Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Umag and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,562 in Umag, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Umag, Croatia
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Umag
🇭🇷 Croatia
$1,562
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,562 per month in Umag vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Umag $1,562
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,448 per month in Umag vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Umag $2,448
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,333 per month in Umag vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Umag $3,333
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Umag costs about 30% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Umag sits 15% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.16 €10.92
$10.92 MX$204
11.36%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$65.3 €58.6
$43.37 MX$808
50.45%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.29 €7.44
$11.78 MX$220
-29.63%
Cappuccino
$2.26 €2.03
$3.81 MX$71.0
-40.68%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.99 €2.69
$1.28 MX$23.90
133.59%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.28 €2.05
$0.78 MX$14.59
192.31%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.34 €3.00
$3.17 MX$59.0
5.36%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.35 €3.91
$4.93 MX$92.0
-11.76%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.30 €1.17
$1.41 MX$26.22
-7.80%
White Bread (500g)
$1.57 €1.41
$2.22 MX$41.33
-29.28%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.80 €2.51
$1.42 MX$26.42
97.18%
Eggs
$3.83 €3.44
$2.52 MX$47.03
51.98%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$14.69 €13.19
$7.26 MX$135
102.34%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.49 €10.32
$7.70 MX$143
49.22%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.63 €15.84
$12.69 MX$237
38.93%
Apples (1kg)
$2.23 €2.00
$2.78 MX$51.9
-19.78%
Banana (1kg)
$1.64 €1.48
$1.37 MX$25.50
19.71%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.21 €1.98
$2.55 MX$47.55
-13.33%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.45 €2.20
$2.12 MX$39.58
15.57%
Potato (1kg)
$1.36 €1.22
$1.94 MX$36.13
-29.90%
Onion (1kg)
$1.26 €1.13
$1.89 MX$35.16
-33.33%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 €1.07
$1.15 MX$21.37
3.48%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.28 €1.15
$1.18 MX$21.98
8.47%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.09 €5.47
$4.30 MX$80.1
41.63%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.15 €10.01
$9.95 MX$185
12.06%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 €1.51
$1.58 MX$29.52
6.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.45 €2.20
$2.67 MX$49.79
-8.24%
🚌 Getting Around
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.82 €1.64
$0.55 MX$10.31
230.91%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$47.33 €42.51
$26.62 MX$496
77.80%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.27 €2.04
$4.97 MX$92.6
-54.33%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.42 €1.27
$3.33 MX$62.1
-57.36%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$12.15 €10.91
$5.36 MX$99.8
126.68%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.89 €1.70
$1.44 MX$26.92
31.25%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.1K €24.4K
$20.7K MX$385.2K
31.28%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.5K €22.9K
$23.5K MX$437.4K
8.64%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$210 €189
$84.8 MX$1,581
147.78%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.03 €19.79
$23.41 MX$436
-5.89%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$37.86 €34.01
$28.66 MX$534
32.10%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 €46.14
$57.1 MX$1,063
-9.97%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.08 €13.54
$28.91 MX$539
-47.84%
Cinema Ticket
$8.56 €7.69
$5.14 MX$95.8
66.54%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$489 €439
$207 MX$3,851
136.75%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,869 €8,865
$3,927 MX$73.2K
151.29%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$111 €99.9
$43.35 MX$808
156.56%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$42.52 €38.20
$41.44 MX$772
2.61%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 €92.2
$74.2 MX$1,383
38.38%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$114 €103
$89.3 MX$1,664
27.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$602 €541
$980 MX$18.3K
-38.53%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$483 €434
$381 MX$7,099
26.90%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,252 €1,125
$1,708 MX$31.8K
-26.67%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$941 €846
$1,075 MX$20.0K
-12.44%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,602 €4,134
$3,943 MX$73.5K
16.71%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,282 €2,948
$6,158 MX$114.8K
-46.70%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Umag
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$735 MX$13.7K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.3
11.45
-71.18%

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

Last update for Umag: 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
Umag
$483
Playa del Carmen
$381 21.2% $102
Groceries & Markets
Umag
$314
Playa del Carmen
$255 18.9% $59
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Umag
$270
Playa del Carmen
$137 49.3% $133
Eating Out
Umag
$196
Playa del Carmen
$202 3.4% $6.6
Clothing & Footwear
Umag
$167
Playa del Carmen
$112 33% $55
Sport & Entertainment
Umag
$68
Playa del Carmen
$67 1.7% $1.2
Getting Around
Umag
$64
Playa del Carmen
$50 21.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $602 in Umag 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 $65 in Umag versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $314 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇭🇷 Umag
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
17:07 5:07 PM
11:07 11:07 AM
6 h behind Umag
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
13,000
149,923
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Umag Playa del Carmen 9,180 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Umag
  • 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
Umag vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Umag?
Yes – Umag is pricier by about 30%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,343 per month in Umag and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Umag, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $602 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
What are total monthly expenses in Umag and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,562 in Umag and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 30%.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 44% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Umag or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Umag at $1,562. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Umag it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is it better to live in Umag or in Playa del Carmen?
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 $1,562 in Umag. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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