Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tainan and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Tainan: $1,068 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Tainan
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Tainan Living Index
59

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

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Tainan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,068

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,068 per month in Tainan vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Tainan $1,068
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,837 per month in Tainan vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Tainan $1,837
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $2,606 per month in Tainan vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Tainan $2,606
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Tainan is about 12% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Tainan and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Tainan 21% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.74 NT$121

$10.76 MX$199

-65.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.62 NT$799

$43.03 MX$795

-42.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.79 NT$155

$11.79 MX$218

-59.37%

Cappuccino

$3.27 NT$106

$3.87 MX$71.4

-15.50%

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

$0.95 NT$30.66

$1.37 MX$25.29

-30.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 NT$20.54

$0.84 MX$15.44

-25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.86 NT$92.6

$3.10 MX$57.3

-7.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 NT$113

$5.07 MX$93.6

-31.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.09 NT$100

$1.44 MX$26.55

114.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 NT$57.5

$2.23 MX$41.23

-20.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.15 NT$102

$1.47 MX$27.17

114.29%

Eggs

$2.75 NT$89.3

$2.53 MX$46.71

8.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.50 NT$632

$7.30 MX$135

167.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.88 NT$320

$7.86 MX$145

25.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.04 NT$682

$12.79 MX$236

64.50%

Apples (1kg)

$4.96 NT$161

$2.90 MX$53.6

71.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.86 NT$92.7

$1.44 MX$26.53

98.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 NT$97.4

$2.55 MX$47.07

17.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.48 NT$145

$2.06 MX$38.03

117.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.66 NT$86.4

$2.00 MX$36.97

33.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 NT$73.6

$2.01 MX$37.07

12.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 NT$55.3

$1.19 MX$22.02

43.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 NT$37.31

$1.26 MX$23.23

-8.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.81 NT$124

$4.40 MX$81.4

-13.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.94 NT$452

$9.59 MX$177

45.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 NT$53.4

$1.59 MX$29.41

3.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 NT$70.3

$2.81 MX$51.9

-22.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 NT$19.68

$0.57 MX$10.47

7.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.89 NT$1,099

$27.82 MX$514

21.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.53 NT$82.2

$4.98 MX$92.1

-49.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.77 NT$24.92

$3.50 MX$64.6

-78.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.74 NT$186

$5.40 MX$99.8

6.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 NT$32.90

$1.47 MX$27.08

-31.29%

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

$32.8K NT$1.1M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

56.31%

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

$24.1K NT$780.6K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

0.69%

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

$87.2 NT$2,828

$84.2 MX$1,556

3.56%

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

$17.51 NT$568

$23.99 MX$443

-27.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.30 NT$691

$29.02 MX$536

-26.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.65 NT$1,480

$63.0 MX$1,164

-27.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 NT$311

$4.94 MX$91.3

94.33%

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

$433 NT$14.1K

$204 MX$3,763

112.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,413 NT$175.5K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

37.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.2 NT$2,050

$43.60 MX$806

44.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.20 NT$1,271

$43.12 MX$797

-9.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.7 NT$2,716

$75.8 MX$1,400

10.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 NT$3,353

$88.6 MX$1,637

16.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$297 NT$9,624

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-70.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$200 NT$6,470

$374 MX$6,911

-46.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 NT$27.4K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-50.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$696 NT$22.6K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-37.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,123 NT$133.7K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

4.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,022 NT$98.0K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-51.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,376 NT$44.6K

$754 MX$13.9K

82.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

11.45

-79.04%

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

Last update for Tainan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tainan

$393 36.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 34.3% $135

Accommodation & Living

Tainan

$200 18.7%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 87.5% $174

Clothing & Footwear

Tainan

$130 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 13.3% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tainan

$126 11.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 8.9% $11

Eating Out

Tainan

$111 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 82.1% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Tainan

$65 6.1%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 12.4% $8

Getting Around

Tainan

$43 4%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 23.1% $9.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $297 in Tainan versus $1,008 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.

Salaries run about 82% higher in Tainan, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Tainan versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $393 in Tainan vs $258 in Playa del Carmen – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Tainan

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:16 8:16 AM

19:16 7:16 PM

13 h behind Tainan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,886,033

149,923

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Tainan Playa del Carmen 14,330 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Tainan
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 13%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,602 per month in Tainan and $1,816 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 Tainan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,068 in Tainan and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 13%.

Public transport costs about 22% less in Tainan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Tainan, where all-in costs run around $1,068, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Tainan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Tainan. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.