Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burlington, VT and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $3,098 in Burlington, VT, rent and utilities included – about $22,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

147

Cost of Living Index in Burlington, VT
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Burlington, VT Living Index
57

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

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Burlington, VT

🇺🇸 United States

$3,098

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,098 in Burlington, VT versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen.

Burlington, VT $3,098
Playa del Carmen $1,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,642 in Burlington, VT versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Burlington, VT $4,642
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,187 in Burlington, VT versus $2,962 in Playa del Carmen.

Burlington, VT $6,187
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Living in Burlington, VT is roughly 158% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Burlington, VT is 129% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.36 $22.36

$10.67 MX$199

109.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.7 $79.7

$43.80 MX$815

82.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.21 $12.21

$11.79 MX$219

3.56%

Cappuccino

$5.03 $5.03

$3.79 MX$70.5

32.72%

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

$2.89 $2.89

$1.30 MX$24.14

122.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 $2.37

$0.83 MX$15.51

185.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.15 $8.15

$3.15 MX$58.6

158.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.22 $8.22

$4.93 MX$91.8

66.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 $1.26

$1.41 MX$26.22

-10.64%

White Bread (500g)

$4.59 $4.59

$2.20 MX$40.86

108.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.91 $5.91

$1.47 MX$27.40

302.04%

Eggs

$4.48 $4.48

$2.50 MX$46.47

79.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.38 $15.38

$7.29 MX$136

110.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.25 $12.25

$7.95 MX$148

54.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.07 $19.07

$12.86 MX$239

48.29%

Apples (1kg)

$7.25 $7.25

$2.90 MX$53.9

150.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.38 MX$25.74

47.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.49 $5.49

$2.49 MX$46.36

120.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.37 $7.37

$2.03 MX$37.78

263.05%

Potato (1kg)

$4.41 $4.41

$2.02 MX$37.69

118.32%

Onion (1kg)

$3.95 $3.95

$1.90 MX$35.42

107.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.02 $3.02

$1.14 MX$21.30

164.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.85 $2.85

$1.24 MX$23.06

129.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.26 $12.26

$4.27 MX$79.5

187.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.20 $15.20

$9.81 MX$183

54.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.59 MX$29.51

11.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 $4.46

$2.75 MX$51.1

62.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.98 $1.98

$0.51 MX$9.58

288.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.8 $50.8

$27.39 MX$510

85.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.55 $2.55

$4.76 MX$88.6

-46.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.79 $1.79

$3.25 MX$60.5

-44.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.73 $27.73

$5.39 MX$100

414.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.53 MX$28.44

-25.49%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$21.2K MX$394.8K

28.75%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$23.3K MX$432.9K

14.37%

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

$151 $151

$83.5 MX$1,554

80.80%

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

$55.6 $55.6

$23.19 MX$431

139.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.1 $62.1

$27.61 MX$514

125.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.0 $64.0

$56.4 MX$1,050

13.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.22 $28.22

$28.19 MX$525

0.11%

Cinema Ticket

$12.15 $12.15

$5.00 MX$93.1

143.00%

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

$1,267 $1,267

$207 MX$3,854

511.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.1K $21.1K

$5,231 MX$97.4K

303.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.7 $59.7

$43.45 MX$809

37.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.3 $51.3

$42.54 MX$792

20.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.2 $70.2

$72.8 MX$1,354

-3.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$155 $155

$88.4 MX$1,645

75.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,426 $2,426

$995 MX$18.5K

143.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,678 $1,678

$382 MX$7,116

338.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,601 $3,601

$1,674 MX$31.2K

115.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,943 $2,943

$1,081 MX$20.1K

172.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,831 $3,831

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-1.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,217 $3,217

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-47.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,442 $4,442

$832 MX$15.5K

433.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.7

11.45

-41.48%

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

Last update for Burlington, VT: November 1, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Burlington, VT

$1.7K 54.2%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 77.2% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Burlington, VT

$487 15.7%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 47.2% $230

Eating Out

Burlington, VT

$354 11.4%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 43.4% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burlington, VT

$269 8.7%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 50% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Burlington, VT

$151 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 26.5% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Burlington, VT

$88 2.9%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 24.7% $22

Getting Around

Burlington, VT

$70 2.3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 28.1% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,426 in Burlington, VT and $995 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burlington, VT pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $80 in Burlington, VT vs $44 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $487 vs $257 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Burlington, VT

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:37 2:37 PM

Same time as Burlington, VT

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,743

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 4, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.13 USD (1 USD = 0.888 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Burlington, VT Playa del Carmen 2,940 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

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

Playa del Carmen is about 61% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Burlington, VT is about 5.3 times higher, 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: $2,426 in Burlington, VT versus $995 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 46% less than in Burlington, VT. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,267 in Burlington, VT versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,098 in Burlington, VT, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Burlington, VT. 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 Burlington, VT, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 61% less than in Burlington, VT. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.