Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Accra and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Accra: $1,077 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Accra
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Accra Living Index
58

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

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Accra

🇬🇭 Ghana

$1,077

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,077 per month in Accra vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Accra $1,077
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,708 per month in Accra vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Accra $1,708
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,340 per month in Accra vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Accra $2,340
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Accra is about 11% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Accra and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Accra 21% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.38 GHS 97.1

$10.92 MX$204

-23.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.6 GHS 597

$43.37 MX$810

18.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.25 GHS 119

$11.78 MX$220

-12.99%

Cappuccino

$4.59 GHS 53.2

$3.81 MX$71.2

20.47%

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

$1.62 GHS 18.71

$1.28 MX$23.96

26.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 GHS 5.48

$0.78 MX$14.63

-39.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.90 GHS 22.01

$3.17 MX$59.2

-40.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 GHS 25.32

$4.93 MX$92.2

-55.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.59 GHS 41.53

$1.41 MX$26.28

154.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.62 GHS 18.79

$2.22 MX$41.43

-27.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.08 GHS 35.70

$1.42 MX$26.48

116.90%

Eggs

$2.62 GHS 30.36

$2.52 MX$47.14

3.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.92 GHS 138

$7.26 MX$136

64.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.37 GHS 85.3

$7.70 MX$144

-4.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.96 GHS 115

$12.69 MX$237

-21.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.58 GHS 41.45

$2.78 MX$52.0

28.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 GHS 16.06

$1.37 MX$25.56

1.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 GHS 20.61

$2.55 MX$47.66

-30.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.73 GHS 43.20

$2.12 MX$39.67

75.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.79 GHS 32.33

$1.94 MX$36.22

43.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.77 GHS 32.13

$1.89 MX$35.24

46.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 GHS 8.63

$1.15 MX$21.42

-35.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 GHS 7.14

$1.18 MX$22.03

-47.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.63 GHS 30.49

$4.30 MX$80.3

-38.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.14 GHS 82.6

$9.95 MX$186

-28.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 GHS 14.44

$1.58 MX$29.59

-20.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 GHS 27.37

$2.67 MX$49.91

-11.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 GHS 17.64

$0.55 MX$10.34

176.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.35 GHS 479

$26.62 MX$497

55.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.76 GHS 20.36

$4.97 MX$92.9

-64.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.27 GHS 14.74

$3.33 MX$62.2

-61.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.24 GHS 49.04

$5.36 MX$100

-20.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 GHS 15.17

$1.44 MX$26.98

-9.03%

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

$7,861 GHS 91.0K

$20.7K MX$386.2K

-61.96%

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

$20.1K GHS 232.9K

$23.5K MX$438.5K

-14.29%

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

$73.3 GHS 849

$84.8 MX$1,584

-13.52%

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

$19.53 GHS 226

$23.41 MX$437

-16.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.72 GHS 495

$28.66 MX$535

49.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.6 GHS 818

$57.1 MX$1,066

23.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.31 GHS 212

$28.91 MX$540

-36.67%

Cinema Ticket

$12.80 GHS 148

$5.14 MX$96.0

149.03%

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

$468 GHS 5,418

$207 MX$3,860

126.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.5K GHS 214.1K

$3,927 MX$73.4K

370.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.14 GHS 164

$43.35 MX$810

-67.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.57 GHS 215

$41.44 MX$774

-55.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.87 GHS 427

$74.2 MX$1,386

-50.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 GHS 607

$89.3 MX$1,668

-41.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$686 GHS 7,942

$980 MX$18.3K

-29.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 GHS 3,247

$381 MX$7,116

-26.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,077 GHS 12.5K

$1,708 MX$31.9K

-36.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$474 GHS 5,492

$1,075 MX$20.1K

-55.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,839 GHS 32.9K

$3,943 MX$73.7K

-28.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,425 GHS 16.5K

$6,158 MX$115.1K

-76.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$176 GHS 2,034

$735 MX$13.7K

-76.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

26.75

11.45

133.62%

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

Last update for Accra: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Accra

$280 26%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 35.8% $100

Groceries & Markets

Accra

$279 25.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 8.7% $24

Eating Out

Accra

$175 16.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 15.5% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Accra

$136 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 0.9% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Accra

$96 8.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 30% $29

Getting Around

Accra

$56 5.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 9.2% $5.1

Clothing & Footwear

Accra

$55 5.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 104% $57

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $686 in Accra 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 4.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Accra versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $279 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇭 Accra

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:04 2:04 PM

09:04 9:04 AM

5 h behind Accra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,388,000 Capital

149,923

💱 Currency

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 GHS = 8.64 USD

100 GHS = 7.76 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GHS – Ghanaian Cedi Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇭 Ghanaian Cedi (₵)

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 11.58 GHS (100 GHS = 8.64 USD). 1 EUR = 12.89 GHS (100 GHS = 7.76 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GHS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Accra Playa del Carmen 9,470 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Accra
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,077 in Accra, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 12% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,615 per month in Accra 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 Accra, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $686 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Interestingly, groceries are about 9% cheaper in Playa del Carmen – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Accra and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,077 in Accra and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,077 in Accra to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Accra. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.