Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Anuradhapura and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Anuradhapura: $506 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Anuradhapura
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Anuradhapura Living Index
59

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

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Anuradhapura

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$506

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $506 per month in Anuradhapura vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Anuradhapura $506
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $820 per month in Anuradhapura vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Anuradhapura $820
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $1,134 per month in Anuradhapura vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Anuradhapura $1,134
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Anuradhapura is about 58% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Anuradhapura and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Anuradhapura 63% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.75 LKR 1,242

$10.86 MX$201

-65.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.57 LKR 8,139

$44.21 MX$817

-44.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 LKR 2,490

$11.76 MX$217

-36.05%

Cappuccino

$2.44 LKR 810

$3.68 MX$68.0

-33.70%

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

$0.68 LKR 227

$1.34 MX$24.79

-49.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 LKR 89.9

$0.82 MX$15.24

-67.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.23 LKR 738

$3.06 MX$56.6

-27.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 LKR 990

$4.94 MX$91.2

-39.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 LKR 534

$1.47 MX$27.17

9.52%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 LKR 189

$2.22 MX$40.95

-74.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 LKR 269

$1.48 MX$27.32

-45.27%

Eggs

$1.63 LKR 541

$2.49 MX$45.99

-34.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.86 LKR 4,590

$7.52 MX$139

84.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.92 LKR 1,630

$7.96 MX$147

-38.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.26 LKR 2,405

$12.57 MX$232

-42.24%

Apples (1kg)

$6.67 LKR 2,208

$2.78 MX$51.3

139.93%

Banana (1kg)

$0.86 LKR 286

$1.43 MX$26.37

-39.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.46 LKR 1,476

$2.62 MX$48.37

70.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 LKR 418

$2.14 MX$39.49

-41.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 LKR 330

$2.02 MX$37.38

-50.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.83 LKR 274

$1.99 MX$36.74

-58.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 LKR 308

$1.14 MX$21.01

-18.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 LKR 142

$1.20 MX$22.18

-64.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.39 LKR 3,441

$4.26 MX$78.7

143.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.07 LKR 4,330

$10.02 MX$185

30.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 LKR 648

$1.54 MX$28.41

27.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 LKR 961

$2.66 MX$49.17

9.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 LKR 134

$4.90 MX$90.6

-91.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 LKR 123

$3.43 MX$63.5

-89.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.88 LKR 292

$5.38 MX$99.4

-83.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 LKR 443

$1.45 MX$26.76

-7.59%

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

$43.5K LKR 14.4M

$21.2K MX$391.0K

105.66%

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

$40.1K LKR 13.3M

$23.0K MX$425.3K

74.12%

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

$58.5 LKR 19.4K

$85.4 MX$1,577

-31.51%

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

$4.23 LKR 1,401

$23.46 MX$434

-81.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.09 LKR 6,984

$28.43 MX$525

-25.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$4.41 LKR 1,460

$5.10 MX$94.3

-13.53%

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

$38.06 LKR 12.6K

$201 MX$3,715

-81.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,224 LKR 405.4K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

-68.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$18.46 LKR 6,115

$44.39 MX$820

-58.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.65 LKR 5,515

$41.35 MX$764

-59.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.4 LKR 26.6K

$72.7 MX$1,344

10.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.98 LKR 13.9K

$89.6 MX$1,656

-53.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.69

11.45

10.83%

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

Last update for Anuradhapura: October 18, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Anuradhapura

$237 46.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 8.8% $21

Eating Out

Anuradhapura

$103 20.3%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 94.7% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Anuradhapura

$84 16.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 63.8% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Anuradhapura

$71 14%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 57.5% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Anuradhapura

$8.8 * 1.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 721% $64

Getting Around

Anuradhapura

$2.3 * 0.5%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 2187% $49

Accommodation & Living

Anuradhapura

- * 0%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Anuradhapura versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $258 – making Anuradhapura the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Anuradhapura

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:20 2:20 PM

03:50 3:50 AM

10 h 30 min behind Anuradhapura

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

63,200

149,923

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Anuradhapura Playa del Carmen 16,520 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Anuradhapura
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $506 in Anuradhapura, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 138% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $759 per month in Anuradhapura and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $25.00 in Anuradhapura and $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 9% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Anuradhapura, where all-in costs run around $506, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Anuradhapura it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $506 in Anuradhapura to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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