Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ad Diwaniyah and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Ad Diwaniyah: $570 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Ad Diwaniyah
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Ad Diwaniyah Living Index
59

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

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Ad Diwaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$570

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $570 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $570
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $904 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $904
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $1,237 per month in Ad Diwaniyah vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ad Diwaniyah $1,237
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Ad Diwaniyah is about 53% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Ad Diwaniyah and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Ad Diwaniyah 58% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 IQD 4,276

$10.76 MX$199

-73.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$9.77 IQD 14.8K

$43.03 MX$795

-77.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.70 IQD 7,108

$11.79 MX$218

-60.14%

Cappuccino

$1.69 IQD 2,549

$3.87 MX$71.4

-56.33%

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

$0.33 IQD 493

$1.37 MX$25.29

-75.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 IQD 302

$0.84 MX$15.44

-76.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 IQD 5,066

$3.10 MX$57.3

8.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 IQD 4,861

$5.07 MX$93.6

-36.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.95 IQD 1,442

$1.44 MX$26.55

-34.03%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 IQD 980

$2.23 MX$41.23

-70.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 IQD 1,763

$1.47 MX$27.17

-20.41%

Eggs

$1.63 IQD 2,469

$2.53 MX$46.71

-35.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.26 IQD 4,924

$7.30 MX$135

-55.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 IQD 5,032

$7.86 MX$145

-57.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.13 IQD 15.3K

$12.79 MX$236

-20.80%

Apples (1kg)

$0.67 IQD 1,017

$2.90 MX$53.6

-76.90%

Banana (1kg)

$0.65 IQD 977

$1.44 MX$26.53

-54.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 965

$2.55 MX$47.07

-74.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 974

$2.06 MX$38.03

-68.93%

Potato (1kg)

$0.59 IQD 895

$2.00 MX$36.97

-70.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 852

$2.01 MX$37.07

-72.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.32 IQD 476

$1.19 MX$22.02

-73.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 IQD 867

$1.26 MX$23.23

-54.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.63 IQD 2,458

$4.40 MX$81.4

-62.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.33 IQD 5,024

$9.59 MX$177

-65.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 IQD 2,895

$1.59 MX$29.41

20.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 IQD 2,929

$2.81 MX$51.9

-30.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.45 IQD 687

$0.57 MX$10.47

-21.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.45 IQD 32.4K

$27.82 MX$514

-22.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.02 IQD 3,046

$4.98 MX$92.1

-59.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 IQD 1,269

$3.50 MX$64.6

-76.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.68 IQD 10.1K

$5.40 MX$99.8

23.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.31 IQD 475

$1.47 MX$27.08

-78.91%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

-21.19%

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

$16.4K IQD 24.8M

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-31.45%

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

$32.58 IQD 49.2K

$84.2 MX$1,556

-61.31%

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

$14.58 IQD 22.0K

$23.99 MX$443

-39.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.98 IQD 49.8K

$29.02 MX$536

13.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.85 IQD 57.2K

$63.0 MX$1,164

-39.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.75 IQD 10.2K

$29.14 MX$539

-76.84%

Cinema Ticket

$6.64 IQD 10.0K

$4.94 MX$91.3

34.41%

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

$66.5 IQD 100.4K

$204 MX$3,763

-67.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,972 IQD 4.5M

$3,941 MX$72.8K

-24.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.11 IQD 37.9K

$43.60 MX$806

-42.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.75 IQD 41.9K

$43.12 MX$797

-35.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.9 IQD 90.6K

$75.8 MX$1,400

-20.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.57 IQD 64.3K

$88.6 MX$1,637

-51.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$175 IQD 263.9K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-82.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$129 IQD 194.6K

$374 MX$6,911

-65.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$375 IQD 566.2K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-78.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$317 IQD 478.5K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-71.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$814 IQD 1.2M

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-79.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$632 IQD 954.8K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-89.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$328 IQD 495.6K

$754 MX$13.9K

-56.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

11.45

-64.02%

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

Last update for Ad Diwaniyah: October 12, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ad Diwaniyah

$129 22.6%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 190% $245

Groceries & Markets

Ad Diwaniyah

$128 22.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 102% $130

Eating Out

Ad Diwaniyah

$82 14.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 146% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ad Diwaniyah

$80 14.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 71.2% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Ad Diwaniyah

$70 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 61.6% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Ad Diwaniyah

$51 9%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 42.5% $22

Getting Around

Ad Diwaniyah

$29 5.2%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 78.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $175 in Ad Diwaniyah versus $1,008 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 run about 130% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $10.00 in Ad Diwaniyah versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $128 vs $258 – making Ad Diwaniyah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Ad Diwaniyah

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

18:53 6:53 PM

10:53 10:53 AM

8 h behind Ad Diwaniyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

650,927

149,923

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ad Diwaniyah Playa del Carmen 12,250 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Ad Diwaniyah
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 112%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $855 per month in Ad Diwaniyah and $1,816 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 Ad Diwaniyah, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $66.5 per month in Ad Diwaniyah and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 102% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ad Diwaniyah, where all-in costs run around $570, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Ad Diwaniyah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ad Diwaniyah – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Ad Diwaniyah. 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.