Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Casablanca and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Casablanca: $977 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Casablanca
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Casablanca Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Casablanca

🇲🇦 Morocco

$977

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $977 in Casablanca versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Casablanca $977
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,525 in Casablanca versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Casablanca $1,525
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,074 in Casablanca versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Casablanca $2,074
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Casablanca costs roughly 19% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Casablanca 28% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.80 MAD 46.77

$10.86 MX$201

-55.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.06 MAD 322

$44.21 MX$817

-25.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.04 MAD 78.4

$11.76 MX$217

-31.63%

Cappuccino

$1.96 MAD 19.15

$3.68 MX$68.0

-46.74%

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

$1.08 MAD 10.51

$1.34 MX$24.79

-19.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 MAD 6.24

$0.82 MX$15.24

-21.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.14 MAD 40.33

$3.06 MX$56.6

35.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 MAD 56.0

$4.94 MX$91.2

16.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 MAD 9.46

$1.47 MX$27.17

-34.01%

White Bread (500g)

$0.83 MAD 8.13

$2.22 MX$40.95

-62.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.89 MAD 18.43

$1.48 MX$27.32

27.70%

Eggs

$1.89 MAD 18.47

$2.49 MX$45.99

-24.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 MAD 108

$7.52 MX$139

47.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.20 MAD 70.2

$7.96 MX$147

-9.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.76 MAD 115

$12.57 MX$232

-6.44%

Apples (1kg)

$1.63 MAD 15.93

$2.78 MX$51.3

-41.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 MAD 15.22

$1.43 MX$26.37

9.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.79 MAD 7.74

$2.62 MX$48.37

-69.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.76 MAD 7.42

$2.14 MX$39.49

-64.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.62 MAD 6.08

$2.02 MX$37.38

-69.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.65 MAD 6.37

$1.99 MX$36.74

-67.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.49 MAD 4.81

$1.14 MX$21.01

-57.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 MAD 4.86

$1.20 MX$22.18

-58.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.11 MAD 40.11

$4.26 MX$78.7

-3.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.18 MAD 79.7

$10.02 MX$185

-18.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 MAD 22.36

$1.54 MX$28.41

48.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 MAD 29.75

$2.66 MX$49.17

14.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.84 MAD 8.20

$0.53 MX$9.73

58.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.29 MAD 247

$27.51 MX$508

-8.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.86 MAD 8.39

$4.90 MX$90.6

-82.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.30 MAD 2.89

$3.43 MX$63.5

-91.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.56 MAD 44.43

$5.38 MX$99.4

-15.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MAD 14.76

$1.45 MX$26.76

4.14%

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

$30.8K MAD 300.3K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

45.56%

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

$31.2K MAD 304.0K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

35.46%

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

$51.0 MAD 497

$85.4 MX$1,577

-40.23%

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

$9.96 MAD 97.1

$23.46 MX$434

-57.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.12 MAD 401

$28.43 MX$525

44.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.46 MAD 316

$62.2 MX$1,149

-47.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.00 MAD 205

$28.68 MX$530

-26.78%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 MAD 73.8

$5.10 MX$94.3

48.43%

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

$572 MAD 5,577

$201 MX$3,715

184.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,556 MAD 54.2K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

40.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.2 MAD 577

$44.39 MX$820

33.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.48 MAD 434

$41.35 MX$764

7.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.0 MAD 917

$72.7 MX$1,344

29.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.1 MAD 586

$89.6 MX$1,656

-32.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$595 MAD 5,804

$979 MX$18.1K

-39.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$347 MAD 3,386

$373 MX$6,887

-6.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,105 MAD 10.8K

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-34.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$645 MAD 6,289

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-41.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,214 MAD 21.6K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-43.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,238 MAD 12.1K

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-79.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$670 MAD 6,536

$738 MX$13.6K

-9.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.83

11.45

-57.82%

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

Last update for Casablanca: October 17, 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

Casablanca

$347 35.6%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 7.3% $25

Groceries & Markets

Casablanca

$207 21.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 24.6% $51

Eating Out

Casablanca

$125 12.8%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 60% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Casablanca

$116 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 3.8% $4.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Casablanca

$102 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 34.4% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Casablanca

$48 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 52.1% $25

Getting Around

Casablanca

$31 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 66.8% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $595 in Casablanca and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 10% 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: $33.00 in Casablanca vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $258 per month, with Casablanca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Casablanca

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

6 h behind Casablanca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,215,935

149,923

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Casablanca
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

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

Casablanca is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 23% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 10% lower in Playa del Carmen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $595 in Casablanca versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Casablanca – a meal for two runs $33.00 versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $977 per month in Casablanca versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 23% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $977 in Casablanca versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Casablanca but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Casablanca the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Casablanca is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Playa del Carmen, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Casablanca 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 Casablanca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.