Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Antwerp and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,202 in Antwerp, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Antwerp
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Antwerp Living Index
58

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

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Antwerp

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,202

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Antwerp versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Antwerp $2,202
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,326 in Antwerp versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Antwerp $3,326
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,449 in Antwerp versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Antwerp $4,449
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Antwerp is roughly 83% 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: Antwerp is 62% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.81 €21.34

$10.92 MX$203

118.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.7 €85.7

$43.37 MX$808

120.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.19 €11.82

$11.78 MX$219

11.97%

Cappuccino

$4.27 €3.83

$3.81 MX$71.0

12.07%

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

$3.56 €3.19

$1.28 MX$23.89

178.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 €3.11

$0.78 MX$14.58

346.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 €4.99

$3.17 MX$59.0

75.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.61

$4.93 MX$91.9

26.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 €1.25

$1.41 MX$26.20

-1.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 €2.48

$2.22 MX$41.30

24.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 €1.98

$1.42 MX$26.40

55.63%

Eggs

$3.97 €3.56

$2.52 MX$47.00

57.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.34 €14.64

$7.26 MX$135

125.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.81 €10.58

$7.70 MX$143

53.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.46 €20.12

$12.69 MX$236

76.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 €2.66

$2.78 MX$51.9

6.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.40 €2.15

$1.37 MX$25.49

75.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$2.55 MX$47.52

1.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 €3.06

$2.12 MX$39.55

61.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.64 €2.37

$1.94 MX$36.11

36.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 €1.59

$1.89 MX$35.13

-6.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 €1.39

$1.15 MX$21.36

34.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.18 MX$21.96

-2.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.03 €11.68

$4.30 MX$80.0

203.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.88 €7.96

$9.95 MX$185

-10.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.58 MX$29.50

15.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.67 MX$49.76

-22.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.36 €3.01

$0.55 MX$10.31

510.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.4 €49.60

$26.62 MX$496

107.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.73 €5.14

$4.97 MX$92.6

15.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.72 €2.44

$3.33 MX$62.1

-18.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.85 €39.30

$5.36 MX$99.8

718.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.05 €1.84

$1.44 MX$26.90

42.36%

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

$35.5K €31.8K

$20.7K MX$385.0K

71.55%

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

$37.3K €33.4K

$23.5K MX$437.2K

58.93%

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

$208 €186

$84.8 MX$1,580

144.75%

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

$22.06 €19.77

$23.41 MX$436

-5.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.17 €42.27

$28.66 MX$534

64.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.59 €33.68

$57.1 MX$1,063

-34.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.44 €23.69

$28.91 MX$539

-8.54%

Cinema Ticket

$15.40 €13.80

$5.14 MX$95.7

199.61%

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

$1,616 €1,448

$207 MX$3,848

682.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.3K €29.9K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

748.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 €102

$43.35 MX$808

163.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.9 €47.38

$41.44 MX$772

27.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.0

$74.2 MX$1,382

41.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$177 €158

$89.3 MX$1,663

97.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 €951

$980 MX$18.2K

8.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$856 €767

$381 MX$7,095

124.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,604 €1,437

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-6.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,317 €1,180

$1,075 MX$20.0K

22.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,329 €3,879

$3,943 MX$73.5K

9.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,965 €2,657

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-51.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,012 €2,699

$735 MX$13.7K

310.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

11.45

-69.17%

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

Last update for Antwerp: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Antwerp

$856 38.9%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 55.5% $475

Groceries & Markets

Antwerp

$361 16.4%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 29.4% $106

Eating Out

Antwerp

$350 15.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 42.1% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Antwerp

$277 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 50.6% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Antwerp

$202 9.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 44.7% $90

Getting Around

Antwerp

$88 4%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 42.8% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Antwerp

$68 3.1%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 1.6% $1.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,061 in Antwerp and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Antwerp pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $96 in Antwerp vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $361 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Antwerp

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

02:03 2:03 AM

20:03 8:03 PM

6 h behind Antwerp

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

525,935

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Antwerp Playa del Carmen 8,330 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Antwerp
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,202 in Antwerp and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Antwerp is about 4.1 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: $1,061 in Antwerp versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 52% less than in Antwerp. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,616 in Antwerp versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,202 in Antwerp, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Antwerp. 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Antwerp. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.