Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ankeny, IA and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,340 in Ankeny, IA, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

112

Cost of Living Index in Ankeny, IA
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Ankeny, IA Living Index
58

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

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Ankeny, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,340

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,340 in Ankeny, IA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Ankeny, IA $2,340
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,308 in Ankeny, IA versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Ankeny, IA $3,308
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,275 in Ankeny, IA versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Ankeny, IA $4,275
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Ankeny, IA is roughly 94% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ankeny, IA is 72% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.05 $20.05

$10.92 MX$204

83.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.4 $79.4

$43.37 MX$808

83.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.94 $11.94

$11.78 MX$220

1.36%

Cappuccino

$5.60 $5.60

$3.81 MX$71.0

46.98%

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

$3.04 $3.04

$1.28 MX$23.90

137.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$0.78 MX$14.59

119.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.05 $5.05

$3.17 MX$59.0

59.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.73 $5.73

$4.93 MX$92.0

16.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.89 $0.89

$1.41 MX$26.22

-36.88%

White Bread (500g)

$3.00 $3.00

$2.22 MX$41.33

35.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$1.42 MX$26.42

129.58%

Eggs

$3.96 $3.96

$2.52 MX$47.03

57.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.84 $9.84

$7.26 MX$135

35.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.29 $8.29

$7.70 MX$143

7.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.78 $14.78

$12.69 MX$237

16.47%

Apples (1kg)

$5.46 $5.46

$2.78 MX$51.9

96.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.37 MX$25.50

9.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.91 $4.91

$2.55 MX$47.55

92.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 $3.66

$2.12 MX$39.58

72.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 $2.17

$1.94 MX$36.13

11.86%

Onion (1kg)

$3.32 $3.32

$1.89 MX$35.16

75.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.91 $1.91

$1.15 MX$21.37

66.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$1.18 MX$21.98

115.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.83 $8.83

$4.30 MX$80.1

105.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.94 $14.94

$9.95 MX$185

50.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$1.58 MX$29.52

10.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 $2.48

$2.67 MX$49.79

-7.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.97 $1.97

$4.97 MX$92.6

-60.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 $1.26

$3.33 MX$62.1

-62.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.20 $20.20

$5.36 MX$99.8

276.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.44 MX$26.92

-30.56%

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

$26.2K $26.2K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

27.01%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

8.98%

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

$160 $160

$84.8 MX$1,581

89.24%

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

$52.9 $52.9

$23.41 MX$436

125.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.2 $66.2

$28.66 MX$534

131.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 $74.6

$57.1 MX$1,063

30.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$9.82 $9.82

$5.14 MX$95.8

91.05%

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

$1,095 $1,095

$207 MX$3,851

429.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K $11.9K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

203.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.07 $47.07

$43.35 MX$808

8.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.51 $34.51

$41.44 MX$772

-16.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.2 $88.2

$74.2 MX$1,383

18.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 $118

$89.3 MX$1,664

32.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,107 $1,107

$980 MX$18.3K

13.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,157 $1,157

$381 MX$7,099

203.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,968 $1,968

$1,708 MX$31.8K

15.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,600 $1,600

$1,075 MX$20.0K

48.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,485 $5,485

$735 MX$13.7K

646.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.37

11.45

-44.37%

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

Last update for Ankeny, IA: 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

Ankeny, IA

$1.2K 49.4%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 67.1% $776

Groceries & Markets

Ankeny, IA

$352 15.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 27.7% $97

Eating Out

Ankeny, IA

$319 13.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 36.6% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ankeny, IA

$280 12%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 51% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Ankeny, IA

$130 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 13.8% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Ankeny, IA

$94 4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 28.6% $27

Getting Around

Ankeny, IA

$8.3 * 0.4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 509% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,107 in Ankeny, IA and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ankeny, IA pays about 7.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $79 in Ankeny, IA vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Ankeny, IA

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:22 4:22 PM

Same time as Ankeny, IA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,887

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 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).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Ankeny, IA Playa del Carmen 2,430 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ankeny, IA
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

Ankeny, IA vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,340 in Ankeny, IA and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 49% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Ankeny, IA is about 7.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,107 in Ankeny, IA 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 38% higher in Ankeny, IA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,340 per month in Ankeny, IA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 49% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,340 in Ankeny, IA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Ankeny, IA. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen 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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Ankeny, IA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.