Cost of Living Comparison Between Arad and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Arad and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Arad is 23.5% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 30.6% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Arad is 25.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 37.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.07 RON 39.45
$11.85 MX$205
-23.46%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$34.33 RON 149
$42.16 MX$730
-18.57%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.88 RON 29.94
$10.75 MX$186
-36.00%
Cappuccino
$2.29 RON 9.97
$3.47 MX$60.2
-34.01%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.63 RON 7.11
$1.45 MX$25.17
12.41%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.76 RON 7.67
$0.90 MX$15.64
95.56%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.09 RON 9.10
$3.05 MX$52.9
-31.48%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.71 RON 11.80
$4.42 MX$76.5
-38.69%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.50 RON 6.52
$1.37 MX$23.72
9.49%
White Bread (500g)
$1.22 RON 5.33
$1.87 MX$32.43
-34.76%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.53 RON 6.65
$1.54 MX$26.74
-0.65%
Eggs
$3.00 RON 13.06
$2.50 MX$43.36
20.00%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.19 RON 35.63
$8.61 MX$149
-4.88%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.48 RON 19.50
$8.63 MX$150
-48.09%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.11 RON 39.61
$11.02 MX$191
-17.33%
Apples (1kg)
$1.18 RON 5.12
$2.75 MX$47.62
-57.09%
Banana (1kg)
$1.57 RON 6.82
$1.43 MX$24.73
9.79%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.72 RON 7.47
$1.87 MX$32.44
-8.02%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.71 RON 7.42
$2.17 MX$37.54
-21.20%
Potato (1kg)
$0.77 RON 3.34
$1.88 MX$32.61
-59.04%
Onion (1kg)
$0.94 RON 4.10
$2.25 MX$38.91
-58.22%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.05 RON 4.59
$1.07 MX$18.49
-1.87%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.92 RON 4.02
$1.07 MX$18.59
-14.02%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.83 RON 25.36
$4.15 MX$72.0
40.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.68 RON 29.08
$10.34 MX$179
-35.40%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.02 RON 4.45
$1.68 MX$29.08
-39.29%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.66 RON 7.20
$2.48 MX$43.02
-33.06%
🚌 Getting Around
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.89 RON 3.89
$0.55 MX$9.61
61.82%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$24.04 RON 105
$26.53 MX$459
-9.39%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.90 RON 3.93
$3.22 MX$55.7
-72.05%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.81 RON 3.52
$2.48 MX$42.98
-67.34%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.00 RON 39.15
$3.11 MX$53.9
189.39%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.57 RON 6.81
$1.26 MX$21.75
24.60%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.9K RON 121.4K
$30.7K MX$531.0K
-9.00%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.9K RON 112.8K
$24.0K MX$416.4K
7.86%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$108 RON 471
$82.5 MX$1,429
31.28%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$8.72 RON 37.94
$22.29 MX$386
-60.88%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$8.07 RON 35.09
$30.02 MX$520
-73.12%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$39.68 RON 173
$51.4 MX$891
-22.86%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$23.10 RON 101
$18.29 MX$317
26.30%
Cinema Ticket
$5.72 RON 24.87
$4.98 MX$86.3
14.86%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$230 RON 1,002
$200 MX$3,464
15.21%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,806 RON 29.6K
$5,304 MX$91.9K
28.31%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$39.57 RON 172
$35.71 MX$618
10.81%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.47 RON 167
$39.56 MX$685
-2.76%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79.3 RON 345
$80.6 MX$1,395
-1.58%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$69.8 RON 304
$88.3 MX$1,530
-20.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$322 RON 1,402
$969 MX$16.8K
-66.74%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$218 RON 948
$482 MX$8,352
-54.81%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$566 RON 2,460
$1,595 MX$27.6K
-64.54%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$427 RON 1,858
$1,184 MX$20.5K
-63.93%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,574 RON 6,846
$4,050 MX$70.1K
-61.14%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,131 RON 4,922
$6,522 MX$113.0K
-82.65%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Arad
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$840 RON 3,653
$756 MX$13.1K
11.01%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.5
11.42
-43.08%

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

Last update for Arad: March 1, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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