Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burlington and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,737 in Burlington, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

130

Cost of Living Index in Burlington
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Burlington Living Index
58

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

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Burlington

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,737

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,737 per month in Burlington vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Burlington $2,737
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,881 per month in Burlington vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Burlington $3,881
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $5,025 per month in Burlington vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Burlington $5,025
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Burlington costs about 127% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Burlington sits 101% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.84 CA$30.51

$10.92 MX$205

100.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.3 CA$101

$43.37 MX$814

66.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.60 CA$14.80

$11.78 MX$221

-10.02%

Cappuccino

$3.31 CA$4.62

$3.81 MX$71.5

-13.12%

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

$2.00 CA$2.80

$1.28 MX$24.07

56.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.17

$0.78 MX$14.70

98.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 CA$7.79

$3.17 MX$59.5

75.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.11 CA$8.53

$4.93 MX$92.7

23.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.60 CA$3.63

$1.41 MX$26.40

84.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.86 CA$4.00

$2.22 MX$41.62

28.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.78 CA$5.29

$1.42 MX$26.61

166.20%

Eggs

$3.76 CA$5.25

$2.52 MX$47.36

49.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.00 CA$13.97

$7.26 MX$136

37.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.59 CA$14.79

$7.70 MX$144

37.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.78 CA$20.65

$12.69 MX$238

16.47%

Apples (1kg)

$3.83 CA$5.36

$2.78 MX$52.3

37.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 CA$2.07

$1.37 MX$25.68

8.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.67 CA$3.73

$2.55 MX$47.89

4.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 CA$5.10

$2.12 MX$39.86

72.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 CA$2.74

$1.94 MX$36.39

1.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 CA$2.68

$1.89 MX$35.41

1.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.09 CA$2.92

$1.15 MX$21.53

81.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 CA$2.06

$1.18 MX$22.13

24.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.64 CA$19.06

$4.30 MX$80.6

217.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.79 CA$15.08

$9.95 MX$187

8.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 CA$3.92

$1.58 MX$29.73

77.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 CA$4.09

$2.67 MX$50.1

9.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.65 CA$3.70

$0.55 MX$10.39

381.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.8 CA$140

$26.62 MX$500

275.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.09 CA$7.12

$4.97 MX$93.3

2.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 CA$3.40

$3.33 MX$62.5

-26.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.32 CA$60.5

$5.36 MX$101

708.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 CA$1.67

$1.44 MX$27.11

-17.36%

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

$27.8K CA$38.8K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

34.47%

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

$21.7K CA$30.4K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

-7.36%

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

$144 CA$201

$84.8 MX$1,592

69.80%

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

$44.16 CA$61.7

$23.41 MX$439

88.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.4 CA$94.2

$28.66 MX$538

135.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.66 CA$61.0

$57.1 MX$1,071

-23.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.23 CA$42.24

$28.91 MX$543

4.57%

Cinema Ticket

$16.13 CA$22.55

$5.14 MX$96.5

213.81%

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

$902 CA$1,261

$207 MX$3,878

336.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.0K CA$26.6K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

384.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.3 CA$96.8

$43.35 MX$814

59.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.5 CA$91.5

$41.44 MX$778

58.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 CA$140

$74.2 MX$1,393

34.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.8 CA$139

$89.3 MX$1,676

11.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,729 CA$2,416

$980 MX$18.4K

76.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,480 CA$2,069

$381 MX$7,150

288.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,599 CA$3,632

$1,708 MX$32.1K

52.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,176 CA$3,041

$1,075 MX$20.2K

102.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,270 CA$7,364

$3,943 MX$74.0K

33.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,145 CA$5,791

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-32.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,285 CA$4,590

$735 MX$13.8K

347.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.52

11.45

-60.52%

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

Last update for Burlington: October 26, 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

Burlington

$1.5K 54.1%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 74.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Burlington

$346 12.7%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 26.4% $91

Eating Out

Burlington

$300 11%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 32.7% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burlington

$256 9.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 46.4% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Burlington

$151 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 25.8% $39

Getting Around

Burlington

$128 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 60.5% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Burlington

$76 2.8%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 11.3% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,729 in Burlington 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.

Salaries in Burlington are about 4.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $72 in Burlington versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $346 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Burlington

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:17 3:17 PM

Same time as Burlington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

183,314

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Burlington Playa del Carmen 2,610 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Burlington
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

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

Yes – Burlington is pricier by about 127%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,105 per month in Burlington 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,729 in Burlington.

Kindergarten costs $902 per month in Burlington and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 36% more in Burlington, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Burlington at $2,737. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Burlington 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 or specific career opportunities are the priority, Burlington makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.