Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Abomey-Calavi and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Abomey-Calavi: $712 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Abomey-Calavi, Benin
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Abomey-Calavi
🇧🇯 Benin
$712
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $712 per month in Abomey-Calavi vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Abomey-Calavi $712
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,119 per month in Abomey-Calavi vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Abomey-Calavi $1,119
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,526 per month in Abomey-Calavi vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Abomey-Calavi $1,526
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Abomey-Calavi is about 41% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Abomey-Calavi and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Abomey-Calavi 48% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$5.67 F CFA 3,334
$10.92 MX$205
-48.08%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$25.09 F CFA 14.7K
$43.37 MX$815
-42.15%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.97 F CFA 4,682
$11.78 MX$221
-32.34%
Cappuccino
$4.61 F CFA 2,706
$3.81 MX$71.6
21.00%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.14 F CFA 668
$1.28 MX$24.10
-10.94%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 F CFA 1,028
$0.78 MX$14.71
124.36%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.71 F CFA 1,007
$3.17 MX$59.5
-46.06%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.03 F CFA 2,957
$4.93 MX$92.7
2.03%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.18 F CFA 1,282
$1.41 MX$26.43
54.61%
White Bread (500g)
$0.25 F CFA 146
$2.22 MX$41.66
-88.74%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.97 F CFA 1,158
$1.42 MX$26.64
38.73%
Eggs
$1.92 F CFA 1,125
$2.52 MX$47.41
-23.81%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$3.40 F CFA 1,997
$7.26 MX$137
-53.17%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.94 F CFA 2,313
$7.70 MX$145
-48.83%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.06 F CFA 3,563
$12.69 MX$239
-52.25%
Apples (1kg)
$2.10 F CFA 1,232
$2.78 MX$52.3
-24.46%
Banana (1kg)
$0.87 F CFA 513
$1.37 MX$25.71
-36.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.70 F CFA 410
$2.55 MX$47.94
-72.55%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 F CFA 1,226
$2.12 MX$39.90
-1.42%
Potato (1kg)
$0.93 F CFA 544
$1.94 MX$36.43
-52.06%
Onion (1kg)
$0.76 F CFA 444
$1.89 MX$35.44
-59.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.71 F CFA 414
$1.15 MX$21.55
-38.26%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.88 F CFA 515
$1.18 MX$22.16
-25.42%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$0.41 F CFA 243
$4.30 MX$80.7
-90.47%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.84 F CFA 6,368
$9.95 MX$187
8.94%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.92 F CFA 543
$1.58 MX$29.76
-41.77%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.09 F CFA 642
$2.67 MX$50.2
-59.18%
🚌 Getting Around
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.55 MX$10.40
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$7.62 F CFA 4,479
$26.62 MX$500
-71.37%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.74 F CFA 1,022
$4.97 MX$93.4
-64.99%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.74 F CFA 1,023
$3.33 MX$62.6
-47.75%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
-
$5.36 MX$101
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.20 F CFA 705
$1.44 MX$27.14
-16.67%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
-
$20.7K MX$388.4K
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
-
$23.5K MX$441.0K
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$118 F CFA 69.3K
$84.8 MX$1,594
39.06%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$19.68 F CFA 11.6K
$23.41 MX$440
-15.93%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$86.4 F CFA 50.7K
$28.66 MX$539
201.29%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$33.76 F CFA 19.8K
$57.1 MX$1,072
-40.82%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$5.18 F CFA 3,042
$28.91 MX$543
-82.08%
Cinema Ticket
$5.99 F CFA 3,519
$5.14 MX$96.6
16.54%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
-
$207 MX$3,882
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
-
$3,927 MX$73.8K
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$16.82 F CFA 9,881
$43.35 MX$815
-61.20%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$8.48 F CFA 4,981
$41.44 MX$779
-79.54%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$25.81 F CFA 15.2K
$74.2 MX$1,394
-65.22%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$25.94 F CFA 15.2K
$89.3 MX$1,677
-70.94%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$96.9 F CFA 56.9K
$980 MX$18.4K
-90.11%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$72.2 F CFA 42.4K
$381 MX$7,157
-81.03%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$209 F CFA 122.6K
$1,708 MX$32.1K
-87.78%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$275 F CFA 161.7K
$1,075 MX$20.2K
-74.40%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$3,943 MX$74.1K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,158 MX$115.7K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Abomey-Calavi
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$85.1 F CFA 50.0K
$735 MX$13.8K
-88.41%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
0
11.45
-

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

Last update for Abomey-Calavi: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Abomey-Calavi
$224
Playa del Carmen
$137 38.9% $87
Groceries & Markets
Abomey-Calavi
$163
Playa del Carmen
$255 56.3% $92
Eating Out
Abomey-Calavi
$155
Playa del Carmen
$202 30.7% $48
Accommodation & Living
Abomey-Calavi
$72
Playa del Carmen
$381 427% $309
Sport & Entertainment
Abomey-Calavi
$46
Playa del Carmen
$67 47.2% $22
Clothing & Footwear
Abomey-Calavi
$35
Playa del Carmen
$112 222% $77
Getting Around
Abomey-Calavi
$18 *
Playa del Carmen
$50 179% $32

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $97 in Abomey-Calavi 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.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 8.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25 in Abomey-Calavi versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $163 vs $255 – making Abomey-Calavi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇧🇯 Abomey-Calavi
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
15:35 3:35 PM
09:35 9:35 AM
6 h behind Abomey-Calavi
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
650,000
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to XOF – West African CFA Franc Converter

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 587 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.7 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Abomey-Calavi Playa del Carmen 9,700 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Abomey-Calavi
  • 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
Abomey-Calavi vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Abomey-Calavi cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 69%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,069 per month in Abomey-Calavi and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Abomey-Calavi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $97 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
What are total monthly expenses in Abomey-Calavi and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $712 in Abomey-Calavi and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Abomey-Calavi about 41% cheaper.
Is eating out cheaper in Abomey-Calavi or in Playa del Carmen?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $25 in Abomey-Calavi and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Is $1,000 a realistic budget for living in Abomey-Calavi or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Abomey-Calavi, where all-in costs run around $712, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Abomey-Calavi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is it better to live in Abomey-Calavi or in Playa del Carmen?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $712 in Abomey-Calavi to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Abomey-Calavi. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Abomey-Calavi vs other spots: cost of living compared

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