Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alexandria and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Alexandria: $998 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

49

Cost of Living Index in Alexandria
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Alexandria Living Index
59

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

Jump to prices

Alexandria

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$998

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $998 in Alexandria versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Alexandria $998
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,658 in Alexandria versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Alexandria $1,658
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,317 in Alexandria versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Alexandria $2,317
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Alexandria costs roughly 18% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Alexandria 26% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.42 JMD 2,120

$10.76 MX$199

24.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.8 JMD 12.1K

$43.03 MX$795

78.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.21 JMD 1,298

$11.79 MX$218

-30.36%

Cappuccino

$5.37 JMD 849

$3.87 MX$71.4

38.76%

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

$1.16 JMD 183

$1.37 MX$25.29

-15.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 JMD 117

$0.84 MX$15.44

-11.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.22 JMD 351

$3.10 MX$57.3

-28.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 JMD 491

$5.07 MX$93.6

-38.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.20 JMD 664

$1.44 MX$26.55

191.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.71 JMD 586

$2.23 MX$41.23

66.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 JMD 248

$1.47 MX$27.17

6.80%

Eggs

$3.63 JMD 573

$2.53 MX$46.71

43.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.31 JMD 1,787

$7.30 MX$135

54.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.18 JMD 976

$7.86 MX$145

-21.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.19 JMD 1,611

$12.79 MX$236

-20.33%

Apples (1kg)

$5.94 JMD 938

$2.90 MX$53.6

104.83%

Banana (1kg)

$3.86 JMD 610

$1.44 MX$26.53

168.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.13 JMD 1,127

$2.55 MX$47.07

179.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.04 JMD 480

$2.06 MX$38.03

47.57%

Potato (1kg)

$3.17 JMD 501

$2.00 MX$36.97

58.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.66 JMD 420

$2.01 MX$37.07

32.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.07 JMD 484

$1.19 MX$22.02

157.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 JMD 227

$1.26 MX$23.23

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.61 JMD 1,519

$4.40 MX$81.4

118.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.11 JMD 1,755

$9.59 MX$177

15.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.77 JMD 437

$1.59 MX$29.41

74.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.06 JMD 642

$2.81 MX$51.9

44.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 JMD 183

$4.98 MX$92.1

-76.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.17 JMD 501

$3.50 MX$64.6

-9.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.12 JMD 967

$5.40 MX$99.8

13.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 JMD 220

$1.47 MX$27.08

-5.44%

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

$43.4K JMD 6.9M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

106.62%

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

$32.3K JMD 5.1M

$23.9K MX$441.8K

35.31%

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

$165 JMD 26.1K

$84.2 MX$1,556

95.82%

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

$29.45 JMD 4,653

$23.99 MX$443

22.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 JMD 8,382

$29.02 MX$536

82.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$13.30 JMD 2,101

$4.94 MX$91.3

169.23%

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

$364 JMD 57.5K

$204 MX$3,763

78.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,298 JMD 1.3M

$3,941 MX$72.8K

110.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.82 JMD 3,764

$43.60 MX$806

-45.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.89 JMD 5,039

$43.12 MX$797

-26.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 JMD 12.0K

$75.8 MX$1,400

0.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 JMD 16.1K

$88.6 MX$1,637

15.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

11.45

-17.47%

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

Last update for Alexandria: October 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Alexandria

$380 38.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 32.1% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alexandria

$247 24.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 44.5% $110

Eating Out

Alexandria

$221 22.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 8.6% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Alexandria

$105 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 7.4% $7.8

Sport & Entertainment

Alexandria

$27 * 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 174% $46

Getting Around

Alexandria

$17 * 1.7%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 209% $36

Accommodation & Living

Alexandria

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $77.0 in Alexandria vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $380 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Alexandria

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

08:22 8:22 AM

Same time as Alexandria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,927

149,923

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 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 JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Alexandria Playa del Carmen 1,050 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Alexandria
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

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

Alexandria and Playa del Carmen differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($998 vs $1,210 including rent). Alexandria is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,497 in Alexandria and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $364 in Alexandria versus $204 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Alexandria – a meal for two runs $77.0 versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $998 in Alexandria versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Alexandria but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Alexandria 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 Alexandria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.