Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Banbury and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,288 in Banbury, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Banbury
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Banbury Living Index
59

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

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Banbury

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,288

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,288 in Banbury versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Banbury $2,288
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,422 in Banbury versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Banbury $3,422
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,556 in Banbury versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Banbury $4,556
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Banbury is roughly 90% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Banbury is 69% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.60 £14.71

$10.86 MX$201

80.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.9 £59.9

$44.21 MX$817

80.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.46 £7.85

$11.76 MX$217

-11.05%

Cappuccino

$4.58 £3.44

$3.68 MX$68.0

24.46%

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

$2.15 £1.61

$1.34 MX$24.79

60.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 £1.11

$0.82 MX$15.24

81.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.69 £4.27

$3.06 MX$56.6

85.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 £3.46

$4.94 MX$91.2

-6.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 £1.01

$1.47 MX$27.17

-8.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 £1.17

$2.22 MX$40.95

-29.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$1.48 MX$27.32

35.81%

Eggs

$4.54 £3.41

$2.49 MX$45.99

82.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.11 £3.83

$7.52 MX$139

-32.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.31 £5.48

$7.96 MX$147

-8.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.50 £10.13

$12.57 MX$232

7.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.18 £1.64

$2.78 MX$51.3

-21.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.35 £1.02

$1.43 MX$26.37

-5.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 £1.49

$2.62 MX$48.37

-24.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.11 £1.59

$2.14 MX$39.49

-1.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 £0.97

$2.02 MX$37.38

-35.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.34 £1.01

$1.99 MX$36.74

-32.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.14 MX$21.01

7.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 £1.10

$1.20 MX$22.18

21.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.60 £17.70

$4.26 MX$78.7

453.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.22 £6.92

$10.02 MX$185

-7.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 £1.98

$1.54 MX$28.41

72.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 £1.72

$2.66 MX$49.17

-13.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.09 £3.07

$0.53 MX$9.73

671.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$265 £199

$27.51 MX$508

861.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 £3.53

$4.90 MX$90.6

-4.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 £1.22

$3.43 MX$63.5

-52.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.53 £29.66

$5.38 MX$99.4

634.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 £1.52

$1.45 MX$26.76

39.31%

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

$38.4K £28.8K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

81.68%

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

$40.3K £30.2K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

75.17%

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

$205 £154

$85.4 MX$1,577

140.63%

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

$13.33 £10.00

$23.46 MX$434

-43.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.31 £34.75

$28.43 MX$525

62.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.6 £54.5

$62.2 MX$1,149

16.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$14.82 £11.12

$5.10 MX$94.3

190.59%

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

$1,477 £1,108

$201 MX$3,715

634.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.4K £16.8K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

468.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$82.3 £61.7

$44.39 MX$820

85.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.50 £22.88

$41.35 MX$764

-26.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 £78.5

$72.7 MX$1,344

43.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.4 £65.6

$89.6 MX$1,656

-2.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 £893

$979 MX$18.1K

21.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$944 £708

$373 MX$6,887

153.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,897 £1,423

$1,681 MX$31.1K

12.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,597 £1,198

$1,095 MX$20.2K

45.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,750 £2,063

$738 MX$13.6K

272.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.06

11.45

-55.81%

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

Last update for Banbury: October 19, 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

Banbury

$944 41.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 60.5% $571

Eating Out

Banbury

$295 12.9%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 32.2% $95

Getting Around

Banbury

$294 12.8%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 82.4% $242

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Banbury

$265 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 48.2% $128

Groceries & Markets

Banbury

$250 10.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 3.2% $7.9

Clothing & Footwear

Banbury

$137 6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 18.6% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Banbury

$102 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 29.2% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,190 in Banbury and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Banbury pays 273% 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: $80.0 in Banbury vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries flip the comparison at $250 vs $258, with Banbury cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Banbury

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:17 2:17 PM

08:17 8:17 AM

6 h behind Banbury

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

48,681

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Banbury Playa del Carmen 7,930 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Banbury
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

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

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and clothing. The 90% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 273% higher in Banbury, 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: $1,190 in Banbury versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Banbury pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $80.0 in Banbury. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,288 in Banbury, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Banbury. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Banbury, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Banbury 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 90% less than in Banbury. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.