Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Targu Jiu and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Targu Jiu: $966 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Targu Jiu
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Targu Jiu Living Index
58

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

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Targu Jiu

🇷🇴 Romania

$966

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $966 per month in Targu Jiu vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Targu Jiu $966
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,502 per month in Targu Jiu vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Targu Jiu $1,502
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,038 per month in Targu Jiu vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Targu Jiu $2,038
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Targu Jiu is about 20% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Targu Jiu and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Targu Jiu 29% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.60 RON 70.2

$10.92 MX$204

33.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.6 RON 277

$43.37 MX$808

32.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.24 RON 34.80

$11.78 MX$220

-38.54%

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 17.10

$3.81 MX$71.0

-6.56%

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

$1.02 RON 4.93

$1.28 MX$23.90

-20.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 RON 10.64

$0.78 MX$14.59

183.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.67 RON 17.66

$3.17 MX$59.0

15.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 RON 20.32

$4.93 MX$92.0

-14.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 8.03

$1.41 MX$26.22

18.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.28 RON 6.17

$2.22 MX$41.33

-42.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 RON 8.49

$1.42 MX$26.42

24.65%

Eggs

$2.75 RON 13.21

$2.52 MX$47.03

9.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.41 RON 35.63

$7.26 MX$135

2.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.91 RON 13.99

$7.70 MX$143

-62.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.95 RON 33.40

$12.69 MX$237

-45.23%

Apples (1kg)

$0.91 RON 4.38

$2.78 MX$51.9

-67.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 RON 7.17

$1.37 MX$25.50

8.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.17 RON 5.60

$2.55 MX$47.55

-54.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.22 RON 5.84

$2.12 MX$39.58

-42.45%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.97

$1.94 MX$36.13

-57.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 RON 3.54

$1.89 MX$35.16

-60.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.61 RON 2.92

$1.15 MX$21.37

-46.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 RON 2.40

$1.18 MX$21.98

-57.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.21 RON 25.02

$4.30 MX$80.1

21.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.00 RON 14.42

$9.95 MX$185

-69.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 RON 3.93

$1.58 MX$29.52

-48.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 RON 5.16

$2.67 MX$49.79

-59.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.65 RON 3.12

$4.97 MX$92.6

-86.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.93

$3.33 MX$62.1

-81.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.39 RON 30.69

$5.36 MX$99.8

19.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.30

$1.44 MX$26.92

34.03%

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

$28.8K RON 138.4K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

39.31%

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

$25.9K RON 124.3K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

10.20%

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

$196 RON 943

$84.8 MX$1,581

131.52%

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

$6.01 RON 28.87

$23.41 MX$436

-74.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.32 RON 44.78

$28.66 MX$534

-67.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.49 RON 151

$57.1 MX$1,063

-44.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 RON 40.08

$5.14 MX$95.8

62.26%

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

$676 RON 3,247

$207 MX$3,851

227.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.3K RON 68.8K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

264.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.38 RON 237

$43.35 MX$808

13.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.42 RON 122

$41.44 MX$772

-38.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.7 RON 248

$74.2 MX$1,383

-30.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.2 RON 405

$89.3 MX$1,664

-5.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 RON 1,698

$980 MX$18.3K

-63.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$233 RON 1,119

$381 MX$7,099

-38.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 RON 2,295

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-72.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$403 RON 1,937

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-62.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,555 RON 12.3K

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-35.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$518 RON 2,490

$735 MX$13.7K

-29.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

11.45

-41.05%

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

Last update for Targu Jiu: October 27, 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

Targu Jiu

$233 24.1%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 63.6% $148

Eating Out

Targu Jiu

$221 22.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 8.4% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Targu Jiu

$212 21.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 35.3% $75

Groceries & Markets

Targu Jiu

$154 16%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 65.3% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Targu Jiu

$95 9.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 17.8% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Targu Jiu

$48 5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 39.8% $19

Getting Around

Targu Jiu

$3.7 * 0.4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 1264% $47

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $353 in Targu Jiu 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.

Salaries run about 42% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58 in Targu Jiu versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $154 in Targu Jiu vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Targu Jiu wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Targu Jiu

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:50 8:50 PM

13:50 1:50 PM

7 h behind Targu Jiu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

82,504

149,923

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 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).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Targu Jiu Playa del Carmen 9,880 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Targu Jiu
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 25%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,449 per month in Targu Jiu 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 Targu Jiu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $353 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $966 in Targu Jiu and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 25%.

Kindergarten costs $676 per month in Targu Jiu and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $966 in Targu Jiu and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $966 in Targu Jiu to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Targu Jiu. 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.