Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athlone and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,542 in Athlone, rent and utilities included – about $16,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Athlone
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Athlone Living Index
59

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

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Athlone

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,542

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,542 in Athlone versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Athlone $2,542
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,749 in Athlone versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Athlone $3,749
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,956 in Athlone versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Athlone $4,956
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Athlone is roughly 110% 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: Athlone is 88% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.37 €19.90

$10.76 MX$199

107.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.0 €80.9

$43.03 MX$795

111.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.63 €11.23

$11.79 MX$218

7.12%

Cappuccino

$4.32 €3.84

$3.87 MX$71.4

11.63%

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

$2.92 €2.60

$1.37 MX$25.29

113.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 €1.64

$0.84 MX$15.44

119.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.41 €6.59

$3.10 MX$57.3

139.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.55 €5.82

$5.07 MX$93.6

29.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.44 MX$26.55

1.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 €1.12

$2.23 MX$41.23

-43.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.47 MX$27.17

12.93%

Eggs

$3.91 €3.48

$2.53 MX$46.71

54.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.73 €9.55

$7.30 MX$135

46.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.27 €10.02

$7.86 MX$145

43.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.85 €10.53

$12.79 MX$236

-7.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.90 MX$53.6

-12.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.44 MX$26.53

8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.41 €2.14

$2.55 MX$47.07

-5.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.85 €2.53

$2.06 MX$38.03

38.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.29 €2.03

$2.00 MX$36.97

14.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 €1.61

$2.01 MX$37.07

-9.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.19 MX$22.02

21.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.26 MX$23.23

50.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.88 €15.90

$4.40 MX$81.4

306.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.10 €9.87

$9.59 MX$177

15.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 €3.06

$1.59 MX$29.41

116.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 €3.18

$2.81 MX$51.9

27.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.57 MX$10.47

261.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.08 €4.52

$4.98 MX$92.1

2.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.32

$3.50 MX$64.6

-57.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.77 €24.70

$5.40 MX$99.8

414.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.47 MX$27.08

38.10%

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

$39.6K €35.2K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

88.65%

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

$36.8K €32.7K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

53.95%

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

$241 €214

$84.2 MX$1,556

186.00%

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

$21.86 €19.45

$23.99 MX$443

-8.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.22 €43.78

$29.02 MX$536

69.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.5 €52.1

$63.0 MX$1,164

-7.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.69 €30.85

$29.14 MX$539

19.05%

Cinema Ticket

$10.95 €9.74

$4.94 MX$91.3

121.66%

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

$1,001 €891

$204 MX$3,763

391.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,365 €4,772

$3,941 MX$72.8K

36.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.9 €82.6

$43.60 MX$806

112.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.88 €36.36

$43.12 MX$797

-5.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.6 €74.4

$75.8 MX$1,400

10.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.7 €69.1

$88.6 MX$1,637

-12.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,468 €1,306

$1,008 MX$18.6K

45.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,353 €1,203

$374 MX$6,911

261.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 €2,249

$1,708 MX$31.6K

48.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,254 €2,005

$1,106 MX$20.4K

103.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,294 €2,930

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-16.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,340 €2,971

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-45.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,153 €2,804

$754 MX$13.9K

318.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.73

11.45

-67.42%

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

Last update for Athlone: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athlone

$1.4K 53.2%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 72.4% $979

Eating Out

Athlone

$338 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 40.1% $136

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athlone

$312 12.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 56% $175

Groceries & Markets

Athlone

$305 12%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 15.3% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Athlone

$133 5.2%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 14.9% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Athlone

$80 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 9.4% $7.6

Getting Around

Athlone

$21 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 153% $32

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 $1,468 in Athlone and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athlone pays 318% 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: $91.0 in Athlone vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $305 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Athlone

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:32 11:32 AM

05:32 5:32 AM

6 h behind Athlone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athlone Playa del Carmen 7,470 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Athlone
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

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

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 110% lower than in Athlone. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 318% higher in Athlone, 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: $1,468 in Athlone versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Athlone. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,542 per month in Athlone versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – a 110% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,542 in Athlone, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Athlone. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,210 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athlone 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 110% less than in Athlone. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.