Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asker and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,736 in Asker, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

133

Cost of Living Index in Asker
Learn more

Asker Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Asker

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,736

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,736 per month in Asker vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Asker $2,736
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,894 per month in Asker vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Asker $3,894
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $5,053 per month in Asker vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Asker $5,053
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Asker costs about 127% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Asker sits 102% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.81 NOK 196

$10.86 MX$201

91.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.8 NOK 591

$44.21 MX$817

42.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.34 NOK 116

$11.76 MX$217

4.93%

Cappuccino

$6.05 NOK 57.0

$3.68 MX$68.0

64.40%

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

$2.82 NOK 26.55

$1.34 MX$24.79

110.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 NOK 17.23

$0.82 MX$15.24

123.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.85 NOK 112

$3.06 MX$56.6

287.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$11.43 NOK 108

$4.94 MX$91.2

131.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.30 NOK 21.64

$1.47 MX$27.17

56.46%

White Bread (500g)

$3.35 NOK 31.56

$2.22 MX$40.95

50.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.67 NOK 34.54

$1.48 MX$27.32

147.97%

Eggs

$3.47 NOK 32.70

$2.49 MX$45.99

39.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.75 NOK 35.29

$7.52 MX$139

-50.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.70 NOK 110

$7.96 MX$147

46.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.54 NOK 80.4

$12.57 MX$232

-32.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.28 NOK 30.87

$2.78 MX$51.3

17.99%

Banana (1kg)

$2.66 NOK 25.01

$1.43 MX$26.37

86.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.57 NOK 33.60

$2.62 MX$48.37

36.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.64 NOK 43.70

$2.14 MX$39.49

116.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.64 NOK 24.85

$2.02 MX$37.38

30.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.92 NOK 27.49

$1.99 MX$36.74

46.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 NOK 14.65

$1.14 MX$21.01

36.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 NOK 19.55

$1.20 MX$22.18

73.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.51 NOK 174

$4.26 MX$78.7

334.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.73 NOK 158

$10.02 MX$185

66.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.35 NOK 31.52

$1.54 MX$28.41

117.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.15 NOK 39.02

$2.66 MX$49.17

56.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.65 NOK 43.77

$0.53 MX$9.73

777.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.1 NOK 754

$27.51 MX$508

191.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.83 NOK 111

$4.90 MX$90.6

141.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 NOK 16.95

$3.43 MX$63.5

-47.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$68.2 NOK 642

$5.38 MX$99.4

1167.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 NOK 21.18

$1.45 MX$26.76

55.17%

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

$48.9K NOK 460.1K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

131.01%

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

$43.8K NOK 412.7K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

90.47%

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

$416 NOK 3,914

$85.4 MX$1,577

387.04%

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

$30.73 NOK 289

$23.46 MX$434

30.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.58 NOK 297

$28.43 MX$525

11.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.84 NOK 469

$62.2 MX$1,149

-19.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.23 NOK 341

$28.68 MX$530

26.32%

Cinema Ticket

$15.45 NOK 145

$5.10 MX$94.3

202.94%

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

$237 NOK 2,231

$201 MX$3,715

17.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.5K NOK 146.1K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

293.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.8 NOK 940

$44.39 MX$820

124.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.0 NOK 565

$41.35 MX$764

45.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$134 NOK 1,260

$72.7 MX$1,344

84.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 NOK 1,452

$89.6 MX$1,656

72.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,505 NOK 14.2K

$979 MX$18.1K

53.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 NOK 10.6K

$373 MX$6,887

202.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,148 NOK 20.2K

$1,681 MX$31.1K

27.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,794 NOK 16.9K

$1,095 MX$20.2K

63.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,009 NOK 56.6K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

52.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,061 NOK 38.2K

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-33.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,913 NOK 36.8K

$738 MX$13.6K

430.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.87

11.45

-66.20%

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

Last update for Asker: October 18, 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

Asker

$1.1K 41.1%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 66.9% $753

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asker

$478 17.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 71.3% $341

Eating Out

Asker

$377 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 46.9% $177

Groceries & Markets

Asker

$354 12.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 26.9% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Asker

$202 7.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 44.6% $90

Getting Around

Asker

$120 4.4%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 56.7% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Asker

$81 3%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 10.3% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,505 in Asker versus $979 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.

Salaries run about 431% higher in Asker, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63.0 in Asker versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $354 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Asker

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

07:46 7:46 AM

00:46 12:46 AM

7 h behind Asker

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

99,214

149,923

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Asker Playa del Carmen 8,450 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Asker
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

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

Asker costs about 127% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,104 per month in Asker and $1,806 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $237 per month in Asker and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 37% more in Asker, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Asker at $2,736. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Asker it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $2,736 in Asker. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Asker makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.