Cost of Living Comparison Between Alba and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Alba and Playa del Carmen

😐 Solo nomad: Alba is 19.9% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 18.5% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Alba is 36% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 5.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.17 €10.5
$11.73 MX$222
3.75%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$90.8 €78.4
$41.52 MX$785
118.62%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.01 €11.23
$10.57 MX$200
23.08%
Cappuccino
$1.69 €1.46
$3.49 MX$65.9
-51.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.92 €2.52
$1.45 MX$27.33
101.38%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 €1.24
$0.97 MX$18.33
48.45%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.56 €5.66
$3.03 MX$57.2
116.50%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.96 €5.15
$4.59 MX$86.8
29.85%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.85 €1.6
$1.42 MX$26.87
30.28%
White Bread (500g)
$2.85 €2.46
$1.87 MX$35.43
52.41%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.31 €2.86
$1.54 MX$29.2
114.94%
Eggs
$4.23 €3.65
$2.6 MX$49.21
62.69%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.72 €10.12
$8.32 MX$157
40.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$13.06 €11.28
$8.54 MX$161
52.93%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$24.52 €21.17
$10.67 MX$202
129.80%
Apples (1kg)
$1.69 €1.46
$2.66 MX$50.2
-36.47%
Banana (1kg)
$2.42 €2.09
$1.51 MX$28.5
60.26%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.35 €2.89
$1.9 MX$35.87
76.32%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.91 €3.38
$2.19 MX$41.45
78.54%
Potato (1kg)
$2.59 €2.23
$1.78 MX$33.7
45.51%
Onion (1kg)
$1.72 €1.49
$2.17 MX$41.05
-20.74%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.67 €1.44
$1.07 MX$20.14
56.07%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.15 €0.13
$1.09 MX$20.53
-86.24%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.08 €6.12
$4.17 MX$78.8
69.78%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.59 €7.41
$8.75 MX$165
-1.83%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.46 €2.13
$1.69 MX$31.91
45.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.14 €2.71
$2.53 MX$47.74
24.11%
🚌 Getting Around
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.77 €1.53
$0.51 MX$9.59
247.06%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$42.71 €36.87
$26.97 MX$510
58.36%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$8.06 €6.96
$3.25 MX$61.4
148.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.57 €1.36
$2.49 MX$47.01
-36.95%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$39.7 €34.28
$3.22 MX$60.8
1132.92%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.1 €1.81
$1.26 MX$23.87
66.67%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$32.9K €28.4K
$29.8K MX$564.1K
10.33%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$36.2K €31.3K
$23.4K MX$442.5K
54.84%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$217 €187
$84.2 MX$1,592
157.11%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$8.33 €7.19
$22.8 MX$431
-63.46%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$31.08 €26.84
$30.04 MX$568
3.46%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$55.4 €47.84
$51.4 MX$972
7.80%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.78 €19.66
$18.28 MX$346
24.62%
Cinema Ticket
$11.73 €10.13
$4.97 MX$94.1
136.02%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$875 €755
$197 MX$3,719
344.69%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.2K €14K
$5,254 MX$99.3K
207.53%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$100 €86.3
$35.81 MX$677
179.17%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$29.33 €25.33
$39.43 MX$745
-25.62%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$52.6 €45.43
$80.9 MX$1,529
-34.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$74 €63.9
$86.3 MX$1,631
-14.21%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$493 €426
$968 MX$18.3K
-49.10%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$399 €345
$478 MX$9,037
-16.46%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$764 €659
$1,631 MX$30.8K
-53.18%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$642 €554
$1,197 MX$22.6K
-46.34%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,115 €2,689
$3,137 MX$59.3K
-0.69%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,081 €1,797
$7,586 MX$143.4K
-72.57%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Alba
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,147 €1,854
$805 MX$15.2K
166.64%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.25
11.42
-71.54%

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

Last update for Alba: November 2, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2025

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