Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-Ula and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Al-Ula and in Playa del Carmen: $1,184 and $1,210 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Al-Ula
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Al-Ula Living Index
59

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

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Al-Ula

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,184

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,184 per month in Al-Ula vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-Ula $1,184
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $1,757 per month in Al-Ula vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-Ula $1,757
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $2,330 per month in Al-Ula vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Al-Ula $2,330
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Al-Ula is about 2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Al-Ula and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Al-Ula 12% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.11 SAR 22.91

$10.76 MX$199

-43.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.80 SAR 138

$43.03 MX$795

-14.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.96 SAR 29.87

$11.79 MX$218

-32.49%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.89 SAR 7.08

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 SAR 8.62

Cappuccino

$3.17 SAR 11.89

$3.87 MX$71.4

-18.09%

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

$0.86 SAR 3.24

$1.37 MX$25.29

-37.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 SAR 0.98

$0.84 MX$15.44

-69.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 SAR 6.52

$1.44 MX$26.55

20.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 SAR 4.75

$2.23 MX$41.23

-43.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 SAR 8.62

$1.47 MX$27.17

56.46%

Eggs

$2.32 SAR 8.72

$2.53 MX$46.71

-8.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.39 SAR 27.75

$7.30 MX$135

1.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.07 SAR 30.27

$7.86 MX$145

2.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.67 SAR 47.54

$12.79 MX$236

-0.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.25 SAR 8.45

$2.90 MX$53.6

-22.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 SAR 6.60

$1.44 MX$26.53

22.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.94

$2.55 MX$47.07

-38.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.57 SAR 5.89

$2.06 MX$38.03

-23.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 SAR 4.61

$2.00 MX$36.97

-38.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 SAR 4.79

$2.01 MX$37.07

-36.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 SAR 4.58

$1.19 MX$22.02

2.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 SAR 2.02

$1.26 MX$23.23

-57.14%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.86 SAR 10.71

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SAR 6.68

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 SAR 7.91

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.74 SAR 25.28

$4.40 MX$81.4

53.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.09 SAR 4.08

$0.57 MX$10.47

91.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.77 SAR 138

$27.82 MX$514

32.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 SAR 9.80

$4.98 MX$92.1

-47.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.85 SAR 6.95

$3.50 MX$64.6

-47.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.14 SAR 49.29

$5.40 MX$99.8

143.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.65 SAR 2.44

$1.47 MX$27.08

-55.78%

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

$44.0K SAR 165.2K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

109.79%

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

$21.3K SAR 79.9K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-10.90%

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

$106 SAR 397

$84.2 MX$1,556

25.78%

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

$33.21 SAR 125

$23.99 MX$443

38.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$65.8 SAR 247

$29.02 MX$536

126.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$82.4 SAR 309

$63.0 MX$1,164

30.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$13.33 SAR 50.0

$4.94 MX$91.3

169.84%

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

$425 SAR 1,596

$204 MX$3,763

108.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,102 SAR 30.4K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

105.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.74 SAR 160

$43.60 MX$806

-1.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 SAR 208

$43.12 MX$797

28.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.2 SAR 361

$75.8 MX$1,400

26.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.6 SAR 329

$88.6 MX$1,637

-1.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$576 SAR 2,162

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-42.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$372 SAR 1,397

$374 MX$6,911

-0.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 SAR 3,121

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-51.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$572 SAR 2,147

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-48.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,323 SAR 8,718

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-41.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,382 SAR 5,187

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-77.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

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-Ula: October 11, 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

Al-Ula

$372 31.5%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 0.5% $1.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-Ula

$205 17.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 33% $68

Groceries & Markets

Al-Ula

$203 17.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 27.6% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Al-Ula

$127 10.7%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 10.9% $14

Eating Out

Al-Ula

$115 9.7%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 75.5% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Al-Ula

$109 9.2%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 33.2% $36

Getting Around

Al-Ula

$53 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 0.8% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $576 in Al-Ula 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37.00 in Al-Ula versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $203 vs $258 – making Al-Ula the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al-Ula

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

12:29 12:29 PM

04:29 4:29 AM

8 h behind Al-Ula

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,413

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 = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-Ula Playa del Carmen 12,100 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,184 in Al-Ula, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 2% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,776 per month in Al-Ula 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 Al-Ula, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $425 per month in Al-Ula 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 28% 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 $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Al-Ula, where all-in costs run around $1,184, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,210. In Al-Ula it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,184 in Al-Ula to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Al-Ula. 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.