Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Abha and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Abha: $1,049 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Abha
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Abha Living Index
57

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

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Abha

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,049

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,049 per month in Abha vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abha $1,049
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $1,747 per month in Abha vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abha $1,747
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,444 per month in Abha vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Abha $2,444
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Abha is about 13% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Abha and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Abha 22% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.18 SAR 19.45

$10.67 MX$200

-51.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.7 SAR 190

$43.80 MX$823

15.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.22 SAR 27.09

$11.79 MX$221

-38.76%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.64 SAR 6.14

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 SAR 4.90

Cappuccino

$3.11 SAR 11.67

$3.79 MX$71.1

-17.94%

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

$0.63 SAR 2.38

$1.30 MX$24.36

-51.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 SAR 0.82

$0.83 MX$15.65

-73.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 SAR 6.10

$1.41 MX$26.46

15.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.64 SAR 2.39

$2.20 MX$41.23

-70.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 SAR 7.38

$1.47 MX$27.66

34.01%

Eggs

$3.10 SAR 11.65

$2.50 MX$46.89

24.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.33 SAR 16.27

$7.29 MX$137

-40.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.59 SAR 28.47

$7.95 MX$149

-4.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.40 SAR 69.1

$12.86 MX$242

43.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.08 SAR 7.82

$2.90 MX$54.4

-28.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 SAR 7.27

$1.38 MX$25.98

40.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.14

$2.49 MX$46.78

-34.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 SAR 6.05

$2.03 MX$38.12

-20.69%

Potato (1kg)

$2.18 SAR 8.18

$2.02 MX$38.03

7.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 SAR 4.72

$1.90 MX$35.74

-33.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.34 SAR 1.27

$1.14 MX$21.49

-70.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 SAR 1.93

$1.24 MX$23.27

-58.87%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.40 SAR 16.53

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 SAR 4.61

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 SAR 5.35

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.12 SAR 34.21

$4.27 MX$80.2

113.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$184

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.78

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.6

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 SAR 3.20

$0.51 MX$9.67

66.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.06 SAR 139

$27.39 MX$514

35.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 SAR 11.22

$4.76 MX$89.4

-37.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.63 SAR 9.87

$3.25 MX$61.0

-19.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.25 SAR 53.5

$5.39 MX$101

164.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.59 SAR 2.22

$1.53 MX$28.70

-61.44%

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

$28.7K SAR 107.7K

$21.2K MX$398.4K

35.24%

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

$19.0K SAR 71.5K

$23.3K MX$436.9K

-18.13%

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

$86.9 SAR 326

$83.5 MX$1,568

4.07%

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

$36.53 SAR 137

$23.19 MX$435

57.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.9 SAR 285

$27.61 MX$519

175.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.5 SAR 343

$56.4 MX$1,060

62.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.46 SAR 171

$28.19 MX$529

61.26%

Cinema Ticket

$15.73 SAR 59.1

$5.00 MX$93.9

214.60%

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

$211 SAR 792

$207 MX$3,889

1.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,216 SAR 15.8K

$5,231 MX$98.2K

-19.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$30.04 SAR 113

$43.45 MX$816

-30.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.8 SAR 262

$42.54 MX$799

64.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.3 SAR 361

$72.8 MX$1,367

32.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.0 SAR 251

$88.4 MX$1,660

-24.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$305 SAR 1,144

$995 MX$18.7K

-69.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 SAR 923

$382 MX$7,181

-35.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$541 SAR 2,030

$1,674 MX$31.4K

-67.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$570 SAR 2,140

$1,081 MX$20.3K

-47.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$935 SAR 3,511

$3,909 MX$73.4K

-76.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,334 SAR 5,008

$6,138 MX$115.3K

-78.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,239 SAR 8,402

$832 MX$15.6K

168.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-47.60%

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

Last update for Abha: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Abha

$246 23.5%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 55.5% $136

Groceries & Markets

Abha

$202 19.3%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 27.3% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Abha

$199 19%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 32.6% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Abha

$123 11.7%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 46% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Abha

$118 11.3%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 6.1% $7.2

Eating Out

Abha

$104 9.9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 92.9% $96

Getting Around

Abha

$57 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 10.9% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $305 in Abha versus $995 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 in Abha are about 2.7 times higher, 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 $51 in Abha versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $202 in Abha vs $257 in Playa del Carmen – so Abha wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Abha

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

18:22 6:22 PM

10:22 10:22 AM

8 h behind Abha

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

236,157

149,923

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Abha Playa del Carmen 13,030 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Abha
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

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

Playa del Carmen costs about 15% more than Abha, 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 $1,574 per month in Abha and $1,804 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 Abha, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $305 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Groceries cost about 27% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51 in Abha and $44 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,049 in Abha and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,049 in Abha to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.