Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Valletta and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,243 in Valletta, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Valletta
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Valletta Living Index
58

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

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Valletta

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,243

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,243 per month in Valletta vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Valletta $2,243
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,657 per month in Valletta vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Valletta $3,657
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $5,071 per month in Valletta vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Valletta $5,071
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Valletta costs about 86% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Valletta sits 65% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.53 €20.23

$10.92 MX$204

106.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.1 €81.9

$43.37 MX$808

110.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.37 €12.01

$11.78 MX$220

13.50%

Cappuccino

$3.08 €2.77

$3.81 MX$71.0

-19.16%

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

$2.35 €2.11

$1.28 MX$23.90

83.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.78 MX$14.59

158.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.67 €5.09

$3.17 MX$59.0

78.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.88 €6.18

$4.93 MX$92.0

39.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.23

$1.41 MX$26.22

-2.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.27

$2.22 MX$41.33

-36.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.47 €3.11

$1.42 MX$26.42

144.37%

Eggs

$4.24 €3.81

$2.52 MX$47.03

68.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.39 €9.34

$7.26 MX$135

43.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.21 €10.96

$7.70 MX$143

58.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.98 €16.15

$12.69 MX$237

41.69%

Apples (1kg)

$3.88 €3.48

$2.78 MX$51.9

39.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 €2.47

$1.37 MX$25.50

100.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.91 €3.51

$2.55 MX$47.55

53.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.74 €3.36

$2.12 MX$39.58

76.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.71

$1.94 MX$36.13

-2.06%

Onion (1kg)

$3.33 €2.99

$1.89 MX$35.16

76.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 €2.04

$1.15 MX$21.37

97.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.18 MX$21.98

26.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.23 €5.59

$4.30 MX$80.1

44.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.09 €5.47

$9.95 MX$185

-38.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 €2.22

$1.58 MX$29.52

56.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.11

$2.67 MX$49.79

-11.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.21 €1.99

$0.55 MX$10.31

301.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.58

$4.97 MX$92.6

-19.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.74 €1.56

$3.33 MX$62.1

-47.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.29 €29.01

$5.36 MX$99.8

502.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.44 MX$26.92

3.47%

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

$27.9K €25.0K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

34.93%

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

$39.0K €35.0K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

66.07%

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

$156 €140

$84.8 MX$1,581

84.03%

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

$31.08 €27.92

$23.41 MX$436

32.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.31 €26.33

$28.66 MX$534

2.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.7 €55.4

$57.1 MX$1,063

8.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.63 €18.54

$28.91 MX$539

-28.64%

Cinema Ticket

$11.18 €10.04

$5.14 MX$95.8

117.51%

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

$275 €247

$207 MX$3,851

33.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K €11.0K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

212.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 €51.6

$43.35 MX$808

32.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.2 €61.2

$41.44 MX$772

64.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 €99.7

$74.2 MX$1,383

49.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €115

$89.3 MX$1,664

43.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,389 €1,248

$980 MX$18.3K

41.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 €985

$381 MX$7,099

187.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,390 €3,046

$1,708 MX$31.8K

98.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,312 €2,077

$1,075 MX$20.0K

115.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,400 €4,851

$3,943 MX$73.5K

36.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,943 €3,542

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-35.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,031 €1,824

$735 MX$13.7K

176.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

11.45

-64.63%

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

Last update for Valletta: 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

Valletta

$1.1K 48.9%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 65.3% $715

Groceries & Markets

Valletta

$344 15.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 25.9% $89

Eating Out

Valletta

$317 14.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 36.1% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Valletta

$216 9.7%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 36.8% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Valletta

$164 7.3%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 31.9% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Valletta

$84 3.8%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 19.9% $17

Getting Around

Valletta

$22 * 1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 134% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,389 in Valletta 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 in Valletta are about 2.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91 in Valletta versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $344 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Valletta

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:36 10:36 PM

16:36 4:36 PM

6 h behind Valletta

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,700 Capital

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Valletta Playa del Carmen 9,660 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Valletta
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

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

Yes – Valletta is pricier by about 86%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,364 per month in Valletta 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 $1,389 in Valletta.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,243 in Valletta and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 46% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $275 per month in Valletta and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Valletta at $2,243. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Valletta it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $2,243 in Valletta. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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