Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Colchester and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,298 in Colchester, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

112

Cost of Living Index in Colchester
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Colchester Living Index
59

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

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Colchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,298

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,298 per month in Colchester vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Colchester $2,298
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $3,409 per month in Colchester vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Colchester $3,409
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $4,521 per month in Colchester vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Colchester $4,521
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Colchester costs about 90% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Colchester sits 70% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.69 £15.52

$10.76 MX$199

92.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$92.0 £69.1

$43.03 MX$795

113.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.61 £7.96

$11.79 MX$218

-10.01%

Cappuccino

$5.41 £4.06

$3.87 MX$71.4

39.79%

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

$2.72 £2.04

$1.37 MX$25.29

98.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 £1.33

$0.84 MX$15.44

110.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.07 £5.30

$3.10 MX$57.3

128.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.96 £5.22

$5.07 MX$93.6

37.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.44 MX$26.55

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 £1.04

$2.23 MX$41.23

-37.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.47 MX$27.17

14.29%

Eggs

$2.98 £2.23

$2.53 MX$46.71

17.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.21 £6.91

$7.30 MX$135

26.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.58 £5.69

$7.86 MX$145

-3.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 £10.86

$12.79 MX$236

13.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.15 £2.37

$2.90 MX$53.6

8.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 £1.04

$1.44 MX$26.53

-3.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.79 £2.10

$2.55 MX$47.07

9.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$2.06 MX$38.03

59.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.59 £1.19

$2.00 MX$36.97

-20.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 £1.09

$2.01 MX$37.07

-27.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.19 MX$22.02

41.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.26 MX$23.23

11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.30 £17.48

$4.40 MX$81.4

429.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.73 £8.05

$9.59 MX$177

11.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 £2.07

$1.59 MX$29.41

73.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 £2.64

$2.81 MX$51.9

24.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.72 £2.79

$0.57 MX$10.47

552.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$101 £75.6

$27.82 MX$514

262.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 £4.33

$4.98 MX$92.1

15.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.35 £1.01

$3.50 MX$64.6

-61.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.93 £15.70

$5.40 MX$99.8

287.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.53

$1.47 MX$27.08

38.78%

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

$38.1K £28.6K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

81.65%

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

$39.7K £29.8K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

66.24%

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

$252 £189

$84.2 MX$1,556

198.71%

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

$24.86 £18.65

$23.99 MX$443

3.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.54 £31.16

$29.02 MX$536

43.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.8 £50.8

$63.0 MX$1,164

7.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.75 £8.07

$29.14 MX$539

-63.11%

Cinema Ticket

$21.25 £15.94

$4.94 MX$91.3

330.16%

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

$1,061 £796

$204 MX$3,763

421.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.1K £15.1K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

410.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.7 £53.1

$43.60 MX$806

62.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.15 £23.37

$43.12 MX$797

-27.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.1 £58.6

$75.8 MX$1,400

3.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.87 £37.41

$88.6 MX$1,637

-43.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,256 £943

$1,008 MX$18.6K

24.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,027 £771

$374 MX$6,911

174.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,855 £1,392

$1,708 MX$31.6K

8.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,684 £1,263

$1,106 MX$20.4K

52.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,983 £3,739

$3,944 MX$72.9K

26.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,357 £2,519

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-45.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,499 £2,625

$754 MX$13.9K

363.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.91

11.45

-57.12%

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

Last update for Colchester: 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

Colchester

$1K 44.7%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 63.6% $654

Eating Out

Colchester

$330 14.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 38.6% $127

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Colchester

$318 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 56.8% $181

Groceries & Markets

Colchester

$281 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 8% $23

Getting Around

Colchester

$128 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 59% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Colchester

$110 4.8%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 33.9% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Colchester

$103 4.5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 9.3% $9.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,256 in Colchester versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 364% higher in Colchester, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $92.0 in Colchester versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $281 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Colchester

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:51 3:51 AM

21:51 9:51 PM

6 h behind Colchester

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

190,098

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 20, 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 20, 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

Colchester Playa del Carmen 8,080 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Colchester
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,298 in Colchester, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 90% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,447 per month in Colchester and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 262% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,061 per month in Colchester and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Colchester at $2,298. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Colchester it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,210 in Playa del Carmen to $2,298 in Colchester. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Colchester makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.