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City comparison

Playa del Carmen vs Rosario

In short

Calculated from the figures below, with no overall “who wins” score.

  • Rent

    in Rosario cheaper — −57%

  • Family budget

    in Rosario cheaper — −11%

  • Private school

    in Rosario cheaper — −70%

In numbers

Exchange rate as of the date each figure was checked.

  • House or apartment rent

    per month
    Playa del Carmen≈ $698–1,490MX$12,500–26,750
    Rosario≈ $401–550ARS 620–850k
    cheaper by 57%
  • Groceries for a family per month, regional estimate

    per month
    Playa del Carmen≈ $392MX$7,067
    Rosario≈ $439ARS 678,147
  • Family budget

    per month
    Playa del Carmen≈ $1,100MX$19,621
    Rosario≈ $974ARS 1,505,487
    cheaper by 11%
  • Private school

    per month
    Playa del Carmen≈ $250–474MX$4,500–8,540
    Rosario≈ $40–180ARS 61,752–277,883
    cheaper by 70%
  • Winter

    average
    Playa del Carmen19–29 °C19–29 °C
    Rosario11 °C11 °C
  • Summer

    average
    Playa del Carmen24–33 °C24–33 °C
    Rosario25 °C25 °C
  • Precipitation

    per year
    Playa del Carmen1,490 mm1,490 mm
    Rosario1,055 mm1,055 mm
  • Ready-made house

    purchase
    Playa del Carmen≈ $251–391kMX$4.5–7M
    Rosario$147,250 – 370k$147,250 – 370k
    cheaper by 19%

By topic

A quick look at each city. Details and sources are on the city page.

Daily life

Playa del Carmen

Who lives here

According to the 2020 census the city has 304,942 residents, the municipality 333,800. 61% of residents were born in another state of Mexico.

OfficialINEGI: 2020 census, results by locality in Quintana Roo (ITER) · checked 29 Sep 2026

Spread by district

A two-bedroom in the Real Ibiza complexes 8–10.5k pesos, in Centro more often 20–21k, in Playacar 23.5–28k, near Mayakoba 19–27.5k.

SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for rent in Playa del Carmen · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about daily life in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Nothing yet

Housing

Playa del Carmen

Long-term rent

A two-bedroom by listings: about 20,000 pesos a month. Of 150 offers, 33 are under 15k, 61 are 15 to 25k, 56 are above 25k.

SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for rent in Playa del Carmen · checked 29 Sep 2026

Buying an apartment

Two-bedrooms for sale: 286 listings up to 4.5 million pesos, 275 from 4.5 to 7 million, 312 above. On the first page about 40% of prices are in dollars.

SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for sale in Playa del Carmen · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about housing in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Two-bedroom rent

A two-bedroom apartment is most often 620–850k pesos a month, median 750k (about 490 dollars). In Puerto Norte asking prices reach 1.8 million. Building fees on top.

SpecialistMercado Libre: two-bedroom apartments for rent, Rosario · checked 6 Oct 2026

Buying a house

A three-bedroom house by listings is most often 147–370k dollars, median about 260k. Sellers quote prices in dollars.

SpecialistMercado Libre: three-bedroom houses for sale, Rosario · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about housing in Rosario →

Money and prices

Playa del Carmen

Family budget per month

The INEGI poverty line for cities is 4,905.33 pesos per person, 19,621 a month for a family of four (August 2026). A lower threshold without rent, not a real budget.

OfficialINEGI: income poverty lines, August 2026 (bulletin 592/26) · checked 29 Sep 2026

Groceries for a family

INEGI basket, August 2026: 1,767 pesos per person excluding meals out, about 7,070 a month for a family of four. This is an average for cities across the country, not the price in Playa.

OfficialINEGI: income poverty lines, August 2026 (bulletin 592/26) · checked 1 Oct 2026

Everything about money and prices in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Groceries for a family

The minimum food basket for a family of four in the Pampas region (INDEC) is about 678k pesos a month, June 2026. There is no separate figure for Rosario.

OfficialIPEC Santa Fe, INDEC series: basic food basket (extreme poverty line) per adult equivalent, Pampas region, 2017 to June 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Budget for a family of four

The poverty line for a family of four in the Pampas region is 1.51 million pesos a month (June 2026), without rent. With a rented two-bedroom: 2.1–2.4 million.

OfficialIPEC Santa Fe, INDEC series: total basic basket (poverty line) per adult equivalent, Pampas region, 2017 to June 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about money and prices in Rosario →

Family and kids

Playa del Carmen

Private schools

Two schools in Playa: IPC La Salle 4,500–6,450 pesos a month (2026–2027), Colegio Inglés up to 8,540 (2025–2026). Entry fee 5,700–8,990 once a year.

OfficialIPC La Salle, Playa del Carmen: home page, tuition questions · checked 30 Sep 2026

Everything about family and kids in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Private schools

Fee caps at state-subsidised private schools as of October 2025: 62–278k pesos a month. Only 6% of schools have no cap, mostly in Rosario.

SpecialistLa Capital: in Santa Fe only a handful of private schools have no fee cap · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about family and kids in Rosario →

Healthcare

Playa del Carmen

Healthcare on the spot

Private Hospiten Riviera Maya: 23 beds, 2 intensive care, 24-hour emergency, with paediatrics. Hospiten in Cancún has 34 beds and 10 intensive care.

SpecialistHospiten Riviera Maya: hospital page, capacity and departments · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about healthcare in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Hospitals and foreigners

Foreigners without residence must pay in national hospitals. In July 2026 a bill was filed in Santa Fe to charge them in provincial ones too; emergency care stays free.

SpecialistLa Voz de San Justo: national hospitals charge foreigners without residence · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about healthcare in Rosario →

Transport

Playa del Carmen

Roads and the airport

To Cancún airport it is about 58 km by road, calculated at 48 minutes without traffic. To the new Tulum airport, 105 km, about an hour and a half.

SpecialistOSRM using OpenStreetMap maps: route from Fundadores park to Cancún airport · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about transport in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Airport and flights

In 2025 Rosario had flights to Panama, Rio, Lima and Florianópolis, and at home to Buenos Aires, Bariloche, Iguazú, Mendoza and Salta. Buenos Aires is 300 km away.

OfficialArgentina's Ministry of Tourism, “Conectividad Aérea”: main air routes by year (flights and passengers) · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about transport in Rosario →

Climate

Playa del Carmen

Winter

The coolest month is January: on average from 19.4 to 28.6 degrees at the Cozumel station across from the city. No cold in the usual sense.

OfficialWMO, World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Cozumel · checked 29 Sep 2026

Summer and heat

August is the hottest month: average maximum 33 degrees, about 23.5 at night (Cozumel station). From May to August 32–33 degrees in the day.

OfficialWMO, World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Cozumel · checked 29 Sep 2026

Rainfall and seasonality

About 1,490 mm a year. Dry from February to April (32–60 mm a month), rains from June to October, peaking in September and October at 240 mm each.

OfficialWMO, World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Cozumel · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about climate in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Summer and heat

January averages 24.8 degrees, about 31 by day and 19 at night. From September to February there are heat waves up to 38–40, the record is 40.5 in January 2006.

SpecialistClimates to Travel: climate of Rosario, normals 1991–2020 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Precipitation and seasons

About 1,055 mm a year. Rainy from October to April (108–138 mm a month), often in thunderstorms; driest in June–August (23–35 mm).

SpecialistClimates to Travel: climate of Rosario, normals 1991–2020 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Winter

The average July temperature is 10.7 degrees: 16.5 by day and about 5 at night. On cold nights down to -3.5, snow almost never falls. Winter is humid, about 75–79%.

SpecialistClimates to Travel: climate of Rosario, normals 1991–2020 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about climate in Rosario →

Nature

Playa del Carmen

Sargassum on the beaches

In August 2026 there were about 1.7 million tonnes of seaweed in the western Caribbean, more than in 75% of years since 2011. A decline is expected by November.

SpecialistUSF: sargassum bulletin for the Caribbean Sea, August 2026 · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about nature in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Nothing yet

Safety

Playa del Carmen

Hurricanes

Four hurricanes made landfall near the city: Delta and Zeta (October 2020), Grace (August 2021), Beryl (July 2024). Delta was category 2, the rest category 1.

OfficialNHC: Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Beryl (AL022024) · checked 29 Sep 2026

Homicides by the statistics

In 2024 the Solidaridad municipality had 84 homicides, about 25 per 100k residents. In Cancún 39 per 100k, for the state 35.

OfficialINEGI: open data on registered deaths for 2024 · checked 29 Sep 2026

Everything about safety in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Homicides: a sharp drop

Rosario department, January–June 2026: 47 homicide victims, the fewest since 2014 and 32% fewer than a year earlier. Province-wide in 2025: 5.6 per 100k.

OfficialSanta Fe Public Security Observatory: homicides in the province, January–June 2026 · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about safety in Rosario →

Internet and phone

Playa del Carmen

Internet per month

Fiber of 50–200 Mbps costs 300–725 pesos a month. Telmex, izzi, Megacable and Totalplay are 349–390, often a promotional price. Data from a comparison site, September 2026.

SpecialistSelectra México: internet in Playa del Carmen, providers and plans, September 2026 · checked 1 Oct 2026

Everything about internet and phone service in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Nothing yet

Services

Playa del Carmen

LP gas: price cap

Price cap for liquefied LP gas (CNE) in Solidaridad for 27.09–3.10.2026: 21.62 pesos per kg, 11.67 per litre. A 20 kg cylinder at the cap is about 432 pesos.

OfficialComisión Nacional de Energía: maximum LP gas prices from 27 September to 3 October 2026 · checked 30 Sep 2026

CFE electricity on the coast

Tariff for hot regions 1B or 1C: 1.136 pesos per kWh in the base block, 1.381 in the intermediate, above that 4.041. For 300 kWh outside summer about 820–870 pesos with VAT.

SpecialistAiregula Solutions: CFE tariffs for September 2026, residential 1 and 1A-1F · checked 30 Sep 2026

Water and sewerage: Aguakan

Water is supplied by Aguakan. The minimum, per the press, is about 203 pesos a month, up to 298 with sewerage (figures for the state). We did not find the price per cubic metre above the minimum.

SpecialistEl Punto Sobre la i: reform of Quintana Roo's Ley de Cuotas y Tarifas de Agua Potable, minimum payment · checked 30 Sep 2026

Everything about services in Playa del Carmen →

Rosario

Electricity (EPE)

EPE electricity without subsidy from 1 September 2026: 245 to 431 pesos per kWh by step plus 3.8k a month. 300 kWh is about 96k pesos before taxes (63 dollars).

OfficialEPE Santa Fe: full residential tariff schedule, consumption from 1 September 2026 (PDF “Cuadro Tarifario Septiembre 2026” in the “Usuarios” section) · checked 6 Oct 2026

Piped gas (Litoral Gas)

Litoral Gas in Rosario without subsidy: 324.5 pesos per m³ plus a fixed charge from 3.6k (R1), before taxes. 100 m³ in winter is about 36k pesos (24 dollars).

OfficialENReGE (formerly ENARGAS): natural gas tariffs of all distributors from 1 September 2026 (Excel), Litoral Gas, Santa Fe province · checked 6 Oct 2026

Everything about services in Rosario →

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