Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Derry and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,739 in Derry, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

84

Cost of Living Index in Derry
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Derry Living Index
59

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

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Derry

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,739

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,739 per month in Derry vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Derry $1,739
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $2,589 per month in Derry vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Derry $2,589
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $3,439 per month in Derry vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Derry $3,439
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Derry costs about 44% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Derry sits 29% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.87 £14.16

$10.76 MX$199

75.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.9 £55.5

$43.03 MX$795

71.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.38 £7.79

$11.79 MX$218

-11.96%

Cappuccino

$3.88 £2.91

$3.87 MX$71.4

0.26%

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

$2.13 £1.60

$1.37 MX$25.29

55.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 £1.25

$0.84 MX$15.44

98.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.41 £4.06

$3.10 MX$57.3

74.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.88 £4.41

$5.07 MX$93.6

15.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.44 MX$26.55

18.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.33 £1.00

$2.23 MX$41.23

-40.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$1.47 MX$27.17

36.73%

Eggs

$3.30 £2.47

$2.53 MX$46.71

30.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.44 £5.58

$7.30 MX$135

1.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.85 £6.64

$7.86 MX$145

12.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.69 £12.52

$12.79 MX$236

30.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.69 £2.02

$2.90 MX$53.6

-7.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.44 MX$26.53

-11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.78 £2.08

$2.55 MX$47.07

9.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.31 £2.48

$2.06 MX$38.03

60.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 £0.96

$2.00 MX$36.97

-36.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$2.01 MX$37.07

-32.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 £0.70

$1.19 MX$22.02

-21.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.26 MX$23.23

20.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.22 £15.92

$4.40 MX$81.4

382.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.54 £7.91

$9.59 MX$177

9.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.44 £1.83

$1.59 MX$29.41

53.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 £2.56

$2.81 MX$51.9

21.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.67 £2.75

$0.57 MX$10.47

543.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.8 £71.1

$27.82 MX$514

240.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 £4.04

$4.98 MX$92.1

8.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 £0.85

$3.50 MX$64.6

-67.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.36 £25.77

$5.40 MX$99.8

536.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.83 £1.37

$1.47 MX$27.08

24.49%

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

$38.2K £28.7K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

82.19%

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

$40.0K £30.0K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

67.49%

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

$132 £98.9

$84.2 MX$1,556

56.55%

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

$15.52 £11.64

$23.99 MX$443

-35.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.42 £31.82

$29.02 MX$536

46.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.68 £26.02

$63.0 MX$1,164

-44.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.42 £10.07

$29.14 MX$539

-53.95%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 £7.82

$4.94 MX$91.3

110.93%

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

$932 £699

$204 MX$3,763

357.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.1K £16.6K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

461.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.0 £72.8

$43.60 MX$806

122.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.08 £29.32

$43.12 MX$797

-9.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 £77.2

$75.8 MX$1,400

35.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$63.8 £47.83

$88.6 MX$1,637

-28.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$821 £616

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-18.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 £502

$374 MX$6,911

78.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,277 £958

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-25.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$956 £717

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-13.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,964 £3,724

$3,944 MX$72.9K

25.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,785 £2,839

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-38.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.76

11.45

-58.43%

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

Last update for Derry: 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

Derry

$669 38.5%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 44.1% $295

Groceries & Markets

Derry

$286 16.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 9.5% $27

Eating Out

Derry

$283 16.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 28.5% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Derry

$190 10.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 27.7% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Derry

$136 7.8%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 17% $23

Getting Around

Derry

$121 6.9%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 56.4% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Derry

$56 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 31.3% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $821 in Derry 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $74.0 in Derry versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $286 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Derry

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

21:05 9:05 PM

15:05 3:05 PM

6 h behind Derry

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

85,016

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 17, 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Derry Playa del Carmen 7,500 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Derry
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,739 in Derry, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 44% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,609 per month in Derry 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.

Kindergarten costs $932 per month in Derry and $204 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 11% more in Derry, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Derry at $1,739. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Derry 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 $1,739 in Derry. 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, Derry makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.