Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barnstable, MA and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $2,367 in Barnstable, MA, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barnstable, MA
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Barnstable, MA Living Index
60

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

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Barnstable, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,367

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,367 in Barnstable, MA versus $1,215 in Playa del Carmen.

Barnstable, MA $2,367
Playa del Carmen $1,215

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,555 in Barnstable, MA versus $2,144 in Playa del Carmen.

Barnstable, MA $3,555
Playa del Carmen $2,144

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,743 in Barnstable, MA versus $3,072 in Playa del Carmen.

Barnstable, MA $4,743
Playa del Carmen $3,072

Living in Barnstable, MA is roughly 95% 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: Barnstable, MA is 77% above, Playa del Carmen is 9% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.12 $18.12

$10.97 MX$201

65.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.4 $74.4

$44.85 MX$823

65.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.84 $9.84

$11.92 MX$219

-17.45%

Cappuccino

$3.92 $3.92

$3.80 MX$69.9

3.16%

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

$2.18 $2.18

$1.31 MX$24.08

66.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$0.86 MX$15.72

102.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.15 $5.15

$3.21 MX$59.0

60.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.63 $6.63

$5.01 MX$92.0

32.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.46 MX$26.77

-28.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.33 MX$42.72

26.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.20 $4.20

$1.44 MX$26.48

191.67%

Eggs

$4.18 $4.18

$2.46 MX$45.20

69.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.44 $6.44

$7.70 MX$141

-16.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.05 $9.05

$7.89 MX$145

14.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.57 $8.57

$12.80 MX$235

-33.05%

Apples (1kg)

$4.28 $4.28

$2.92 MX$53.6

46.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.42 MX$26.11

20.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.36 $4.36

$2.57 MX$47.10

69.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.43 $3.43

$2.14 MX$39.24

60.28%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 $2.13

$1.95 MX$35.75

9.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.94 MX$35.55

14.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.15 MX$21.13

74.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$1.22 MX$22.42

108.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.28 $12.28

$4.38 MX$80.3

180.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.09 $13.09

$9.85 MX$181

32.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.15 $2.15

$1.54 MX$28.23

39.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 $3.90

$2.72 MX$49.86

43.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.97 $1.97

$0.52 MX$9.64

278.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.39 $34.39

$27.42 MX$503

25.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.59 $3.59

$4.91 MX$90.2

-26.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.76 $3.76

$3.52 MX$64.7

6.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.84 $25.84

$5.69 MX$104

354.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 $1.08

$1.54 MX$28.27

-29.87%

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

$37.3K $37.3K

$21.2K MX$389.9K

75.43%

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

$23.9K $23.9K

$24.5K MX$449.6K

-2.53%

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

$101 $101

$83.6 MX$1,535

21.09%

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

$59.1 $59.1

$24.03 MX$441

146.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.1 $64.1

$29.33 MX$539

118.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.72 $41.72

$64.9 MX$1,191

-35.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.22 $24.22

$29.46 MX$541

-17.79%

Cinema Ticket

$14.05 $14.05

$5.09 MX$93.4

176.03%

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

$1,829 $1,829

$208 MX$3,813

780.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K $30.5K

$4,045 MX$74.3K

653.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.2 $57.2

$44.55 MX$818

28.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.12 $38.12

$42.06 MX$772

-9.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 $79.2

$75.5 MX$1,387

4.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 $102

$91.4 MX$1,678

11.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,599 $1,599

$986 MX$18.1K

62.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,294 $1,294

$385 MX$7,072

236.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,461 $2,461

$1,713 MX$31.5K

43.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,151 $2,151

$1,108 MX$20.4K

94.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,770 $2,770

$4,016 MX$73.7K

-31.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,390 $2,390

$6,247 MX$114.7K

-61.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,660 $4,660

$758 MX$13.9K

514.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.64

11.45

-42.01%

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

Last update for Barnstable, MA: October 3, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barnstable, MA

$1.3K 54.4%

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4% 70.2% $909

Groceries & Markets

Barnstable, MA

$324 13.6%

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2% 19.7% $64

Eating Out

Barnstable, MA

$276 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6% 26.1% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barnstable, MA

$224 9.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2% 39% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Barnstable, MA

$124 5.2%

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3% 8.2% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Barnstable, MA

$70 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1% 7.5% $5.2

Getting Around

Barnstable, MA

$65 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2% 19.5% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,599 in Barnstable, MA and $986 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barnstable, MA pays 515% 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: $74.0 in Barnstable, MA vs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $260 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Barnstable, MA

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

06:32 6:32 AM

05:32 5:32 AM

1 h behind Barnstable, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,000

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Barnstable, MA Playa del Carmen 2,820 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Barnstable, MA
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

Barnstable, MA vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barnstable, MA and Playa del Carmen differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($2,367 vs $1,215 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 515% higher in Barnstable, MA, 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: $1,599 in Barnstable, MA versus $986 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 25% less than in Barnstable, MA. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,829 in Barnstable, MA versus $208 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,215 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,367 in Barnstable, MA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Barnstable, MA. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Barnstable, MA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.