Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Mubarraz and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,251 in Al Mubarraz, rent and utilities included – about $590 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Al Mubarraz
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Al Mubarraz Living Index
57

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

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Al Mubarraz

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,251

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,251 per month in Al Mubarraz vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al Mubarraz $1,251
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $1,894 per month in Al Mubarraz vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al Mubarraz $1,894
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,538 per month in Al Mubarraz vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al Mubarraz $2,538
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Al Mubarraz costs about 4% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Al Mubarraz and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Al Mubarraz 7% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.36 SAR 27.64

$10.67 MX$199

-31.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.62 SAR 137

$43.80 MX$815

-16.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.00 SAR 30.03

$11.79 MX$219

-32.15%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 SAR 7.80

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 SAR 7.89

Cappuccino

$4.47 SAR 16.76

$3.79 MX$70.5

17.94%

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

$0.67 SAR 2.52

$1.30 MX$24.14

-48.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 SAR 1.06

$0.83 MX$15.51

-66.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 SAR 6.50

$1.41 MX$26.22

22.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.33 SAR 4.99

$2.20 MX$40.86

-39.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.47 SAR 9.27

$1.47 MX$27.40

68.03%

Eggs

$2.99 SAR 11.21

$2.50 MX$46.46

19.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.63 SAR 39.91

$7.29 MX$136

45.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.59 SAR 36.01

$7.95 MX$148

20.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 SAR 56.3

$12.86 MX$239

16.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 SAR 10.99

$2.90 MX$53.9

1.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 SAR 7.06

$1.38 MX$25.74

36.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.51 SAR 9.41

$2.49 MX$46.35

0.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 SAR 6.69

$2.03 MX$37.77

-12.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 SAR 4.38

$2.02 MX$37.68

-42.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 SAR 4.99

$1.90 MX$35.42

-30.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

$1.14 MX$21.30

54.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 SAR 2.17

$1.24 MX$23.05

-53.23%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.98 SAR 11.19

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 SAR 9.33

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.59 SAR 28.48

$4.27 MX$79.5

77.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 SAR 3.82

$0.51 MX$9.58

100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.07 SAR 120

$27.39 MX$510

17.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.27 SAR 12.27

$4.76 MX$88.6

-31.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.89 SAR 7.10

$3.25 MX$60.5

-41.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.53 SAR 50.8

$5.39 MX$100

151.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.40

$1.53 MX$28.44

-58.17%

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

$26.3K SAR 98.7K

$21.2K MX$394.8K

24.00%

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

$21.8K SAR 81.8K

$23.3K MX$432.9K

-6.29%

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

$107 SAR 402

$83.5 MX$1,554

28.15%

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

$29.24 SAR 110

$23.19 MX$431

26.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.4 SAR 264

$27.61 MX$514

154.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.5 SAR 295

$56.4 MX$1,050

39.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$13.68 SAR 51.3

$5.00 MX$93.1

173.60%

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

$552 SAR 2,073

$207 MX$3,854

166.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K SAR 62.0K

$5,231 MX$97.3K

215.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 SAR 216

$43.45 MX$809

32.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.6 SAR 205

$42.54 MX$792

28.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 SAR 386

$72.8 MX$1,354

41.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 SAR 392

$88.4 MX$1,645

18.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$557 SAR 2,092

$995 MX$18.5K

-43.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$363 SAR 1,363

$382 MX$7,116

-5.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$914 SAR 3,433

$1,674 MX$31.2K

-45.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$611 SAR 2,293

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-43.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,728 SAR 6,485

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-55.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,143 SAR 4,290

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-81.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,069 SAR 4,011

$832 MX$15.5K

28.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

11.45

-51.62%

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

Last update for Al Mubarraz: November 1, 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

Al Mubarraz

$363 29%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 5.3% $19

Groceries & Markets

Al Mubarraz

$242 19.4%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 6.3% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Mubarraz

$207 16.5%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 35% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Al Mubarraz

$144 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 22.6% $33

Eating Out

Al Mubarraz

$140 11.2%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 42.7% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Al Mubarraz

$106 8.5%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 37.3% $39

Getting Around

Al Mubarraz

$49 3.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 3.3% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $557 in Al Mubarraz 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 run about 28% higher in Al Mubarraz. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37 in Al Mubarraz versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $242 vs $257 – making Al Mubarraz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al Mubarraz

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

05:18 5:18 AM

21:18 9:18 PM

8 h behind Al Mubarraz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

290,802

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 = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.23 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Al Mubarraz Playa del Carmen 13,080 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,251 in Al Mubarraz, $1,202 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 4% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,876 per month in Al Mubarraz 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 Al Mubarraz, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $557 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Kindergarten costs $552 per month in Al Mubarraz and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 6% cheaper in Al Mubarraz – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,251 in Al Mubarraz and $1,202 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 $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,251 in Al Mubarraz. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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