Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cardiff and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,454 in Cardiff, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index
59

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

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,454

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,454 in Cardiff versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Cardiff $2,454
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,414 in Cardiff versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Cardiff $3,414
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,373 in Cardiff versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Cardiff $4,373
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Cardiff is roughly 103% 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: Cardiff is 82% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.04 £15.04

$10.76 MX$199

86.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.4 £62.6

$43.03 MX$795

93.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.74 £8.06

$11.79 MX$218

-8.91%

Cappuccino

$4.45 £3.34

$3.87 MX$71.4

14.99%

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

$2.92 £2.19

$1.37 MX$25.29

113.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 £1.50

$0.84 MX$15.44

138.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.80 £5.85

$3.10 MX$57.3

151.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.32 £4.74

$5.07 MX$93.6

24.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.44 MX$26.55

19.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 £1.07

$2.23 MX$41.23

-35.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 £1.61

$1.47 MX$27.17

46.26%

Eggs

$3.62 £2.72

$2.53 MX$46.71

43.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.47 £7.11

$7.30 MX$135

29.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.85 £6.64

$7.86 MX$145

12.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.18 £12.14

$12.79 MX$236

26.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$2.90 MX$53.6

-3.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.44 MX$26.53

7.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.28

$2.55 MX$47.07

18.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.51 £2.63

$2.06 MX$38.03

70.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 £1.50

$2.00 MX$36.97

-0.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$2.01 MX$37.07

-23.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.19 MX$22.02

-8.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.26 MX$23.23

30.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.08 £17.31

$4.40 MX$81.4

424.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.07 £8.31

$9.59 MX$177

15.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.05 £2.29

$1.59 MX$29.41

91.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.48

$2.81 MX$51.9

17.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 £2.41

$0.57 MX$10.47

463.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.1 £59.3

$27.82 MX$514

184.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.58 £3.44

$4.98 MX$92.1

-8.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 £1.25

$3.50 MX$64.6

-52.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.87 £26.91

$5.40 MX$99.8

564.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 £1.55

$1.47 MX$27.08

40.14%

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

$37.9K £28.4K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

80.36%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

70.94%

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

$335 £252

$84.2 MX$1,556

298.30%

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

$25.35 £19.02

$23.99 MX$443

5.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.54 £32.67

$29.02 MX$536

50.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.26 £27.95

$63.0 MX$1,164

-40.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.37 £8.53

$29.14 MX$539

-60.98%

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 £7.77

$4.94 MX$91.3

109.72%

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

$1,990 £1,493

$204 MX$3,763

877.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.5K £24.4K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

725.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.8 £73.4

$43.60 MX$806

124.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.54 £36.41

$43.12 MX$797

12.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 £86.9

$75.8 MX$1,400

52.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.4 £74.6

$88.6 MX$1,637

12.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 £876

$1,008 MX$18.6K

15.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,102 £826

$374 MX$6,911

194.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,136 £1,602

$1,708 MX$31.6K

25.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,482 £1,112

$1,106 MX$20.4K

33.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,255 £3,942

$3,944 MX$72.9K

33.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,432 £2,575

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-44.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,179 £2,385

$754 MX$13.9K

321.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

11.45

-55.37%

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

Last update for Cardiff: October 12, 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

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.9%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 66% $728

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cardiff

$404 16.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 66.1% $267

Eating Out

Cardiff

$317 12.9%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 36.2% $115

Groceries & Markets

Cardiff

$306 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 15.5% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Cardiff

$163 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 30.6% $50

Getting Around

Cardiff

$105 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 49.8% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Cardiff

$58 2.4%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 25.7% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,168 in Cardiff and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cardiff pays 321% 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: $83.0 in Cardiff vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $306 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

12:18 12:18 PM

06:18 6:18 AM

6 h behind Cardiff

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,100

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cardiff Playa del Carmen 7,810 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cardiff
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

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

Cardiff and Playa del Carmen differ by about 103% in total monthly costs ($2,454 vs $1,210 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 321% higher in Cardiff, 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: $1,168 in Cardiff versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43.00 versus $83.0 in Cardiff. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,454 per month in Cardiff versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – a 103% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,454 in Cardiff, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Cardiff. 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, Cardiff 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 103% less than in Cardiff. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.