Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-'amarah and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-’amarah: $672 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Al-'amarah
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Al-'amarah Living Index
58

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

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Al-'amarah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$672

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $672 per month in Al-’amarah vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-'amarah $672
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,023 per month in Al-’amarah vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-'amarah $1,023
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $1,373 per month in Al-’amarah vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-'amarah $1,373
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Al-’amarah is about 44% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Al-’amarah and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Al-’amarah 51% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.08 IQD 6,163

$10.92 MX$205

-62.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.39 IQD 29.3K

$43.37 MX$814

-55.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.29 IQD 9,501

$11.78 MX$221

-46.60%

Cappuccino

$2.23 IQD 3,364

$3.81 MX$71.5

-41.47%

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

$0.38 IQD 575

$1.28 MX$24.07

-70.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.21 IQD 311

$0.78 MX$14.70

-73.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 IQD 4,555

$3.17 MX$59.5

-5.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 IQD 3,705

$4.93 MX$92.7

-50.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 IQD 1,494

$1.41 MX$26.40

-29.79%

White Bread (500g)

$0.67 IQD 1,014

$2.22 MX$41.62

-69.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 IQD 2,090

$1.42 MX$26.61

-2.82%

Eggs

$1.59 IQD 2,409

$2.52 MX$47.36

-36.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.88 IQD 5,856

$7.26 MX$136

-46.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.44 IQD 5,192

$7.70 MX$144

-55.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.32 IQD 20.1K

$12.69 MX$238

4.96%

Apples (1kg)

$0.95 IQD 1,440

$2.78 MX$52.3

-65.83%

Banana (1kg)

$0.98 IQD 1,474

$1.37 MX$25.68

-28.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.91 IQD 1,368

$2.55 MX$47.89

-64.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 951

$2.12 MX$39.86

-70.28%

Potato (1kg)

$0.55 IQD 836

$1.94 MX$36.39

-71.65%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 IQD 950

$1.89 MX$35.41

-66.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 IQD 848

$1.15 MX$21.53

-51.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 IQD 715

$1.18 MX$22.13

-60.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.48 IQD 2,231

$4.30 MX$80.6

-65.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.09 IQD 18.3K

$9.95 MX$187

21.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 IQD 2,545

$1.58 MX$29.73

6.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 IQD 2,798

$2.67 MX$50.1

-30.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 IQD 438

$0.55 MX$10.39

-47.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.79 IQD 2,712

$4.97 MX$93.3

-63.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.17 IQD 1,766

$3.33 MX$62.5

-64.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.46 IQD 8,252

$5.36 MX$101

1.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.58 IQD 878

$1.44 MX$27.11

-59.72%

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

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

$20.7K MX$388.0K

-14.79%

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

$14.7K IQD 22.2M

$23.5K MX$440.5K

-37.50%

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

$97.8 IQD 147.8K

$84.8 MX$1,592

15.36%

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

$14.57 IQD 22.0K

$23.41 MX$439

-37.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.47 IQD 43.0K

$28.66 MX$538

-0.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.45 IQD 55.1K

$57.1 MX$1,071

-36.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

Cinema Ticket

$9.04 IQD 13.7K

$5.14 MX$96.5

75.88%

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

$143 IQD 216.2K

$207 MX$3,878

-30.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,964 IQD 4.5M

$3,927 MX$73.7K

-24.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.18 IQD 35.0K

$43.35 MX$814

-46.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.01 IQD 33.3K

$41.44 MX$778

-46.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.2 IQD 103.0K

$74.2 MX$1,393

-8.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$32.78 IQD 49.5K

$89.3 MX$1,676

-63.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$204 IQD 308.8K

$980 MX$18.4K

-79.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$140 IQD 211.8K

$381 MX$7,150

-63.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$368 IQD 555.9K

$1,708 MX$32.1K

-78.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$287 IQD 433.4K

$1,075 MX$20.2K

-73.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$863 IQD 1.3M

$3,943 MX$74.0K

-78.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$486 IQD 733.7K

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-92.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$434 IQD 655.1K

$735 MX$13.8K

-40.98%

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 Al-'amarah: 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

Al-'amarah

$162 24.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 57.5% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-'amarah

$141 21%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 2.8% $4

Accommodation & Living

Al-'amarah

$140 20.9%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 172% $241

Eating Out

Al-'amarah

$101 15%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 101% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Al-'amarah

$66 9.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 69.8% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Al-'amarah

$55 8.1%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 23.5% $13

Getting Around

Al-'amarah

$8.8 * 1.3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 473% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $204 in Al-’amarah 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 run about 69% 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 $19 in Al-’amarah versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $162 vs $255 – making Al-’amarah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al-'amarah

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:15 10:15 PM

14:15 2:15 PM

8 h behind Al-'amarah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

511,542

149,923

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,687 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Al-'amarah Playa del Carmen 12,410 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Al-'amarah
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

Al-'amarah vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 79%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,009 per month in Al-’amarah 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 Al-’amarah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $204 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Al-’amarah and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 57% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Al-’amarah, where all-in costs run around $672, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Al-’amarah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Al-’amarah – 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 Al-’amarah. 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.