Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alges and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,004 in Alges, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

97

Cost of Living Index in Alges
Learn more

Alges Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Alges

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,004

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,004 per month in Alges vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Alges $2,004
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,863 per month in Alges vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Alges $2,863
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,722 per month in Alges vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Alges $3,722
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Alges costs about 66% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Alges sits 47% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.79 €14.14

$10.92 MX$205

44.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.3 €49.51

$43.37 MX$814

27.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.74 €8.72

$11.78 MX$221

-17.32%

Cappuccino

$2.60 €2.33

$3.81 MX$71.5

-31.76%

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

$2.34 €2.10

$1.28 MX$24.07

82.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 €1.99

$0.78 MX$14.70

184.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.31 €2.96

$3.17 MX$59.5

4.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.88

$4.93 MX$92.7

10.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 €0.93

$1.41 MX$26.40

-26.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.94 €1.74

$2.22 MX$41.62

-12.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 €1.93

$1.42 MX$26.61

51.41%

Eggs

$3.50 €3.13

$2.52 MX$47.36

38.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.06 €9.90

$7.26 MX$136

52.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.08 €6.34

$7.70 MX$144

-8.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 €13.55

$12.69 MX$238

19.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 €2.57

$2.78 MX$52.3

3.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.37 MX$25.68

0.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 €1.65

$2.55 MX$47.89

-27.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.24 €2.00

$2.12 MX$39.86

5.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.59 €1.43

$1.94 MX$36.39

-18.04%

Onion (1kg)

$2.11 €1.89

$1.89 MX$35.41

11.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.15 MX$21.53

34.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.76

$1.18 MX$22.13

-27.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.69 €5.10

$4.30 MX$80.6

32.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.00 €4.48

$9.95 MX$187

-49.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.07

$1.58 MX$29.73

-24.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 €2.77

$2.67 MX$50.1

15.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.25 €2.02

$0.55 MX$10.39

309.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.57

$26.62 MX$500

65.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.59 €4.11

$4.97 MX$93.3

-7.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 €0.82

$3.33 MX$62.5

-72.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.55 €15.72

$5.36 MX$101

227.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.44 MX$27.11

45.14%

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

$33.6K €30.1K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

62.41%

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

$38.6K €34.5K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

64.32%

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

$133 €119

$84.8 MX$1,592

56.33%

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

$24.97 €22.36

$23.41 MX$439

6.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.0 €49.21

$28.66 MX$538

91.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.60 €39.04

$57.1 MX$1,071

-23.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.23 €15.43

$28.91 MX$543

-40.40%

Cinema Ticket

$7.42 €6.64

$5.14 MX$96.5

44.36%

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

$591 €529

$207 MX$3,878

186.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K €16.8K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

378.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.1 €69.1

$43.35 MX$814

77.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.93 €30.39

$41.44 MX$778

-18.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.4 €79.1

$74.2 MX$1,393

19.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.5 €85.5

$89.3 MX$1,676

6.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 €1,085

$980 MX$18.4K

23.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 €941

$381 MX$7,150

175.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,052 €1,837

$1,708 MX$32.1K

20.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,576 €1,411

$1,075 MX$20.2K

46.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,135 €2,808

$3,943 MX$74.0K

-20.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,271 €2,034

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-63.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,221 €1,094

$735 MX$13.8K

66.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.67

11.45

-67.95%

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

Last update for Alges: October 26, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alges

$1.1K 52.4%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 63.8% $670

Groceries & Markets

Alges

$255 12.7%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 0.1% $0.3

Eating Out

Alges

$232 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 12.9% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alges

$212 10.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 35.6% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Alges

$133 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 15.8% $21

Getting Around

Alges

$62 3.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 19.1% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Alges

$58 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 15.2% $8.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,211 in Alges versus $980 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 66% higher in Alges, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Alges versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Alges vs $255 in Playa del Carmen – so Alges wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Alges

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:16 10:16 PM

17:16 5:16 PM

5 h behind Alges

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,327

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Alges Playa del Carmen 7,570 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Alges
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,004 in Alges, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 40% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,006 per month in Alges and $1,806 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,211 in Alges.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Alges and $43 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 40% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Alges at $2,004. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Alges it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $2,004 in Alges. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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