Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edmonton and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,188 in Edmonton, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Edmonton
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Edmonton Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Edmonton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,188

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,188 per month in Edmonton vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Edmonton $2,188
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,196 per month in Edmonton vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Edmonton $3,196
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,203 per month in Edmonton vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Edmonton $4,203
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Edmonton costs about 82% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Edmonton sits 61% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.92 CA$27.95

$10.92 MX$204

82.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.2 CA$110

$43.37 MX$808

80.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.14 CA$14.23

$11.78 MX$220

-13.92%

Cappuccino

$3.96 CA$5.56

$3.81 MX$71.0

3.94%

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

$2.34 CA$3.28

$1.28 MX$23.90

82.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 CA$2.84

$0.78 MX$14.59

160.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.76 CA$8.08

$3.17 MX$59.0

81.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.34 CA$8.90

$4.93 MX$92.0

28.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 CA$2.27

$1.41 MX$26.22

14.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.15 CA$3.02

$2.22 MX$41.33

-3.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.03 CA$4.26

$1.42 MX$26.42

113.38%

Eggs

$3.58 CA$5.03

$2.52 MX$47.03

42.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.77 CA$15.11

$7.26 MX$135

48.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.31 CA$15.88

$7.70 MX$143

46.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.80 CA$26.39

$12.69 MX$237

48.15%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 CA$5.79

$2.78 MX$51.9

48.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 CA$1.96

$1.37 MX$25.50

2.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.24 CA$5.95

$2.55 MX$47.55

66.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.95 CA$5.54

$2.12 MX$39.58

86.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 CA$2.98

$1.94 MX$36.13

9.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.79 CA$2.52

$1.89 MX$35.16

-5.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 CA$3.48

$1.15 MX$21.37

115.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 CA$2.51

$1.18 MX$21.98

51.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.32 CA$20.10

$4.30 MX$80.1

233.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.58 CA$16.25

$9.95 MX$185

16.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.45 CA$4.85

$1.58 MX$29.52

118.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 CA$4.18

$2.67 MX$49.79

11.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.64 CA$3.71

$0.55 MX$10.31

380.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.9 CA$102

$26.62 MX$496

173.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.87 CA$4.02

$4.97 MX$92.6

-42.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 CA$1.99

$3.33 MX$62.1

-57.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.99 CA$29.45

$5.36 MX$99.8

291.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 CA$1.66

$1.44 MX$26.92

-18.06%

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

$27.5K CA$38.6K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

32.93%

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

$20.7K CA$29.1K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

-11.65%

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

$231 CA$324

$84.8 MX$1,581

172.11%

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

$43.33 CA$60.8

$23.41 MX$436

85.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.8 CA$77.0

$28.66 MX$534

91.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.95 CA$61.7

$57.1 MX$1,063

-22.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.43 CA$25.86

$28.91 MX$539

-36.25%

Cinema Ticket

$12.60 CA$17.69

$5.14 MX$95.8

145.14%

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

$626 CA$879

$207 MX$3,851

203.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,741 CA$13.7K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

148.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.27 CA$62.1

$43.35 MX$808

2.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.59 CA$66.8

$41.44 MX$772

14.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.9 CA$123

$74.2 MX$1,383

18.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.1 CA$136

$89.3 MX$1,664

8.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,088 CA$1,527

$980 MX$18.3K

11.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$913 CA$1,281

$381 MX$7,099

139.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,720 CA$2,413

$1,708 MX$31.8K

0.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,382 CA$1,939

$1,075 MX$20.0K

28.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,243 CA$3,148

$3,943 MX$73.5K

-43.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,946 CA$2,732

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-68.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,428 CA$4,811

$735 MX$13.7K

366.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.32

11.45

-62.27%

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

Last update for Edmonton: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Edmonton

$913 41.7%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 58.3% $532

Groceries & Markets

Edmonton

$363 16.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 29.8% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edmonton

$329 15%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 58.4% $192

Eating Out

Edmonton

$296 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 31.7% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Edmonton

$125 5.7%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 10.4% $13

Getting Around

Edmonton

$93 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 46% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Edmonton

$69 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 2.7% $1.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,088 in Edmonton versus $980 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 in Edmonton are about 4.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $78 in Edmonton versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $363 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Edmonton

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

13:02 1:02 PM

14:02 2:02 PM

1 h ahead of Edmonton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,010,899

149,923

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Edmonton Playa del Carmen 4,290 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

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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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,188 in Edmonton, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 82% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,282 per month in Edmonton and $1,806 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,088 in Edmonton.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,188 in Edmonton and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 82%.

Public transport costs about 63% 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 $1,204, than in Edmonton at $2,188. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Edmonton it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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