Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Viana do Castelo and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,498 in Viana do Castelo, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Viana do Castelo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

72

Cost of Living Index in Viana do Castelo
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Viana do Castelo Living Index
58

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

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Viana do Castelo

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,498

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,498 per month in Viana do Castelo vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Viana do Castelo $1,498
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,435 per month in Viana do Castelo vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Viana do Castelo $2,435
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,373 per month in Viana do Castelo vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Viana do Castelo $3,373
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Viana do Castelo costs about 24% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Viana do Castelo sits 10% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.14 €8.19

$10.92 MX$203

-16.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.3 €45.92

$43.37 MX$808

18.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.77 €7.86

$11.78 MX$219

-25.55%

Cappuccino

$1.48 €1.33

$3.81 MX$71.0

-61.15%

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

$1.80 €1.61

$1.28 MX$23.89

40.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.16

$0.78 MX$14.58

65.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.55 €1.39

$3.17 MX$59.0

-51.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 €1.66

$4.93 MX$91.9

-62.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 €0.90

$1.41 MX$26.20

-28.37%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 €0.85

$2.22 MX$41.30

-57.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 €1.21

$1.42 MX$26.40

-4.93%

Eggs

$2.88 €2.58

$2.52 MX$47.00

14.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.23 €11.86

$7.26 MX$135

82.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.00 €7.17

$7.70 MX$143

3.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.60 €13.09

$12.69 MX$236

15.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 €1.70

$2.78 MX$51.9

-31.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 €1.24

$1.37 MX$25.49

0.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.67 €1.50

$2.55 MX$47.52

-34.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 €2.00

$2.12 MX$39.55

5.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.94 MX$36.11

-23.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 €1.54

$1.89 MX$35.13

-8.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 €1.43

$1.15 MX$21.36

38.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 €0.58

$1.18 MX$21.96

-44.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.69 €5.10

$4.30 MX$80.0

32.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.60 €4.12

$9.95 MX$185

-53.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.15

$1.58 MX$29.50

-18.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 €2.33

$2.67 MX$49.76

-2.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.63 €3.25

$0.55 MX$10.31

560.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.2 €49.48

$26.62 MX$496

107.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.67 €3.29

$4.97 MX$92.6

-26.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$3.33 MX$62.1

-55.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.69 €15.85

$5.36 MX$99.8

230.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.83

$1.44 MX$26.90

41.67%

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

$32.8K €29.4K

$20.7K MX$385.0K

58.68%

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

$37.4K €33.5K

$23.5K MX$437.2K

59.34%

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

$83.7 €75.0

$84.8 MX$1,580

-1.29%

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

$20.68 €18.53

$23.41 MX$436

-11.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.71 €35.59

$28.66 MX$534

38.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 €49.29

$57.1 MX$1,063

-3.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.37 €17.35

$28.91 MX$539

-33.00%

Cinema Ticket

$8.96 €8.03

$5.14 MX$95.7

74.32%

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

$452 €405

$207 MX$3,848

118.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,276 €5,624

$3,927 MX$73.2K

59.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.3 €66.6

$43.35 MX$808

71.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.81 €32.09

$41.44 MX$772

-13.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.5 €65.0

$74.2 MX$1,382

-2.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.3 €74.6

$89.3 MX$1,663

-6.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$817 €732

$980 MX$18.2K

-16.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$701 €628

$381 MX$7,095

84.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,965 €1,761

$1,708 MX$31.8K

15.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,504 €1,348

$1,075 MX$20.0K

39.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,655 €1,483

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-58.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,430 €1,282

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-76.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 €1,078

$735 MX$13.7K

63.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

11.45

-67.69%

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

Last update for Viana do Castelo: October 24, 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

Viana do Castelo

$701 46.8%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 45.7% $320

Groceries & Markets

Viana do Castelo

$238 15.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 6.8% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Viana do Castelo

$144 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 5% $7.3

Eating Out

Viana do Castelo

$141 9.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 43.5% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Viana do Castelo

$120 8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 6.6% $7.9

Getting Around

Viana do Castelo

$81 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 37.5% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Viana do Castelo

$73 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 7.7% $5.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $817 in Viana do Castelo 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 64% higher in Viana do Castelo. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51 in Viana do Castelo versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $238 in Viana do Castelo vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Viana do Castelo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Viana do Castelo

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

01:57 1:57 AM

20:57 8:57 PM

5 h behind Viana do Castelo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

85,784

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.37 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 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Viana do Castelo Playa del Carmen 7,550 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Viana do Castelo
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

Viana do Castelo vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Viana do Castelo is pricier by about 24%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,247 per month in Viana do Castelo 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 Viana do Castelo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $817 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,498 in Viana do Castelo and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 20% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 52% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

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 $1,498 in Viana do Castelo. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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