Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between As Samawah and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in As Samawah: $651 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in As Samawah
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As Samawah Living Index
57

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

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As Samawah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$651

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $651 in As Samawah versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

As Samawah $651
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,052 in As Samawah versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

As Samawah $1,052
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,452 in As Samawah versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

As Samawah $1,452
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in As Samawah costs roughly 46% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: As Samawah 52% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.66 IQD 7,041

$10.67 MX$199

-56.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.87 IQD 40.6K

$43.80 MX$815

-38.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.63 IQD 10.0K

$11.79 MX$219

-43.77%

Cappuccino

$2.82 IQD 4,266

$3.79 MX$70.5

-25.59%

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

$0.35 IQD 522

$1.30 MX$24.14

-73.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.19 IQD 281

$0.83 MX$15.51

-77.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.36 IQD 5,079

$3.15 MX$58.6

6.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 IQD 4,889

$4.93 MX$91.8

-34.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 IQD 1,367

$1.41 MX$26.22

-36.17%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 IQD 951

$2.20 MX$40.86

-71.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 IQD 1,978

$1.47 MX$27.40

-10.88%

Eggs

$1.61 IQD 2,436

$2.50 MX$46.46

-35.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$1.34 IQD 2,019

$7.29 MX$136

-81.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.02 IQD 6,070

$7.95 MX$148

-49.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.86 IQD 17.9K

$12.86 MX$239

-7.78%

Apples (1kg)

$0.96 IQD 1,455

$2.90 MX$53.9

-66.90%

Banana (1kg)

$0.92 IQD 1,383

$1.38 MX$25.74

-33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.83 IQD 1,256

$2.49 MX$46.35

-66.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.40 IQD 606

$2.03 MX$37.77

-80.30%

Potato (1kg)

$0.52 IQD 784

$2.02 MX$37.68

-74.26%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 851

$1.90 MX$35.42

-70.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 IQD 892

$1.14 MX$21.30

-48.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 IQD 878

$1.24 MX$23.05

-53.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.69 IQD 2,548

$4.27 MX$79.5

-60.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.66 IQD 10.1K

$9.81 MX$183

-32.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 IQD 2,973

$1.59 MX$29.51

23.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 IQD 2,854

$2.75 MX$51.1

-31.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 IQD 517

$0.51 MX$9.58

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.98 IQD 30.2K

$27.39 MX$510

-27.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.96 IQD 2,968

$4.76 MX$88.6

-58.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 IQD 1,940

$3.25 MX$60.5

-60.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 IQD 3,937

$5.39 MX$100

-51.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.57 IQD 866

$1.53 MX$28.44

-62.75%

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

$16.7K IQD 25.3M

$21.2K MX$394.8K

-21.10%

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

$16.6K IQD 25.1M

$23.3K MX$432.9K

-28.52%

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

$69.4 IQD 104.9K

$83.5 MX$1,554

-16.89%

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

$16.69 IQD 25.2K

$23.19 MX$431

-28.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.78 IQD 25.3K

$27.61 MX$514

-39.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.45 IQD 55.1K

$56.4 MX$1,050

-35.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.68 IQD 25.2K

$28.19 MX$525

-40.83%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 IQD 11.8K

$5.00 MX$93.1

56.20%

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

$49.72 IQD 75.1K

$207 MX$3,854

-75.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,297 IQD 2.0M

$5,231 MX$97.3K

-75.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.54 IQD 38.6K

$43.45 MX$809

-41.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.33 IQD 50.4K

$42.54 MX$792

-21.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.9 IQD 89.0K

$72.8 MX$1,354

-19.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.08 IQD 62.1K

$88.4 MX$1,645

-53.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$209 IQD 316.2K

$995 MX$18.5K

-78.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$137 IQD 207.7K

$382 MX$7,116

-64.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$168 IQD 254.1K

$1,674 MX$31.2K

-89.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 IQD 467.1K

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-71.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$867 IQD 1.3M

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-77.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$496 IQD 750.1K

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-91.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

11.45

-64.02%

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

Last update for As Samawah: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

As Samawah

$141 21.7%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 82.2% $116

Accommodation & Living

As Samawah

$137 21.1%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 178% $245

Eating Out

As Samawah

$116 17.9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 72% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

As Samawah

$103 15.8%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 30.5% $31

Clothing & Footwear

As Samawah

$71 11%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 55.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

As Samawah

$52 8%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 27.6% $14

Getting Around

As Samawah

$30 4.6%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 69.7% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $209 in As Samawah and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $27 in As Samawah vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $141 vs $257 per month, with As Samawah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 As Samawah

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:30 11:30 AM

03:30 3:30 AM

8 h behind As Samawah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

250,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,694 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

As Samawah Playa del Carmen 12,320 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

As Samawah
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

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

As Samawah is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $977 in As Samawah and $1,804 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $209 in As Samawah versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in As Samawah runs roughly 27% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $50 in As Samawah versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $651 in As Samawah versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in As Samawah but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes As Samawah 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 As Samawah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.