Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barnsley and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,892 in Barnsley, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

92

Cost of Living Index in Barnsley
Learn more

Barnsley Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Barnsley

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,892

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,892 per month in Barnsley vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Barnsley $1,892
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,842 per month in Barnsley vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Barnsley $2,842
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $3,792 per month in Barnsley vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Barnsley $3,792
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Barnsley costs about 57% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Barnsley sits 40% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.36 £18.28

$10.86 MX$201

124.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.8 £62.9

$44.21 MX$817

89.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.52 £7.89

$11.76 MX$217

-10.54%

Cappuccino

$4.81 £3.61

$3.68 MX$68.0

30.71%

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

$2.39 £1.79

$1.34 MX$24.79

78.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 £1.22

$0.82 MX$15.24

97.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.94 £4.46

$3.06 MX$56.6

94.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.68 £5.01

$4.94 MX$91.2

35.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.47 MX$27.17

16.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 £1.39

$2.22 MX$40.95

-16.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$1.48 MX$27.32

35.81%

Eggs

$4.00 £3.00

$2.49 MX$45.99

60.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.71 £6.53

$7.52 MX$139

15.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.38 £6.28

$7.96 MX$147

5.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.58 £10.94

$12.57 MX$232

15.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 £2.24

$2.78 MX$51.3

7.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 £1.44

$1.43 MX$26.37

34.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 £1.96

$2.62 MX$48.37

-0.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 £2.22

$2.14 MX$39.49

37.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 £1.42

$2.02 MX$37.38

-5.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 £1.22

$1.99 MX$36.74

-18.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.14 MX$21.01

32.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 £1.09

$1.20 MX$22.18

21.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.72 £17.80

$4.26 MX$78.7

456.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.36 £8.52

$10.02 MX$185

13.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.45 £2.59

$1.54 MX$28.41

124.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 £2.47

$2.66 MX$49.17

23.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.61 £1.96

$0.53 MX$9.73

392.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.24 £3.93

$4.90 MX$90.6

6.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 £1.04

$3.43 MX$63.5

-59.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.06 £14.30

$5.38 MX$99.4

254.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.45 MX$26.76

37.24%

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

$38.3K £28.8K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

81.14%

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

$40.8K £30.6K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

77.24%

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

$283 £213

$85.4 MX$1,577

232.01%

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

$20.34 £15.26

$23.46 MX$434

-13.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.95 £32.97

$28.43 MX$525

54.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 £50.4

$62.2 MX$1,149

8.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$12.68 £9.51

$5.10 MX$94.3

148.63%

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

$1,486 £1,115

$201 MX$3,715

639.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.4K £12.3K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

314.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.0 £45.04

$44.39 MX$820

35.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.02 £30.77

$41.35 MX$764

-0.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.8 £69.6

$72.7 MX$1,344

27.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 £59.8

$89.6 MX$1,656

-11.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$921 £691

$979 MX$18.1K

-5.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$660 £495

$373 MX$6,887

77.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,347 £1,010

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-19.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,101 £826

$1,095 MX$20.2K

0.51%

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)

$2,966 £2,225

$738 MX$13.6K

302.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.61

11.45

-51.00%

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

Last update for Barnsley: October 17, 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

Barnsley

$660 34.9%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 43.6% $288

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barnsley

$348 18.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 60.5% $210

Eating Out

Barnsley

$343 18.2%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 41.7% $143

Groceries & Markets

Barnsley

$302 16%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 14.5% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Barnsley

$123 6.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 9.3% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Barnsley

$93 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 21.8% $20

Getting Around

Barnsley

$23 * 1.2%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 129% $29

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $921 in Barnsley versus $979 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.

Salaries run about 302% higher in Barnsley, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $84.0 in Barnsley versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $302 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Barnsley

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:57 2:57 PM

08:57 8:57 AM

6 h behind Barnsley

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

245,199

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barnsley Playa del Carmen 7,890 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Barnsley
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

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

Yes – Barnsley is pricier by about 57%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,838 per month in Barnsley 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 Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,892 in Barnsley and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 57%.

Kindergarten costs $1,486 per month in Barnsley and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Barnsley at $1,892. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barnsley it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Barnsley makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.