Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albay and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Albay: $716 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Albay
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Albay Living Index
58

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

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Albay

🇵🇭 Philippines

$716

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $716 in Albay versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Albay $716
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,076 in Albay versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Albay $1,076
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,437 in Albay versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Albay $1,437
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Albay costs roughly 41% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Albay 47% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.87 ₱247

$10.92 MX$204

-64.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.59 ₱1,060

$43.37 MX$808

-61.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.81 ₱180

$11.78 MX$220

-76.15%

Cappuccino

$2.12 ₱135

$3.81 MX$71.0

-44.36%

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

$0.64 ₱41.12

$1.28 MX$23.90

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₱19.50

$0.78 MX$14.59

-60.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.15 ₱73.2

$3.17 MX$59.0

-63.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 ₱129

$4.93 MX$92.0

-59.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 ₱91.2

$1.41 MX$26.22

1.42%

White Bread (500g)

$0.98 ₱62.9

$2.22 MX$41.33

-55.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.84 ₱53.9

$1.42 MX$26.42

-40.85%

Eggs

$1.97 ₱126

$2.52 MX$47.03

-21.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.66 ₱362

$7.26 MX$135

-22.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.73 ₱238

$7.70 MX$143

-51.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.74 ₱494

$12.69 MX$237

-39.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 ₱148

$2.78 MX$51.9

-16.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 ₱109

$1.37 MX$25.50

24.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 ₱143

$2.55 MX$47.55

-12.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 ₱69.7

$2.12 MX$39.58

-48.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.28 ₱146

$1.94 MX$36.13

17.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 ₱141

$1.89 MX$35.16

16.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 ₱59.6

$1.15 MX$21.37

-19.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₱31.73

$1.18 MX$21.98

-57.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.22 ₱205

$4.30 MX$80.1

-25.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.85 ₱502

$9.95 MX$185

-21.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 ₱69.2

$1.58 MX$29.52

-31.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 ₱116

$2.67 MX$49.79

-31.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 ₱13.37

$0.55 MX$10.31

-61.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.81 ₱691

$26.62 MX$496

-59.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₱46.37

$4.97 MX$92.6

-85.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.70

$3.33 MX$62.1

-93.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.77 ₱113

$5.36 MX$99.8

-66.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ₱75.1

$1.44 MX$26.92

-18.75%

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

$20.9K ₱1.3M

$20.7K MX$385.2K

1.15%

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

$17.3K ₱1.1M

$23.5K MX$437.4K

-26.06%

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

$126 ₱8,021

$84.8 MX$1,581

48.05%

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

$15.45 ₱987

$23.41 MX$436

-34.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.13 ₱1,414

$28.66 MX$534

-22.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.89 ₱2,229

$57.1 MX$1,063

-38.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.83 ₱372

$28.91 MX$539

-79.83%

Cinema Ticket

$5.50 ₱351

$5.14 MX$95.8

7.00%

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

$116 ₱7,394

$207 MX$3,851

-43.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,444 ₱539.5K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

115.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.18 ₱2,056

$43.35 MX$808

-25.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.98 ₱1,149

$41.44 MX$772

-56.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.9 ₱4,338

$74.2 MX$1,383

-8.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.6 ₱3,359

$89.3 MX$1,664

-41.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$231 ₱14.7K

$980 MX$18.3K

-76.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$162 ₱10.4K

$381 MX$7,099

-57.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$539 ₱34.4K

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-68.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ₱19.8K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-71.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,354 ₱150.4K

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-40.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,187 ₱75.8K

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-80.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$159 ₱10.2K

$735 MX$13.7K

-78.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.92

11.45

-39.56%

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

Last update for Albay: October 25, 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

Albay

$176 24.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 44.7% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albay

$163 22.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 16.1% $26

Accommodation & Living

Albay

$162 22.7%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 135% $218

Eating Out

Albay

$78 11%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 158% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Albay

$77 10.7%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 45.5% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Albay

$46 6.4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 46.7% $21

Getting Around

Albay

$14 1.9%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 273% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $231 in Albay and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 4.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $17 in Albay vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $255 per month, with Albay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Albay

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

23:11 11:11 PM

10:11 10:11 AM

13 h behind Albay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

179,481

149,923

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.11 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Albay Playa del Carmen 14,970 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Albay
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

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

Albay and Playa del Carmen differ by about 68% in total monthly costs ($716 vs $1,204 including rent). Albay is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 78% lower in Albay. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $231 in Albay versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 45% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Albay – a meal for two runs $17 versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $716 in Albay versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Albay but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Albay the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Albay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.