Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yantai and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Yantai: $629 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Yantai
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Yantai Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Yantai

🇨🇳 China

$629

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $629 per month in Yantai vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yantai $629
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $926 per month in Yantai vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yantai $926
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $1,223 per month in Yantai vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yantai $1,223
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Yantai is about 48% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Yantai and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Yantai 53% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.92 ¥19.55

$10.76 MX$199

-72.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.14 ¥121

$43.03 MX$795

-57.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.58 ¥30.65

$11.79 MX$218

-61.15%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ¥18.78

$3.87 MX$71.4

-27.39%

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

$0.54 ¥3.58

$1.37 MX$25.29

-60.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ¥2.15

$0.84 MX$15.44

-61.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.05 ¥7.01

$3.10 MX$57.3

-66.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 ¥17.39

$5.07 MX$93.6

-48.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 ¥13.11

$1.44 MX$26.55

36.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 ¥9.01

$2.23 MX$41.23

-39.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.58

$1.47 MX$27.17

-43.54%

Eggs

$1.35 ¥9.02

$2.53 MX$46.71

-46.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.32 ¥109

$7.30 MX$135

123.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 ¥21.94

$7.86 MX$145

-58.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.89 ¥46.04

$12.79 MX$236

-46.13%

Apples (1kg)

$1.37 ¥9.19

$2.90 MX$53.6

-52.76%

Banana (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.98

$1.44 MX$26.53

-38.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.16

$2.55 MX$47.07

-58.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$2.06 MX$38.03

-64.08%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ¥4.49

$2.00 MX$36.97

-66.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.78 ¥5.24

$2.01 MX$37.07

-61.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.91

$1.19 MX$22.02

-51.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ¥4.19

$1.26 MX$23.23

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.65 ¥24.39

$4.40 MX$81.4

-17.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.68 ¥78.1

$9.59 MX$177

21.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ¥5.25

$1.59 MX$29.41

-50.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 ¥6.88

$2.81 MX$51.9

-63.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 ¥1.40

$0.57 MX$10.47

-63.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.36 ¥9.11

$4.98 MX$92.1

-72.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$3.50 MX$64.6

-91.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 ¥43.30

$5.40 MX$99.8

20.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 ¥8.20

$1.47 MX$27.08

-16.33%

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

$19.3K ¥129.0K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-8.06%

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

$16.4K ¥109.8K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-31.33%

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

$44.64 ¥298

$84.2 MX$1,556

-46.99%

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

$6.79 ¥45.37

$23.99 MX$443

-71.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.09 ¥40.75

$29.02 MX$536

-79.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.60 ¥198

$63.0 MX$1,164

-53.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.43 ¥49.69

$29.14 MX$539

-74.50%

Cinema Ticket

$5.44 ¥36.37

$4.94 MX$91.3

10.12%

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

$363 ¥2,426

$204 MX$3,763

78.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ¥111.2K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

322.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.97 ¥120

$43.60 MX$806

-58.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 ¥152

$43.12 MX$797

-47.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.7 ¥626

$75.8 MX$1,400

23.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.2 ¥603

$88.6 MX$1,637

1.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$223 ¥1,490

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-77.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$151 ¥1,010

$374 MX$6,911

-59.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 ¥2,358

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-79.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 ¥982

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-86.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,056 ¥20.4K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-22.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,096 ¥34.1K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-17.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,063 ¥7,107

$754 MX$13.9K

40.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.37

11.45

-70.57%

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

Last update for Yantai: October 12, 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

Yantai

$191 30.3%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 35.4% $68

Accommodation & Living

Yantai

$151 24%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 148% $223

Clothing & Footwear

Yantai

$101 16.1%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 11.8% $12

Eating Out

Yantai

$85 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 139% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yantai

$58 9.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 139% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Yantai

$40 6.4%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 80% $32

Getting Around

Yantai

$3.6 * 0.6%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 1344% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $223 in Yantai 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 41% higher in Yantai, 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 $18.00 in Yantai versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $191 vs $258 – making Yantai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Yantai

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

00:18 12:18 AM

11:18 11:18 AM

13 h behind Yantai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,871,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 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 CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Yantai Playa del Carmen 12,900 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Yantai
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 92%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $944 per month in Yantai 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 Yantai, 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 $629 in Yantai and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 92%.

Kindergarten costs $363 per month in Yantai and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Yantai, where all-in costs run around $629, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Yantai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Yantai. 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.