Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arar and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Arar and in Playa del Carmen: $1,185 and $1,202 a month, rent and utilities included.

58

Cost of Living Index in Arar
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Arar Living Index
57

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

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Arar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,185

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,185 per month in Arar vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Arar $1,185
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $1,820 per month in Arar vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Arar $1,820
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,454 per month in Arar vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Arar $2,454
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Arar and Playa del Carmen have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Arar and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Arar 12% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.45 SAR 27.97

$10.67 MX$201

-30.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.32 SAR 129

$43.80 MX$824

-21.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.87 SAR 25.77

$11.79 MX$222

-41.73%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.75 SAR 6.58

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 SAR 8.92

Cappuccino

$3.04 SAR 11.39

$3.79 MX$71.2

-19.79%

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

$0.81 SAR 3.04

$1.30 MX$24.41

-37.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 SAR 0.91

$0.83 MX$15.69

-71.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 SAR 5.76

$1.41 MX$26.51

8.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 SAR 5.22

$2.20 MX$41.32

-36.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 SAR 8.47

$1.47 MX$27.71

53.74%

Eggs

$2.28 SAR 8.54

$2.50 MX$46.99

-8.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.95 SAR 29.85

$7.29 MX$137

9.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.74 SAR 32.81

$7.95 MX$150

9.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.35 SAR 50.1

$12.86 MX$242

3.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.43 SAR 9.12

$2.90 MX$54.5

-16.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 SAR 6.67

$1.38 MX$26.03

28.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 SAR 6.50

$2.49 MX$46.88

-30.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.39 SAR 5.22

$2.03 MX$38.20

-31.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.33 SAR 4.98

$2.02 MX$38.11

-34.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.43 SAR 5.38

$1.90 MX$35.82

-24.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 SAR 5.06

$1.14 MX$21.54

18.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 SAR 2.02

$1.24 MX$23.32

-56.45%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.18 SAR 11.93

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 SAR 6.97

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 SAR 7.21

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.47 SAR 28.04

$4.27 MX$80.4

74.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 SAR 4.21

$0.51 MX$9.69

119.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.17 SAR 155

$27.39 MX$515

50.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.75 SAR 10.31

$4.76 MX$89.6

-42.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 SAR 5.57

$3.25 MX$61.1

-54.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.41 SAR 50.3

$5.39 MX$101

148.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.68 SAR 2.56

$1.53 MX$28.76

-55.56%

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

$29.6K SAR 111.2K

$21.2K MX$399.2K

39.67%

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

$23.2K SAR 87.2K

$23.3K MX$437.8K

-0.18%

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

$111 SAR 416

$83.5 MX$1,571

32.79%

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

$28.89 SAR 108

$23.19 MX$436

24.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.5 SAR 227

$27.61 MX$520

119.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 SAR 277

$56.4 MX$1,062

30.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

Cinema Ticket

$13.55 SAR 50.9

$5.00 MX$94.1

171.00%

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

$394 SAR 1,481

$207 MX$3,897

90.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K SAR 39.4K

$5,231 MX$98.4K

100.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.59 SAR 149

$43.45 MX$818

-8.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.1 SAR 188

$42.54 MX$801

17.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 SAR 413

$72.8 MX$1,369

51.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.1 SAR 282

$88.4 MX$1,663

-15.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$627 SAR 2,355

$995 MX$18.7K

-36.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 SAR 1,400

$382 MX$7,197

-2.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$812 SAR 3,048

$1,674 MX$31.5K

-51.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$701 SAR 2,632

$1,081 MX$20.3K

-35.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,731 SAR 6,496

$3,909 MX$73.6K

-55.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,161 SAR 4,356

$6,138 MX$115.5K

-81.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

11.45

-51.62%

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

Last update for Arar: October 31, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arar

$373 31.5%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 2.5% $9.3

Groceries & Markets

Arar

$210 17.8%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 22.4% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arar

$200 16.9%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 32.9% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Arar

$124 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 10.1% $12

Eating Out

Arar

$121 10.2%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 65.7% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Arar

$101 8.5%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 34.2% $34

Getting Around

Arar

$56 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 9.6% $5.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $627 in Arar versus $995 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $34 in Arar versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $210 vs $257 – making Arar the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Arar

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

13:01 1:01 PM

05:01 5:01 AM

8 h behind Arar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

167,057

149,923

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.238 EUR

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.238 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arar Playa del Carmen 12,040 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Arar
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

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,777 per month in Arar and $1,804 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 Arar, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $627 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $34 in Arar and $44 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 33% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,185 in Arar and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,185 in Arar to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.