Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Camden, NJ and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,569 in Camden, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Camden, NJ
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Camden, NJ Living Index
59

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

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Camden, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,569

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,569 in Camden, NJ versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Camden, NJ $2,569
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,856 in Camden, NJ versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Camden, NJ $3,856
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,143 in Camden, NJ versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Camden, NJ $5,143
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Camden, NJ is roughly 113% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Camden, NJ is 90% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.17 $20.17

$10.86 MX$201

85.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.9 $78.9

$44.21 MX$817

78.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.88 $11.88

$11.76 MX$217

1.02%

Cappuccino

$5.34 $5.34

$3.68 MX$68.0

45.11%

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

$2.58 $2.58

$1.34 MX$24.79

92.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 $2.30

$0.82 MX$15.24

180.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.03 $6.03

$3.06 MX$56.6

97.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.79 $7.79

$4.94 MX$91.2

57.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 $1.46

$1.47 MX$27.17

-0.68%

White Bread (500g)

$3.48 $3.48

$2.22 MX$40.95

56.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.19 $7.19

$1.48 MX$27.32

385.81%

Eggs

$5.05 $5.05

$2.49 MX$45.99

102.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 $12.33

$7.52 MX$139

63.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.85 $12.85

$7.96 MX$147

61.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.01 $18.01

$12.57 MX$232

43.28%

Apples (1kg)

$5.47 $5.47

$2.78 MX$51.3

96.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 $1.55

$1.43 MX$26.37

8.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.14 $5.14

$2.62 MX$48.37

96.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.28 $5.28

$2.14 MX$39.49

146.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.87 $2.87

$2.02 MX$37.38

42.08%

Onion (1kg)

$3.07 $3.07

$1.99 MX$36.74

54.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.51 $2.51

$1.14 MX$21.01

120.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 $2.47

$1.20 MX$22.18

105.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.64 $11.64

$4.26 MX$78.7

173.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.82 $14.82

$10.02 MX$185

47.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 $2.40

$1.54 MX$28.41

55.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 $3.26

$2.66 MX$49.17

22.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.07 $2.07

$0.53 MX$9.73

290.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.72 $2.72

$4.90 MX$90.6

-44.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 $1.60

$3.43 MX$63.5

-53.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.18 $24.18

$5.38 MX$99.4

349.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 $1.16

$1.45 MX$26.76

-20.00%

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

$31.3K $31.3K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

47.90%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

14.22%

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

$219 $219

$85.4 MX$1,577

156.68%

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

$61.7 $61.7

$23.46 MX$434

163.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.7 $61.7

$28.43 MX$525

117.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.94 $38.94

$62.2 MX$1,149

-37.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$15.52 $15.52

$5.10 MX$94.3

204.31%

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

$2,186 $2,186

$201 MX$3,715

987.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$34.4K $34.4K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

772.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.59 $48.59

$44.39 MX$820

9.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.56 $47.56

$41.35 MX$764

15.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 $102

$72.7 MX$1,344

39.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$89.6 MX$1,656

34.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,382 $1,382

$979 MX$18.1K

41.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 $1,228

$373 MX$6,887

229.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,815 $2,815

$1,681 MX$31.1K

67.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,180 $2,180

$1,095 MX$20.2K

99.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,470 $2,470

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-37.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,498 $2,498

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-59.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,216 $3,216

$738 MX$13.6K

336.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.62

11.45

-42.18%

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

Last update for Camden, NJ: October 18, 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

Camden, NJ

$1.2K 47.8%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 69.6% $855

Groceries & Markets

Camden, NJ

$440 17.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 41.3% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Camden, NJ

$343 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 59.9% $205

Eating Out

Camden, NJ

$326 12.7%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 38.6% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Camden, NJ

$143 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 22% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Camden, NJ

$70 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 3.5% $2.4

Getting Around

Camden, NJ

$19 * 0.7%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 172% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,382 in Camden, NJ and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Camden, NJ pays 336% 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: $79.0 in Camden, NJ vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $440 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Camden, NJ

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:15 10:15 PM

21:15 9:15 PM

1 h behind Camden, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

77,344

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

Camden, NJ Playa del Carmen 2,430 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Camden, NJ
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

Camden, NJ vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Camden, NJ and Playa del Carmen differ by about 113% in total monthly costs ($2,569 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 336% higher in Camden, NJ, 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: $1,382 in Camden, NJ versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 70% higher in Camden, NJ. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,569 per month in Camden, NJ versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 113% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,569 in Camden, NJ, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Camden, NJ. 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.

Safety-wise, Camden, NJ and Playa del Carmen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 113% less than in Camden, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.