Cost of living comparison

compared to

Tulum vs. Quito Cost of Living Summary

Tulum is 23.2% more expensive than Quito.

Restaurants
pay 17.2% more in Tulum
Groceries
pay 27.4% more in Tulum
Transportation
pay 41.6% more in Tulum
Housing
pay 68.2% more in Tulum
Childcare
pay 65.5% less in Tulum
Entertainment and Sports
pay 8.5% less in Tulum
Clothing
pay 34.3% less in Tulum

The cost of housing, transportation, groceries, and restaurants in Tulum are more expensive than in Quito. Expenses including childcare, clothing, and entertainment and sports are lower in Tulum.

Tulum vs. Quito Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Tulum instead of Quito, you would:

pay 17.2% more for restaurants

 
Quito
Tulum
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $6.00
 
$8.34
MX$154.32
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$7.67
 
$8.34
MX$154.32
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.40
 
$1.13
MX$20.83

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pay 27.4% more for groceries

 
Quito
Tulum
Bread
1 loaf
$1.57
 
$2.02
MX$37.38
Local cheese (8 oz) $3.21
 
$2.78
MX$51.44
Milk (1 gallon) $4.29
 
$6.12
MX$113.15

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pay 41.6% more for transportation

 
Quito
Tulum
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.17
 
$5.64
MX$104.30
Monthly public transit pass $21.00
 
??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $21,000.00
 
$21,528.95
MX$398K

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pay 68.2% more for housing

 
Quito
Tulum
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$28.45
 
$34.99
MX$647.00
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $482.78
 
$610.28
MX$11,285.86
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $313.44
 
$540.48
MX$9,995.09

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pay 65.5% less for childcare

 
Quito
Tulum
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $743.00
 
$264.07
MX$4,883.36
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $8,951.43
 
$3,004.12
MX$55,554.83

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pay 8.5% less for entertainment and sports

 
Quito
Tulum
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $3.50
 
$3.00
MX$55.45
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.38
 
$3.96
MX$73.30
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.00
 
$4.51
MX$83.33

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pay 34.3% less for clothing

 
Quito
Tulum
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$70.10
 
$41.72
MX$771.59
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$49.62
 
$33.38
MX$617.28
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$115.66
 
$97.36
MX$1,800.39

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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