.67%

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

$2.43 $2.43

$1.28 MX$23.90

89.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 $1.89

$0.78 MX$14.59

142.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.04 $5.04

$3.17 MX$59.0

58.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.38 $7.38

$4.93 MX$92.0

49.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.41 MX$26.22

-29.79%

White Bread (500g)

$3.39 $3.39

$2.22 MX$41.33

52.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.49 $3.49

$1.42 MX$26.42

145.77%

Eggs

$3.02 $3.02

$2.52 MX$47.03

19.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.07 $12.07

$7.26 MX$135

66.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.39 $13.39

$7.70 MX$143

73.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.04 $19.04

$12.69 MX$237

50.04%

Apples (1kg)

$5.17 $5.17

$2.78 MX$51.9

85.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 $1.70

$1.37 MX$25.50

24.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.68 $5.68

$2.55 MX$47.55

122.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.21 $3.21

$2.12 MX$39.58

51.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.94 MX$36.13

-3.61%

Onion (1kg)

$3.24 $3.24

$1.89 MX$35.16

71.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.64 $2.64

$1.15 MX$21.37

129.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.18 MX$21.98

11.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.19 $9.19

$4.30 MX$80.1

113.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.15 $13.15

$9.95 MX$185

32.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 $1.79

$1.58 MX$29.52

13.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.89 $4.89

$2.67 MX$49.79

83.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.13 $2.13

$0.55 MX$10.31

287.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.5 $60.5

$26.62 MX$496

127.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.59 $3.59

$4.97 MX$92.6

-27.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.46 $1.46

$3.33 MX$62.1

-56.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.67 $29.67

$5.36 MX$99.8

453.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.44 MX$26.92

-29.17%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

33.16%

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

$22.6K $22.6K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

-3.83%

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

$119 $119

$84.8 MX$1,581

40.83%

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

$37.81 $37.81

$23.41 MX$436

61.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.0 $61.0

$28.66 MX$534

112.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.79 $44.79

$57.1 MX$1,063

-21.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$14.92 $14.92

$5.14 MX$95.8

190.27%

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

$1,038 $1,038

$207 MX$3,851

402.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K $18.3K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

364.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.17 $37.17

$43.35 MX$808

-14.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.66 $40.66

$41.44 MX$772

-1.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.3 $87.3

$74.2 MX$1,383

17.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$184 $184

$89.3 MX$1,664

105.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,462 $1,462

$980 MX$18.3K

49.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,234 $1,234

$381 MX$7,099

224.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,522 $2,522

$1,708 MX$31.8K

47.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,089 $2,089

$1,075 MX$20.0K

94.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,247 $3,247

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-17.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,501 $2,501

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-59.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.6

11.45

-42.36%

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

Last update for Sun City Center, FL: October 25, 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

Sun City Center, FL

$1.2K 49.5%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 69.2% $854

Groceries & Markets

Sun City Center, FL

$388 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 34.4% $134

Eating Out

Sun City Center, FL

$339 13.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 40.4% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sun City Center, FL

$218 8.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 37.3% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Sun City Center, FL

$157 6.3%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 28.8% $45

Getting Around

Sun City Center, FL

$80 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 36.9% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Sun City Center, FL

$75 3%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 9.8% $7.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,462 in Sun City Center, FL 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 $69 in Sun City Center, FL versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $388 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Sun City Center, FL

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

19:15 7:15 PM

18:15 6:15 PM

1 h behind Sun City Center, FL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,258

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

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).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sun City Center, FL Playa del Carmen 920 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sun City Center, FL
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

Sun City Center, FL vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sun City Center, FL is pricier by about 107%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,738 per month in Sun City Center, FL 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,462 in Sun City Center, FL.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,492 in Sun City Center, FL and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 52% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% 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 Sun City Center, FL at $2,492. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sun City Center, FL it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Playa del Carmen is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 52% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.