Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $1,387 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Almaty outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

66

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index
60

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

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Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,387

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,387 per month in Almaty vs $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Almaty $1,387
Playa del Carmen $1,215

A couple spends around $2,135 per month in Almaty vs $2,144 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Almaty $2,135
Playa del Carmen $2,144

A family of three spends $2,883 per month in Almaty vs $3,072 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Almaty $2,883
Playa del Carmen $3,072

Almaty costs about 14% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Almaty sits 3% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 9% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.31 ₸5,991

$10.97 MX$200

21.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 ₸19.5K

$44.85 MX$816

-3.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 ₸3,959

$11.92 MX$217

-26.17%

Cappuccino

$3.30 ₸1,486

$3.80 MX$69.2

-13.16%

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

$1.37 ₸616

$1.31 MX$23.86

4.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₸406

$0.86 MX$15.58

4.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.13 ₸1,409

$3.21 MX$58.4

-2.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ₸1,847

$5.01 MX$91.2

-18.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₸749

$1.46 MX$26.53

13.70%

White Bread (500g)

$0.90 ₸403

$2.33 MX$42.33

-61.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.06 ₸927

$1.44 MX$26.24

43.06%

Eggs

$2.37 ₸1,067

$2.46 MX$44.78

-3.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.64 ₸5,689

$7.70 MX$140

64.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 ₸2,978

$7.89 MX$144

-16.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.87 ₸4,893

$12.80 MX$233

-15.08%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₸839

$2.92 MX$53.1

-36.30%

Banana (1kg)

$2.37 ₸1,067

$1.42 MX$25.87

66.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.99 ₸1,348

$2.57 MX$46.66

16.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.83 ₸1,273

$2.14 MX$38.88

32.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ₸345

$1.95 MX$35.42

-60.51%

Onion (1kg)

$0.58 ₸262

$1.94 MX$35.22

-70.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 ₸718

$1.15 MX$20.94

38.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ₸446

$1.22 MX$22.21

-18.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.54 ₸1,145

$4.38 MX$79.6

-42.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.04 ₸4,969

$9.85 MX$179

12.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸546

$1.54 MX$27.97

-21.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 ₸1,085

$2.72 MX$49.40

-11.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₸113

$0.52 MX$9.55

-51.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.84 ₸9,831

$27.42 MX$499

-20.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₸577

$4.91 MX$89.4

-73.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸289

$3.52 MX$64.1

-81.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.74 ₸4,836

$5.69 MX$103

88.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 ₸312

$1.54 MX$28.01

-55.19%

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

$22.3K ₸10.0M

$21.2K MX$386.3K

4.87%

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

$29.3K ₸13.2M

$24.5K MX$445.4K

19.81%

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

$87.8 ₸39.5K

$83.6 MX$1,521

4.96%

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

$10.83 ₸4,874

$24.03 MX$437

-54.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.40 ₸7,831

$29.33 MX$534

-40.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 ₸31.4K

$64.9 MX$1,180

7.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.58 ₸12.0K

$29.46 MX$536

-9.78%

Cinema Ticket

$6.68 ₸3,009

$5.09 MX$92.5

31.24%

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

$446 ₸200.8K

$208 MX$3,778

114.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₸5.4M

$4,045 MX$73.6K

193.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.7 ₸42.2K

$44.55 MX$810

110.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.91 ₸21.1K

$42.06 MX$765

11.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$143 ₸64.3K

$75.5 MX$1,374

88.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸60.1K

$91.4 MX$1,662

46.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$773 ₸348.1K

$986 MX$17.9K

-21.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$497 ₸223.9K

$385 MX$7,007

29.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 ₸625.9K

$1,713 MX$31.2K

-18.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$880 ₸396.0K

$1,108 MX$20.2K

-20.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,546 ₸1.1M

$4,016 MX$73.0K

-36.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,506 ₸678.2K

$6,247 MX$113.6K

-75.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$834 ₸375.2K

$758 MX$13.8K

9.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

11.45

80.35%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 5, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$497 36.4%

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4% 22.5% $112

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$251 18.4%

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2% 3.6% $9.1

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 15%

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6% 0.7% $1.5

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$188 13.7%

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3% 39.2% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$116 8.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2% 18.1% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$83 6.1%

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1% 9.7% $8

Getting Around

Almaty

$27 2%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2% 90.4% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $773 in Almaty versus $986 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 10% higher in Almaty, 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 $43.00 in Almaty versus $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $251 vs $260 – making Almaty the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

13:44 1:44 PM

02:44 2:44 AM

11 h behind Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

149,923

💱 Currency

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to KZT – Kazakhstani Tenge Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇿 Kazakhstani Tenge (₸)

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 450 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Almaty Playa del Carmen 12,730 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
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

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

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 14%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,080 per month in Almaty and $1,823 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Almaty and $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,387 in Almaty and $1,215 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 14%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,215, than in Almaty at $1,387. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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