Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Abalessa and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Abalessa: $525 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Abalessa
Learn more

Abalessa Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Abalessa

🇩🇿 Algeria

$525

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $525 per month in Abalessa vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abalessa $525
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $839 per month in Abalessa vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abalessa $839
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,153 per month in Abalessa vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abalessa $1,153
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Abalessa is about 56% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Abalessa and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Abalessa 61% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.63 DZD 491

$10.92 MX$203

-66.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.45 DZD 2,088

$43.37 MX$805

-64.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.37 DZD 456

$11.78 MX$219

-71.39%

Cappuccino

$0.62 DZD 83.2

$3.81 MX$70.7

-83.73%

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

$0.62 DZD 83.9

$1.28 MX$23.81

-51.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 DZD 33.31

$0.78 MX$14.54

-67.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.67 DZD 226

$3.17 MX$58.8

-47.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 DZD 311

$4.93 MX$91.7

-53.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.80 DZD 108

$1.41 MX$26.12

-43.26%

White Bread (500g)

$0.12 DZD 16.10

$2.22 MX$41.17

-94.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 DZD 175

$1.42 MX$26.32

-8.45%

Eggs

$1.04 DZD 140

$2.52 MX$46.85

-58.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.95 DZD 939

$7.26 MX$135

-4.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.61 DZD 489

$7.70 MX$143

-53.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.56 DZD 1,698

$12.69 MX$236

-1.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 DZD 288

$2.78 MX$51.7

-23.38%

Banana (1kg)

$2.77 DZD 374

$1.37 MX$25.41

102.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.05 DZD 142

$2.55 MX$47.37

-58.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.82 DZD 110

$2.12 MX$39.43

-61.32%

Potato (1kg)

$0.58 DZD 78.5

$1.94 MX$36.00

-70.10%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 DZD 63.2

$1.89 MX$35.02

-75.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 DZD 105

$1.15 MX$21.29

-33.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 DZD 37.92

$1.18 MX$21.89

-76.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 DZD 388

$4.30 MX$79.8

-33.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.54 DZD 883

$9.95 MX$185

-34.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 DZD 184

$1.58 MX$29.41

-13.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 DZD 288

$2.67 MX$49.60

-20.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 DZD 31.70

$0.55 MX$10.28

-58.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.08 DZD 957

$26.62 MX$494

-73.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 DZD 86.8

$4.97 MX$92.3

-87.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 DZD 59.9

$3.33 MX$61.9

-86.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 DZD 676

$5.36 MX$99.5

-6.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.31 DZD 42.08

$1.44 MX$26.82

-78.47%

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

$29.0K DZD 3.9M

$20.7K MX$383.8K

40.23%

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

$37.3K DZD 5.0M

$23.5K MX$435.8K

58.76%

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

$35.70 DZD 4,825

$84.8 MX$1,575

-57.90%

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

$10.32 DZD 1,395

$23.41 MX$435

-55.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.33 DZD 1,667

$28.66 MX$532

-56.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.78 DZD 2,808

$57.1 MX$1,059

-63.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$4.41 DZD 596

$5.14 MX$95.4

-14.20%

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

$334 DZD 45.1K

$207 MX$3,836

61.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,930 DZD 666.3K

$3,927 MX$72.9K

25.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.29 DZD 4,499

$43.35 MX$805

-23.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.88 DZD 4,850

$41.44 MX$770

-13.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.4 DZD 9,919

$74.2 MX$1,378

-1.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.5 DZD 10.7K

$89.3 MX$1,657

-10.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$128 DZD 17.3K

$980 MX$18.2K

-86.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$99.1 DZD 13.4K

$381 MX$7,072

-73.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$272 DZD 36.8K

$1,708 MX$31.7K

-84.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 DZD 26.3K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-81.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,070 DZD 144.6K

$3,943 MX$73.2K

-72.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,084 DZD 146.6K

$6,158 MX$114.4K

-82.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.3

11.45

-53.71%

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

Last update for Abalessa: October 27, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Abalessa

$164 31.2%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 55.4% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Abalessa

$100 19%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 11.8% $12

Accommodation & Living

Abalessa

$99 18.9%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 284% $282

Eating Out

Abalessa

$63 12%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 221% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Abalessa

$58 11.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 135% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Abalessa

$30 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 128% $38

Getting Around

Abalessa

$11 2.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 364% $40

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $128 in Abalessa 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $15 in Abalessa versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $164 vs $255 – making Abalessa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇩🇿 Abalessa

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:45 8:45 AM

02:45 2:45 AM

6 h behind Abalessa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to DZD – Algerian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇿 Algerian Dinar (د.ج)

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD). 1 EUR = 151 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to DZD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Abalessa Playa del Carmen 9,320 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Abalessa
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

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

Playa del Carmen costs about 129% more than Abalessa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $787 per month in Abalessa 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 Abalessa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $128 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Groceries cost about 55% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $15 in Abalessa and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Abalessa, where all-in costs run around $525, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Abalessa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $525 in Abalessa to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Abalessa is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 56% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.