Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Baku and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Baku: $1,014 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Baku
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Baku Living Index
59

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

Jump to prices

Baku

🇦🇿 Azerbaijan

$1,014

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,014 in Baku versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Baku $1,014
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,578 in Baku versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Baku $1,578
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,142 in Baku versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Baku $2,142
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Baku costs roughly 16% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Baku 25% lower, Playa del Carmen 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.60 ₼14.62

$10.76 MX$199

-20.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.05 ₼68.1

$43.03 MX$795

-6.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.15 ₼13.85

$11.79 MX$218

-30.87%

Cappuccino

$3.56 ₼6.04

$3.87 MX$71.4

-8.01%

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

$1.10 ₼1.87

$1.37 MX$25.29

-19.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₼1.05

$0.84 MX$15.44

-26.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.80 ₼3.06

$3.10 MX$57.3

-41.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 ₼5.13

$5.07 MX$93.6

-40.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ₼2.49

$1.44 MX$26.55

1.39%

White Bread (500g)

$0.53 ₼0.90

$2.23 MX$41.23

-76.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 ₼4.23

$1.47 MX$27.17

69.39%

Eggs

$1.98 ₼3.36

$2.53 MX$46.71

-21.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.19 ₼8.83

$7.30 MX$135

-28.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.25 ₼8.92

$7.86 MX$145

-33.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.84 ₼20.11

$12.79 MX$236

-7.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 ₼2.19

$2.90 MX$53.6

-55.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 ₼3.23

$1.44 MX$26.53

31.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₼2.65

$2.55 MX$47.07

-38.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 ₼2.99

$2.06 MX$38.03

-14.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 ₼1.23

$2.00 MX$36.97

-64.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₼0.94

$2.01 MX$37.07

-72.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 ₼1.27

$1.19 MX$22.02

-36.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ₼1.34

$1.26 MX$23.23

-37.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.89 ₼4.91

$4.40 MX$81.4

-34.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.77 ₼14.90

$9.59 MX$177

-8.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 ₼2.64

$1.59 MX$29.41

-2.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₼4.94

$2.81 MX$51.9

3.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 ₼0.62

$0.57 MX$10.47

-36.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.97 ₼35.64

$27.82 MX$514

-24.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.00 ₼3.41

$4.98 MX$92.1

-59.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 ₼1.04

$3.50 MX$64.6

-82.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.49 ₼5.92

$5.40 MX$99.8

-35.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 ₼1.17

$1.47 MX$27.08

-53.06%

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

$23.3K ₼39.6K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

11.07%

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

$21.0K ₼35.6K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

-12.28%

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

$65.5 ₼111

$84.2 MX$1,556

-22.27%

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

$11.23 ₼19.08

$23.99 MX$443

-53.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.17 ₼25.78

$29.02 MX$536

-47.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.47 ₼82.4

$63.0 MX$1,164

-23.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.27 ₼27.65

$29.14 MX$539

-44.17%

Cinema Ticket

$5.80 ₼9.86

$4.94 MX$91.3

17.41%

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

$327 ₼556

$204 MX$3,763

60.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,818 ₼11.6K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

73.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.8 ₼114

$43.60 MX$806

53.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 ₼93.7

$43.12 MX$797

27.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 ₼212

$75.8 MX$1,400

64.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 ₼196

$88.6 MX$1,637

30.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$546 ₼928

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-45.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$319 ₼542

$374 MX$6,911

-14.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,045 ₼1,775

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-38.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$521 ₼885

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-52.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,175 ₼3,697

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-44.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,285 ₼2,184

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-79.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$557 ₼947

$754 MX$13.9K

-26.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

11.45

-17.38%

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

Last update for Baku: October 10, 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

Baku

$319 31.5%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 17.3% $55

Groceries & Markets

Baku

$195 19.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 32.7% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Baku

$163 16.1%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 30.6% $50

Eating Out

Baku

$158 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 28.1% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Baku

$92 9.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 49.4% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Baku

$60 5.9%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 21.3% $13

Getting Around

Baku

$28 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 91.1% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $546 in Baku and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 35% 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: $40.00 in Baku vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $195 vs $258 per month, with Baku cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇿 Baku

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

07:41 7:41 AM

22:41 10:41 PM

9 h behind Baku

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,300,500 Capital

149,923

💱 Currency

Azerbaijani Manat AZN ₼

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AZN = 0.588 USD

1 AZN = 0.523 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to AZN – Azerbaijani Manat Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇿 Azerbaijani Manat (₼)

Azerbaijani Manat exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.7 AZN (1 AZN = 0.588 USD). 1 EUR = 1.91 AZN (1 AZN = 0.523 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).

USD to AZN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Baku Playa del Carmen 11,900 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Baku
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

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

Baku and Playa del Carmen differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($1,014 vs $1,210 including rent). Baku is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 35% lower in Playa del Carmen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $546 in Baku versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $327 in Baku versus $204 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 33% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,014 in Baku versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Baku but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Baku 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.

Safety-wise, Baku 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 Baku gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.