Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cambridge Bay and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,410 in Cambridge Bay, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge Bay
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Cambridge Bay Living Index
59

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

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Cambridge Bay

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,410

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,410 in Cambridge Bay versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Cambridge Bay $2,410
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,214 in Cambridge Bay versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Cambridge Bay $3,214
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,019 in Cambridge Bay versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Cambridge Bay $4,019
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Cambridge Bay is roughly 99% 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: Cambridge Bay is 79% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.76 CA$30.93

$10.76 MX$198

102.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.7 CA$92.0

$43.03 MX$791

50.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.24 CA$13.14

$11.79 MX$217

-21.63%

Cappuccino

$3.71 CA$5.27

$3.87 MX$71.0

-4.13%

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

$2.01 CA$2.86

$1.37 MX$25.14

46.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.20

$0.84 MX$15.36

84.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.20 CA$7.40

$3.10 MX$57.0

67.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.17 CA$8.77

$5.07 MX$93.1

21.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 CA$2.80

$1.44 MX$26.39

36.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 CA$3.59

$2.23 MX$40.99

13.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.27 CA$4.65

$1.47 MX$27.01

122.45%

Eggs

$3.35 CA$4.77

$2.53 MX$46.44

32.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.71 CA$13.81

$7.30 MX$134

33.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.57 CA$16.45

$7.86 MX$144

47.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.03 CA$21.37

$12.79 MX$235

17.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.83 CA$5.44

$2.90 MX$53.3

32.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 CA$1.81

$1.44 MX$26.38

-11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.23 CA$4.59

$2.55 MX$46.80

26.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 CA$4.86

$2.06 MX$37.81

66.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 CA$4.00

$2.00 MX$36.76

41.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 CA$3.16

$2.01 MX$36.85

10.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.75 CA$3.91

$1.19 MX$21.89

131.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.16

$1.26 MX$23.09

20.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.50 CA$20.62

$4.40 MX$80.9

229.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.23 CA$17.39

$9.59 MX$176

27.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 CA$3.90

$1.59 MX$29.24

72.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 CA$4.52

$2.81 MX$51.6

13.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.59 CA$3.68

$0.57 MX$10.41

354.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.5 CA$91.7

$27.82 MX$511

131.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.83 CA$4.02

$4.98 MX$91.6

-43.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 CA$2.18

$3.50 MX$64.3

-56.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.29 CA$28.84

$5.40 MX$99.2

275.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 CA$1.68

$1.47 MX$26.92

-19.73%

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

$25.7K CA$36.5K

$21.0K MX$385.6K

22.29%

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

$19.1K CA$27.2K

$23.9K MX$439.2K

-20.02%

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

$128 CA$181

$84.2 MX$1,547

51.48%

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

$37.88 CA$53.9

$23.99 MX$441

57.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.7 CA$76.4

$29.02 MX$533

85.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.55 CA$54.8

$63.0 MX$1,157

-38.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.98 CA$24.14

$29.14 MX$535

-41.73%

Cinema Ticket

$12.66 CA$18.00

$4.94 MX$90.8

156.28%

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

$669 CA$951

$204 MX$3,741

228.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.3K CA$18.9K

$3,941 MX$72.4K

236.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 CA$83.7

$43.60 MX$801

34.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.41 CA$60.3

$43.12 MX$792

-1.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.1 CA$105

$75.8 MX$1,392

-2.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.2 CA$127

$88.6 MX$1,628

0.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,316 CA$1,870

$1,008 MX$18.5K

30.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,277 CA$1,815

$374 MX$6,872

241.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,017 CA$2,867

$1,708 MX$31.4K

18.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,446 CA$2,056

$1,106 MX$20.3K

30.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,510 CA$6,412

$3,944 MX$72.5K

14.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,974 CA$5,650

$6,169 MX$113.3K

-35.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.66

11.45

-59.30%

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

Last update for Cambridge Bay: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cambridge Bay

$1.3K 53%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 70.7% $903

Groceries & Markets

Cambridge Bay

$347 14.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 25.5% $89

Eating Out

Cambridge Bay

$299 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 32.3% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cambridge Bay

$219 9.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 37.4% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Cambridge Bay

$119 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 5.1% $6.1

Getting Around

Cambridge Bay

$85 3.5%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 38.4% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Cambridge Bay

$64 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 14.1% $9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,316 in Cambridge Bay and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $65.0 in Cambridge Bay vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $347 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Cambridge Bay

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

12:49 12:49 PM

13:49 1:49 PM

1 h ahead of Cambridge Bay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,800

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.628 EUR

100 MXN = 5.44 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 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 October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.628 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 18.37 MXN (100 MXN = 5.44 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cambridge Bay Playa del Carmen 5,530 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cambridge Bay
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

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

Cambridge Bay and Playa del Carmen differ by about 99% in total monthly costs ($2,410 vs $1,210 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,615 in Cambridge Bay and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,316 in Cambridge Bay versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,410 per month in Cambridge Bay versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – a 99% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 132% less than in Cambridge Bay. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,410 in Cambridge Bay, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Cambridge Bay. 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 99% less than in Cambridge Bay. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.