Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ashdod and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,362 in Ashdod, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Ashdod
🇮🇱 Israel
$2,362
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,362 in Ashdod versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Ashdod $2,362
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,567 in Ashdod versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Ashdod $3,567
  • Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,773 in Ashdod versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Ashdod $4,773
  • Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Ashdod is roughly 96% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ashdod is 74% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$22.78 ₪70.9
$10.86 MX$201
109.76%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$97.4 ₪303
$44.21 MX$817
120.22%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$19.66 ₪61.2
$11.76 MX$217
67.18%
Cappuccino
$4.91 ₪15.28
$3.68 MX$68.0
33.42%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.19 ₪9.93
$1.34 MX$24.79
138.06%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.54 ₪7.90
$0.82 MX$15.24
209.76%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$8.15 ₪25.36
$3.06 MX$56.6
166.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$10.04 ₪31.23
$4.94 MX$91.2
103.24%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.56 ₪7.98
$1.47 MX$27.17
74.15%
White Bread (500g)
$3.21 ₪9.99
$2.22 MX$40.95
44.59%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.84 ₪8.85
$1.48 MX$27.32
91.89%
Eggs
$4.78 ₪14.88
$2.49 MX$45.99
91.97%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$16.86 ₪52.5
$7.52 MX$139
124.20%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$13.00 ₪40.45
$7.96 MX$147
63.32%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$30.13 ₪93.7
$12.57 MX$232
139.70%
Apples (1kg)
$3.58 ₪11.14
$2.78 MX$51.3
28.78%
Banana (1kg)
$3.34 ₪10.39
$1.43 MX$26.37
133.57%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.68 ₪8.35
$2.62 MX$48.37
2.29%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.41 ₪7.51
$2.14 MX$39.49
12.62%
Potato (1kg)
$1.89 ₪5.90
$2.02 MX$37.38
-6.44%
Onion (1kg)
$1.69 ₪5.27
$1.99 MX$36.74
-15.08%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.97 ₪6.12
$1.14 MX$21.01
72.81%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.32 ₪4.11
$1.20 MX$22.18
10.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$12.93 ₪40.24
$4.26 MX$78.7
203.52%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.15 ₪37.82
$10.02 MX$185
21.26%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.86 ₪8.91
$1.54 MX$28.41
85.71%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.90 ₪12.14
$2.66 MX$49.17
46.62%
🚌 Getting Around
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.57 ₪7.98
$0.53 MX$9.73
384.91%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$27.51 MX$508
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.04 ₪12.56
$4.90 MX$90.6
-17.55%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.25 ₪3.89
$3.43 MX$63.5
-63.56%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$24.91 ₪77.5
$5.38 MX$99.4
363.01%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.60 ₪8.10
$1.45 MX$26.76
79.31%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$56.8K ₪176.6K
$21.2K MX$391.0K
168.27%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$55.5K ₪172.5K
$23.0K MX$425.3K
140.90%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$123 ₪384
$85.4 MX$1,577
44.41%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.54 ₪39.00
$23.46 MX$434
-46.55%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.70 ₪127
$28.43 MX$525
43.16%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$76.8 ₪239
$62.2 MX$1,149
23.56%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$28.68 MX$530
-
Cinema Ticket
$12.04 ₪37.47
$5.10 MX$94.3
136.08%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,115 ₪3,469
$201 MX$3,715
454.52%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$28.3K ₪88.0K
$3,947 MX$72.9K
616.82%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$91.0 ₪283
$44.39 MX$820
104.91%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$74.8 ₪233
$41.35 MX$764
80.97%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$130 ₪404
$72.7 MX$1,344
78.46%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$158 ₪490
$89.6 MX$1,656
75.84%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,747 ₪5,437
$979 MX$18.1K
78.44%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,042 ₪3,242
$373 MX$6,887
179.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,108 ₪6,558
$1,681 MX$31.1K
25.40%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,610 ₪5,008
$1,095 MX$20.2K
46.98%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,458 ₪23.2K
$3,949 MX$73.0K
88.85%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,545 ₪17.3K
$6,137 MX$113.4K
-9.64%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ashdod
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,101 ₪12.8K
$738 MX$13.6K
456.13%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.99
11.45
-56.42%

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

Last update for Ashdod: October 17, 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
Ashdod
$1K
Playa del Carmen
$373 64.2% $669
Groceries & Markets
Ashdod
$434
Playa del Carmen
$258 40.5% $176
Eating Out
Ashdod
$384
Playa del Carmen
$200 47.8% $184
Clothing & Footwear
Ashdod
$204
Playa del Carmen
$112 45.3% $92
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ashdod
$177
Playa del Carmen
$137 22.2% $39
Sport & Entertainment
Ashdod
$101
Playa del Carmen
$72 28.3% $29
Getting Around
Ashdod
$21 *
Playa del Carmen
$52 152% $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 $1,747 in Ashdod and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ashdod pays 456% 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: $97.0 in Ashdod vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $434 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇮🇱 Ashdod
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
13:50 1:50 PM
05:50 5:50 AM
8 h behind Ashdod
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
251,837
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ILS – Israeli New Shekel Converter

Israeli New Shekel exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3.11 ILS (1 ILS = 0.321 USD). 1 EUR = 3.5 ILS (1 ILS = 0.286 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ashdod Playa del Carmen 11,500 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ashdod
  • 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
Ashdod vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Ashdod?
Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 96% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Ashdod or Playa del Carmen?
Average pay runs 456% higher in Ashdod, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
What is the rent difference between Ashdod and Playa del Carmen?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,747 in Ashdod versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do food prices compare in Ashdod and in Playa del Carmen?
Supermarket bills run roughly 68% higher in Ashdod. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
What are total monthly expenses in Ashdod and in Playa del Carmen?
All in, you'll spend $2,362 per month in Ashdod versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 96% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Ashdod or in Playa del Carmen?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,362 in Ashdod, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Ashdod. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Ashdod or Playa del Carmen more family-friendly?
For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Ashdod, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Ashdod or Playa del Carmen?
Safety-wise, Ashdod and Playa del Carmen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 96% less than in Ashdod. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Ashdod vs other spots: cost of living compared

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