Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Des Plaines, IL and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $3,023 in Des Plaines, IL, rent and utilities included – about $21,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

147

Cost of Living Index in Des Plaines, IL
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Des Plaines, IL Living Index
59

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

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Des Plaines, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$3,023

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,023 in Des Plaines, IL versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Des Plaines, IL $3,023
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,419 in Des Plaines, IL versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Des Plaines, IL $4,419
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,815 in Des Plaines, IL versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Des Plaines, IL $5,815
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Des Plaines, IL is roughly 150% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Des Plaines, IL is 124% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.29 $21.29

$10.76 MX$199

97.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.1 $89.1

$43.03 MX$795

106.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.10 $13.10

$11.79 MX$218

11.11%

Cappuccino

$5.68 $5.68

$3.87 MX$71.4

46.77%

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

$2.61 $2.61

$1.37 MX$25.29

90.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$0.84 MX$15.44

166.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.05 $7.05

$3.10 MX$57.3

127.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.22 $8.22

$5.07 MX$93.6

62.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.44 MX$26.55

-36.11%

White Bread (500g)

$3.40 $3.40

$2.23 MX$41.23

52.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.20 $4.20

$1.47 MX$27.17

185.71%

Eggs

$4.23 $4.23

$2.53 MX$46.71

67.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.74 $14.74

$7.30 MX$135

101.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.04 $13.04

$7.86 MX$145

65.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.82 $18.82

$12.79 MX$236

47.15%

Apples (1kg)

$4.61 $4.61

$2.90 MX$53.6

58.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 $1.66

$1.44 MX$26.53

15.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.16 $4.16

$2.55 MX$47.07

63.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.92 $4.92

$2.06 MX$38.03

138.83%

Potato (1kg)

$2.71 $2.71

$2.00 MX$36.97

35.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.72 $2.72

$2.01 MX$37.07

35.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.19 MX$22.02

75.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 $2.45

$1.26 MX$23.23

94.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.90 $10.90

$4.40 MX$81.4

147.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.97 $14.97

$9.59 MX$177

56.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 $2.57

$1.59 MX$29.41

61.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 $3.35

$2.81 MX$51.9

19.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.96 $1.96

$0.57 MX$10.47

243.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.0 $60.0

$27.82 MX$514

115.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.29 $3.29

$4.98 MX$92.1

-33.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 $1.36

$3.50 MX$64.6

-61.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.88 $24.88

$5.40 MX$99.8

360.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.47 MX$27.08

-32.65%

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

$36.1K $36.1K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

72.23%

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

$25.7K $25.7K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

7.68%

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

$192 $192

$84.2 MX$1,556

127.98%

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

$59.2 $59.2

$23.99 MX$443

146.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$76.0 $76.0

$29.02 MX$536

162.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$123 $123

$63.0 MX$1,164

95.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$39.32 $39.32

$29.14 MX$539

34.93%

Cinema Ticket

$14.72 $14.72

$4.94 MX$91.3

197.98%

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

$1,563 $1,563

$204 MX$3,763

667.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K $23.7K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

500.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.9 $64.9

$43.60 MX$806

48.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.8 $50.8

$43.12 MX$797

17.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 $101

$75.8 MX$1,400

33.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$88.6 MX$1,637

35.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,084 $2,084

$1,008 MX$18.6K

106.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,548 $1,548

$374 MX$6,911

313.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,937 $3,937

$1,708 MX$31.6K

130.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,485 $2,485

$1,106 MX$20.4K

124.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,279 $3,279

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-16.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,480 $2,480

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-59.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,121 $6,121

$754 MX$13.9K

711.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.77

11.45

-40.87%

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

Last update for Des Plaines, IL: 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

Des Plaines, IL

$1.5K 51.2%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 75.8% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Des Plaines, IL

$418 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 38.1% $159

Eating Out

Des Plaines, IL

$349 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 42% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Des Plaines, IL

$327 10.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 58.1% $190

Sport & Entertainment

Des Plaines, IL

$152 5%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 52.1% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Des Plaines, IL

$151 5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 25.3% $38

Getting Around

Des Plaines, IL

$78 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 32.5% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,084 in Des Plaines, IL and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Des Plaines, IL pays 712% 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: $89.0 in Des Plaines, IL vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $418 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Des Plaines, IL

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:26 4:26 PM

Same time as Des Plaines, IL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

60,675

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 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 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

Des Plaines, IL Playa del Carmen 2,380 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Des Plaines, IL
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

Des Plaines, IL vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Des Plaines, IL and Playa del Carmen differ by about 150% in total monthly costs ($3,023 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 712% higher in Des Plaines, IL, 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: $2,084 in Des Plaines, IL versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Des Plaines, IL. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43.00 versus $89.0 in Des Plaines, IL. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,023 in Des Plaines, IL, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Des Plaines, IL. 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 150% less than in Des Plaines, IL. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.