Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Drogheda and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $3,029 in Drogheda, 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 Drogheda
Learn more

Drogheda Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Drogheda

🇮🇪 Ireland

$3,029

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,029 per month in Drogheda vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Drogheda $3,029
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $4,445 per month in Drogheda vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Drogheda $4,445
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $5,861 per month in Drogheda vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Drogheda $5,861
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Drogheda costs about 150% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Drogheda sits 124% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 €16.66

$10.76 MX$199

74.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.8 €80.8

$43.03 MX$795

111.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.59 €10.31

$11.79 MX$218

-1.70%

Cappuccino

$4.14 €3.68

$3.87 MX$71.4

6.98%

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

$2.92 €2.60

$1.37 MX$25.29

113.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 €1.97

$0.84 MX$15.44

164.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.73 €5.99

$3.10 MX$57.3

117.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.68 €5.94

$5.07 MX$93.6

31.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 €1.50

$1.44 MX$26.55

17.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.23 MX$41.23

0.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.47 MX$27.17

-27.21%

Eggs

$4.52 €4.02

$2.53 MX$46.71

78.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.14 €9.02

$7.30 MX$135

38.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.11 €11.66

$7.86 MX$145

66.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.15 €14.37

$12.79 MX$236

26.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 €2.63

$2.90 MX$53.6

2.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$1.44 MX$26.53

33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.55 MX$47.07

-31.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 €4.23

$2.06 MX$38.03

131.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$2.00 MX$36.97

-12.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 €0.92

$2.01 MX$37.07

-48.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.19 MX$22.02

-10.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.26 MX$23.23

23.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.24 €18.00

$4.40 MX$81.4

360.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.45 €11.96

$9.59 MX$177

40.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.38 €3.01

$1.59 MX$29.41

112.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 €3.18

$2.81 MX$51.9

27.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.00 €2.67

$0.57 MX$10.47

426.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$210 €186

$27.82 MX$514

653.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 €4.45

$4.98 MX$92.1

0.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 €1.35

$3.50 MX$64.6

-56.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.62 €29.01

$5.40 MX$99.8

504.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.88

$1.47 MX$27.08

44.22%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

86.84%

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

$37.5K €33.4K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

56.88%

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

$243 €216

$84.2 MX$1,556

188.88%

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

$22.08 €19.64

$23.99 MX$443

-7.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.35 €39.45

$29.02 MX$536

52.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$75.6 €67.2

$63.0 MX$1,164

19.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$66.3 €58.9

$29.14 MX$539

127.39%

Cinema Ticket

$13.45 €11.96

$4.94 MX$91.3

172.27%

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

$1,091 €970

$204 MX$3,763

435.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,983 €1,764

$3,941 MX$72.8K

-49.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.7 €83.4

$43.60 MX$806

114.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.24 €37.57

$43.12 MX$797

-2.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.7

$75.8 MX$1,400

40.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$88.6 MX$1,637

36.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,823 €1,621

$1,008 MX$18.6K

80.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,573 €1,399

$374 MX$6,911

320.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,212 €2,857

$1,708 MX$31.6K

88.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,569 €2,285

$1,106 MX$20.4K

132.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,945 €3,509

$3,944 MX$72.9K

0.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,866 €2,549

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-53.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,463 €3,080

$754 MX$13.9K

359.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.14

11.45

-63.84%

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

Last update for Drogheda: 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

Drogheda

$1.6K 51.9%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 76.2% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Drogheda

$345 11.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 25% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Drogheda

$310 10.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 55.7% $172

Eating Out

Drogheda

$302 10%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 33% $100

Getting Around

Drogheda

$234 7.7%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 77.5% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Drogheda

$164 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 30.9% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Drogheda

$102 3.4%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 28.9% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,823 in Drogheda 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 359% higher in Drogheda, 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 $91.0 in Drogheda versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $345 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Drogheda

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:00 8:00 PM

14:00 2:00 PM

6 h behind Drogheda

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,135

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Drogheda Playa del Carmen 7,570 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Drogheda
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

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

Drogheda costs about 150% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,543 per month in Drogheda 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,029 in Drogheda and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 150%.

Public transport costs about 653% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Drogheda at $3,029. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Drogheda it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,210 versus $3,029 in Drogheda. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Drogheda makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.