Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yilan and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Yilan: $1,008 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Yilan
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Yilan Living Index
59

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

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Yilan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,008

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,008 per month in Yilan vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yilan $1,008
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,731 per month in Yilan vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yilan $1,731
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $2,455 per month in Yilan vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Yilan $2,455
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Yilan is about 17% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Yilan and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Yilan 25% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.55 NT$115

$10.76 MX$199

-67.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.99 NT$973

$43.03 MX$795

-30.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.61 NT$149

$11.79 MX$218

-60.90%

Cappuccino

$2.88 NT$93.5

$3.87 MX$71.4

-25.58%

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

$1.03 NT$33.33

$1.37 MX$25.29

-24.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 NT$21.18

$0.84 MX$15.44

-22.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.52 NT$49.41

$3.10 MX$57.3

-50.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 NT$93.4

$5.07 MX$93.6

-43.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.16 NT$102

$1.44 MX$26.55

119.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 NT$55.3

$2.23 MX$41.23

-23.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.74 NT$88.7

$1.47 MX$27.17

86.39%

Eggs

$2.62 NT$84.9

$2.53 MX$46.71

3.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$28.52 NT$925

$7.30 MX$135

290.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.15 NT$264

$7.86 MX$145

3.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.07 NT$554

$12.79 MX$236

33.46%

Apples (1kg)

$4.36 NT$142

$2.90 MX$53.6

50.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 NT$61.3

$1.44 MX$26.53

31.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 NT$100

$2.55 MX$47.07

21.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.17 NT$70.5

$2.06 MX$38.03

5.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 NT$38.51

$2.00 MX$36.97

-40.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 NT$61.1

$2.01 MX$37.07

-6.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.41 NT$78.0

$1.19 MX$22.02

102.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 NT$27.78

$1.26 MX$23.23

-31.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 NT$125

$4.40 MX$81.4

-12.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.70 NT$509

$9.59 MX$177

63.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 NT$45.55

$1.59 MX$29.41

-11.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 NT$79.3

$2.81 MX$51.9

-12.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 NT$24.37

$0.57 MX$10.47

31.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.68 NT$1,189

$27.82 MX$514

31.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.75 NT$89.1

$4.98 MX$92.1

-44.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 NT$31.37

$3.50 MX$64.6

-72.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.39 NT$305

$5.40 MX$99.8

73.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$33.23

$1.47 MX$27.08

-30.61%

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

$25.1K NT$814.8K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

19.73%

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

$19.5K NT$633.9K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-18.23%

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

$47.16 NT$1,529

$84.2 MX$1,556

-44.00%

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

$15.12 NT$490

$23.99 MX$443

-36.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.30 NT$691

$29.02 MX$536

-26.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.11 NT$1,009

$63.0 MX$1,164

-50.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$7.85 NT$255

$4.94 MX$91.3

58.91%

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

$340 NT$11.0K

$204 MX$3,763

66.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K NT$537.7K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

320.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.9 NT$1,781

$43.60 MX$806

25.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.44 NT$1,020

$43.12 MX$797

-27.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.0 NT$2,723

$75.8 MX$1,400

10.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$62.2 NT$2,016

$88.6 MX$1,637

-29.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$275 NT$8,930

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-72.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$254 NT$8,237

$374 MX$6,911

-32.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 NT$32.3K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-41.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 NT$23.6K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-34.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,893 NT$256.0K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

100.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,975 NT$161.3K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-19.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,041 NT$33.8K

$754 MX$13.9K

38.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.27

11.45

-80.17%

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

Last update for Yilan: October 10, 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

Yilan

$375 37.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 31% $116

Accommodation & Living

Yilan

$254 25.2%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 47.2% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Yilan

$105 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 8% $8.4

Eating Out

Yilan

$97 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 109% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yilan

$84 8.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 64.2% $54

Getting Around

Yilan

$47 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 11.2% $5.3

Sport & Entertainment

Yilan

$47 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 55.7% $26

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $275 in Yilan 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 38% higher in Yilan, 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 $30.00 in Yilan versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $375 in Yilan vs $258 in Playa del Carmen – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Yilan

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:15 8:15 AM

19:15 7:15 PM

13 h behind Yilan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,907

149,923

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 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 TWD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Yilan Playa del Carmen 14,080 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Yilan
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,512 per month in Yilan 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 Yilan, 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 $1,008 in Yilan and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 20%.

Public transport costs about 32% less in Yilan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Yilan, where all-in costs run around $1,008, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Yilan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Yilan. 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.