Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brownwood, TX and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,712 in Brownwood, TX, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

82

Cost of Living Index in Brownwood, TX
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Brownwood, TX Living Index
59

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

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Brownwood, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$1,712

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,712 per month in Brownwood, TX vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Brownwood, TX $1,712
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,646 per month in Brownwood, TX vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Brownwood, TX $2,646
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $3,579 per month in Brownwood, TX vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Brownwood, TX $3,579
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Brownwood, TX costs about 42% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Brownwood, TX sits 26% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.58 $13.58

$10.86 MX$201

25.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.4 $78.4

$44.21 MX$817

77.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.83 $9.83

$11.76 MX$217

-16.41%

Cappuccino

$5.31 $5.31

$3.68 MX$68.0

44.29%

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

$2.41 $2.41

$1.34 MX$24.79

79.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$0.82 MX$15.24

113.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.76 $6.76

$3.06 MX$56.6

120.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.32 $7.32

$4.94 MX$91.2

48.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.71 $0.71

$1.47 MX$27.17

-51.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 $1.42

$2.22 MX$40.95

-36.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.07 $2.07

$1.48 MX$27.32

39.86%

Eggs

$2.03 $2.03

$2.49 MX$45.99

-18.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.91 $7.91

$7.52 MX$139

5.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.91 $8.91

$7.96 MX$147

11.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.38 $13.38

$12.57 MX$232

6.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 $2.99

$2.78 MX$51.3

7.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 $1.25

$1.43 MX$26.37

-12.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.69 $2.69

$2.62 MX$48.37

2.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 $2.10

$2.14 MX$39.49

-1.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.14 $2.14

$2.02 MX$37.38

5.94%

Onion (1kg)

$2.10 $2.10

$1.99 MX$36.74

5.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.79 $1.79

$1.14 MX$21.01

57.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 $2.43

$1.20 MX$22.18

102.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.99 $9.99

$4.26 MX$78.7

134.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.21 $20.21

$10.02 MX$185

101.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 $1.70

$1.54 MX$28.41

10.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 $3.21

$2.66 MX$49.17

20.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.25 $2.25

$0.53 MX$9.73

324.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 $2.93

$4.90 MX$90.6

-40.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 $1.73

$3.43 MX$63.5

-49.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.87 $33.87

$5.38 MX$99.4

529.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.45 MX$26.76

-34.48%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

28.57%

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

$22.4K $22.4K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

-2.67%

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

$99.8 $99.8

$85.4 MX$1,577

16.88%

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

$47.47 $47.47

$23.46 MX$434

102.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.48 $39.48

$28.43 MX$525

38.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.24 $42.24

$62.2 MX$1,149

-32.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$11.20 $11.20

$5.10 MX$94.3

119.61%

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

$1,329 $1,329

$201 MX$3,715

560.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.6K $23.6K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

496.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.4 $58.4

$44.39 MX$820

31.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.56 $37.56

$41.35 MX$764

-9.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.5 $85.5

$72.7 MX$1,344

17.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.8 $68.8

$89.6 MX$1,656

-23.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,616 $1,616

$979 MX$18.1K

64.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$768 $768

$373 MX$6,887

106.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,478 $2,478

$1,681 MX$31.1K

47.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,351 $1,351

$1,095 MX$20.2K

23.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,391 $2,391

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-39.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,350 $2,350

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-61.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.21

11.45

-45.76%

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

Last update for Brownwood, TX: 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

Brownwood, TX

$768 44.9%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 51.5% $395

Groceries & Markets

Brownwood, TX

$292 17.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 11.6% $34

Eating Out

Brownwood, TX

$267 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 25% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brownwood, TX

$187 10.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 26.5% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Brownwood, TX

$113 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 0.9% $1

Sport & Entertainment

Brownwood, TX

$65 3.8%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 12% $7.8

Getting Around

Brownwood, TX

$21 * 1.2%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 151% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,616 in Brownwood, TX 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $78.0 in Brownwood, TX versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $292 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Brownwood, TX

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:50 3:50 AM

Same time as Brownwood, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,763

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brownwood, TX Playa del Carmen 1,710 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Brownwood, TX
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

Brownwood, TX vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Brownwood, TX is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,568 per month in Brownwood, TX 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $78.0 in Brownwood, TX and $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 13% more in Brownwood, TX, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Brownwood, TX at $1,712. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Brownwood, TX 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.

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