Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athienou and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,686 in Athienou, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

82

Cost of Living Index in Athienou
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Athienou Living Index
58

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

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Athienou

🇨🇾 Cyprus

$1,686

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,686 in Athienou versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Athienou $1,686
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,591 in Athienou versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Athienou $2,591
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,497 in Athienou versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Athienou $3,497
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Athienou is roughly 40% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athienou is 24% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.33 €11.90

$10.92 MX$203

22.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.3 €46.68

$43.37 MX$805

20.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.95 €7.10

$11.78 MX$219

-32.51%

Cappuccino

$3.69 €3.30

$3.81 MX$70.7

-3.15%

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

$1.65 €1.48

$1.28 MX$23.81

28.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 €0.93

$0.78 MX$14.54

33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.27 €2.92

$3.17 MX$58.8

3.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.67 €4.17

$4.93 MX$91.7

-5.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 €1.46

$1.41 MX$26.12

15.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.00 €1.78

$2.22 MX$41.17

-9.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.67

$1.42 MX$26.32

110.56%

Eggs

$4.18 €3.73

$2.52 MX$46.85

65.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.22 €11.81

$7.26 MX$135

82.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.74 €7.81

$7.70 MX$143

13.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.66 €10.42

$12.69 MX$236

-8.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$2.78 MX$51.7

-6.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 €2.10

$1.37 MX$25.41

71.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 €1.48

$2.55 MX$47.37

-34.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 €2.31

$2.12 MX$39.43

21.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.94 MX$36.00

-26.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.89 MX$35.02

-40.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.15 MX$21.29

-23.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 €0.99

$1.18 MX$21.89

-5.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.75 €5.14

$4.30 MX$79.8

33.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.95 €7.10

$9.95 MX$185

-20.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.58 MX$29.41

19.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 €2.26

$2.67 MX$49.60

-5.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.08

$0.55 MX$10.28

323.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.99 €39.29

$26.62 MX$494

65.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.05 €6.29

$4.97 MX$92.3

41.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.29 €2.04

$3.33 MX$61.9

-31.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.42 €20.02

$5.36 MX$99.5

318.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.44 MX$26.82

16.67%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$20.7K MX$383.8K

53.37%

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

$31.0K €27.7K

$23.5K MX$435.8K

32.00%

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

$179 €160

$84.8 MX$1,575

111.33%

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

$17.98 €16.06

$23.41 MX$435

-23.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.11 €26.89

$28.66 MX$532

5.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.8 €62.4

$57.1 MX$1,059

22.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.56 €21.04

$28.91 MX$537

-18.51%

Cinema Ticket

$11.08 €9.90

$5.14 MX$95.4

115.56%

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

$382 €341

$207 MX$3,836

84.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,361 €6,575

$3,927 MX$72.9K

87.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.0 €58.9

$43.35 MX$805

52.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.96 €28.55

$41.44 MX$770

-22.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.4 €62.0

$74.2 MX$1,378

-6.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.7 €81.9

$89.3 MX$1,657

2.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 €621

$980 MX$18.2K

-29.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$683 €610

$381 MX$7,072

79.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,584 €1,415

$1,708 MX$31.7K

-7.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 €1,149

$1,075 MX$20.0K

19.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,572 €3,191

$3,943 MX$73.2K

-9.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,493 €2,227

$6,158 MX$114.4K

-59.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,075 €1,854

$735 MX$13.6K

182.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.93

11.45

-65.68%

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

Last update for Athienou: October 24, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athienou

$683 40.5%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 44.3% $302

Groceries & Markets

Athienou

$284 16.8%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 10.2% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athienou

$227 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 39.8% $90

Eating Out

Athienou

$211 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 4.2% $8.8

Clothing & Footwear

Athienou

$117 6.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 4.2% $4.9

Sport & Entertainment

Athienou

$92 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 26.8% $25

Getting Around

Athienou

$72 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 29.7% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Athienou and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athienou pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $52 in Athienou vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇾 Athienou

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

02:48 2:48 AM

19:48 7:48 PM

7 h behind Athienou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Athienou Playa del Carmen 11,210 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Athienou
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,686 in Athienou and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 29% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Athienou is about 2.8 times higher, 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: $695 in Athienou versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,686 per month in Athienou versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 29% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 39% less than in Athienou. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,686 in Athienou, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Athienou. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Athienou on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.