Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ballsh and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living costs are similar in Ballsh and in Playa del Carmen: $1,185 and $1,204 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Ballsh
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Ballsh Living Index
58

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

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Ballsh

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,185

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,185 per month in Ballsh vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ballsh $1,185
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,834 per month in Ballsh vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ballsh $1,834
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,484 per month in Ballsh vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ballsh $2,484
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Ballsh and Playa del Carmen have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Ballsh and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Ballsh 13% lower, Playa del Carmen 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.65 ALL 786

$10.92 MX$203

-11.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.6 ALL 4,443

$43.37 MX$808

25.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.04 ALL 573

$11.78 MX$219

-40.24%

Cappuccino

$2.25 ALL 183

$3.81 MX$71.0

-40.94%

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

$1.47 ALL 120

$1.28 MX$23.89

14.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 ALL 73.3

$0.78 MX$14.58

15.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.50 ALL 285

$3.17 MX$59.0

10.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 ALL 335

$4.93 MX$91.9

-16.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.24 ALL 183

$1.41 MX$26.20

58.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ALL 99.0

$2.22 MX$41.30

-45.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 ALL 191

$1.42 MX$26.40

65.49%

Eggs

$3.80 ALL 310

$2.52 MX$47.00

50.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 ALL 1,059

$7.26 MX$135

79.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.45 ALL 770

$7.70 MX$143

22.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.32 ALL 1,411

$12.69 MX$236

36.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 ALL 160

$2.78 MX$51.9

-29.14%

Banana (1kg)

$2.51 ALL 204

$1.37 MX$25.49

83.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ALL 181

$2.55 MX$47.52

-12.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.91 ALL 155

$2.12 MX$39.55

-9.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 ALL 86.7

$1.94 MX$36.11

-45.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 ALL 107

$1.89 MX$35.13

-30.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 ALL 123

$1.15 MX$21.36

30.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 ALL 65.5

$1.18 MX$21.96

-32.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.79 ALL 390

$4.30 MX$80.0

11.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.42 ALL 849

$9.95 MX$185

4.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ALL 132

$1.58 MX$29.50

2.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ALL 166

$2.67 MX$49.76

-23.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 ALL 42.87

$0.55 MX$10.31

-3.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.09 ALL 1,473

$26.62 MX$496

-32.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.77 ALL 307

$4.97 MX$92.6

-24.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.82 ALL 311

$3.33 MX$62.1

14.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.59 ALL 1,514

$5.36 MX$99.8

246.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.42 ALL 197

$1.44 MX$26.90

68.06%

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

$33.2K ALL 2.7M

$20.7K MX$385.0K

60.82%

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

$29.1K ALL 2.4M

$23.5K MX$437.2K

24.22%

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

$97.8 ALL 7,963

$84.8 MX$1,580

15.32%

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

$18.77 ALL 1,529

$23.41 MX$436

-19.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.21 ALL 1,646

$28.66 MX$534

-29.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.8 ALL 4,139

$57.1 MX$1,063

-10.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$9.73 ALL 792

$5.14 MX$95.7

89.30%

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

$341 ALL 27.7K

$207 MX$3,848

64.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,309 ALL 676.7K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

111.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.97 ALL 3,989

$43.35 MX$808

12.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.59 ALL 3,876

$41.44 MX$772

14.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 ALL 9,633

$74.2 MX$1,382

59.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 ALL 9,148

$89.3 MX$1,663

25.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$446 ALL 36.3K

$980 MX$18.2K

-54.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 ALL 27.1K

$381 MX$7,095

-12.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$612 ALL 49.9K

$1,708 MX$31.8K

-64.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$486 ALL 39.6K

$1,075 MX$20.0K

-54.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,745 ALL 142.1K

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-55.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,144 ALL 93.2K

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-81.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.16

11.45

-54.93%

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

Last update for Ballsh: October 27, 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

Ballsh

$332 28%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 14.6% $49

Groceries & Markets

Ballsh

$295 24.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 13.7% $41

Eating Out

Ballsh

$160 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 26.1% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Ballsh

$147 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 24.1% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ballsh

$137 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 0.1% $0.1

Sport & Entertainment

Ballsh

$70 5.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 4.2% $3

Getting Around

Ballsh

$43 3.6%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 17.2% $7.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $446 in Ballsh versus $980 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Ballsh versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $295 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Ballsh

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

05:26 5:26 AM

23:26 11:26 PM

6 h behind Ballsh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 81.44 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 90.66 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ballsh Playa del Carmen 9,860 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Ballsh
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

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,778 per month in Ballsh 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 Ballsh, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $446 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Interestingly, groceries are about 14% cheaper in Playa del Carmen – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

Kindergarten costs $341 per month in Ballsh and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,185 in Ballsh and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,185 in Ballsh to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.