Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arlington, KY and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,653 in Arlington, KY, rent and utilities included – about $17,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

129

Cost of Living Index in Arlington, KY
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Arlington, KY Living Index
59

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

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Arlington, KY

🇺🇸 United States

$2,653

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,653 in Arlington, KY versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Arlington, KY $2,653
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,917 in Arlington, KY versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Arlington, KY $3,917
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,180 in Arlington, KY versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Arlington, KY $5,180
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Arlington, KY is roughly 120% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Arlington, KY is 96% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.42 $18.42

$10.86 MX$201

69.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.1 $84.1

$44.21 MX$817

90.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.88 $11.88

$11.76 MX$217

1.02%

Cappuccino

$6.64 $6.64

$3.68 MX$68.0

80.43%

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

$2.83 $2.83

$1.34 MX$24.79

111.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 $2.39

$0.82 MX$15.24

191.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.89 $6.89

$3.06 MX$56.6

125.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.11 $8.11

$4.94 MX$91.2

64.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.77 $0.77

$1.47 MX$27.17

-47.62%

White Bread (500g)

$3.96 $3.96

$2.22 MX$40.95

78.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.05 $4.05

$1.48 MX$27.32

173.65%

Eggs

$4.29 $4.29

$2.49 MX$45.99

72.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 $12.87

$7.52 MX$139

71.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.53 $14.53

$7.96 MX$147

82.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.27 $18.27

$12.57 MX$232

45.35%

Apples (1kg)

$5.82 $5.82

$2.78 MX$51.3

109.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 $1.53

$1.43 MX$26.37

6.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.21 $4.21

$2.62 MX$48.37

60.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.87 $4.87

$2.14 MX$39.49

127.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 $1.99

$2.02 MX$37.38

-1.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.99 MX$36.74

12.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.38 $2.38

$1.14 MX$21.01

108.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.20 MX$22.18

24.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.37 $9.37

$4.26 MX$78.7

119.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.88 $15.88

$10.02 MX$185

58.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 $2.42

$1.54 MX$28.41

57.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.67 $4.67

$2.66 MX$49.17

75.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.99 $1.99

$0.53 MX$9.73

275.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.89 $4.89

$4.90 MX$90.6

-0.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 $1.51

$3.43 MX$63.5

-55.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.90 $20.90

$5.38 MX$99.4

288.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.45 MX$26.76

-27.59%

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

$37.3K $37.3K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

76.42%

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

$26.9K $26.9K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

16.94%

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

$230 $230

$85.4 MX$1,577

169.51%

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

$74.5 $74.5

$23.46 MX$434

217.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.1 $75.1

$28.43 MX$525

164.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.90 $40.90

$62.2 MX$1,149

-34.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$15.19 $15.19

$5.10 MX$94.3

197.84%

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

$1,442 $1,442

$201 MX$3,715

616.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.8K $30.8K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

680.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.3 $55.3

$44.39 MX$820

24.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.53 $43.53

$41.35 MX$764

5.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.3 $92.3

$72.7 MX$1,344

26.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 $139

$89.6 MX$1,656

55.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,617 $1,617

$979 MX$18.1K

65.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,282 $1,282

$373 MX$6,887

243.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,513 $2,513

$1,681 MX$31.1K

49.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,161 $2,161

$1,095 MX$20.2K

97.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,807 $2,807

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-28.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,068 $2,068

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-66.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,051 $6,051

$738 MX$13.6K

720.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.55

11.45

-42.79%

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

Last update for Arlington, KY: October 20, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arlington, KY

$1.3K 48.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 70.9% $909

Groceries & Markets

Arlington, KY

$417 15.7%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 38.1% $159

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arlington, KY

$380 14.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 63.9% $242

Eating Out

Arlington, KY

$334 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 40.1% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Arlington, KY

$149 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 24.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Arlington, KY

$71 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 1.6% $1.1

Getting Around

Arlington, KY

$20 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 153% $31

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 $1,617 in Arlington, KY and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arlington, KY pays 721% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $84.0 in Arlington, KY vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $417 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Arlington, KY

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:11 3:11 AM

Same time as Arlington, KY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

365,438

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Arlington, KY Playa del Carmen 1,810 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Arlington, KY
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

Arlington, KY vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arlington, KY and Playa del Carmen differ by about 120% in total monthly costs ($2,653 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 721% higher in Arlington, KY, 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: $1,617 in Arlington, KY versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Arlington, KY. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,653 per month in Arlington, KY versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 120% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,653 in Arlington, KY, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Arlington, KY. 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 120% less than in Arlington, KY. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.