Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ellicott City, MD and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $3,488 in Ellicott City, MD, rent and utilities included – about $27,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

167

Cost of Living Index in Ellicott City, MD
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Ellicott City, MD Living Index
58

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

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Ellicott City, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$3,488

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,488 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $3,488
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $4,646 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $4,646
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $5,804 per month in Ellicott City, MD vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ellicott City, MD $5,804
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Ellicott City, MD costs about 190% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ellicott City, MD sits 156% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.21 $18.21

$10.92 MX$204

66.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.6 $95.6

$43.37 MX$808

120.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.87 $10.87

$11.78 MX$220

-7.72%

Cappuccino

$5.40 $5.40

$3.81 MX$71.0

41.73%

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

$3.35 $3.35

$1.28 MX$23.90

161.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 $2.63

$0.78 MX$14.59

237.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.97 $6.97

$3.17 MX$59.0

119.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.07 $8.07

$4.93 MX$92.0

63.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 $1.17

$1.41 MX$26.22

-17.02%

White Bread (500g)

$4.11 $4.11

$2.22 MX$41.33

85.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.81 $3.81

$1.42 MX$26.42

168.31%

Eggs

$4.58 $4.58

$2.52 MX$47.03

81.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.91 $16.91

$7.26 MX$135

132.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.00 $13.00

$7.70 MX$143

68.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.52 $18.52

$12.69 MX$237

45.94%

Apples (1kg)

$6.17 $6.17

$2.78 MX$51.9

121.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.37 MX$25.50

16.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.13 $4.13

$2.55 MX$47.55

61.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.08 $4.08

$2.12 MX$39.58

92.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.94 MX$36.13

14.95%

Onion (1kg)

$2.67 $2.67

$1.89 MX$35.16

41.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.15 MX$21.37

104.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.18 MX$21.98

88.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.49 $13.49

$4.30 MX$80.1

213.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.37 $15.37

$9.95 MX$185

54.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 $2.68

$1.58 MX$29.52

69.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 $3.14

$2.67 MX$49.79

17.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.78 $1.78

$4.97 MX$92.6

-64.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.34 $1.34

$3.33 MX$62.1

-59.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.13 $24.13

$5.36 MX$99.8

350.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.44 MX$26.92

-34.72%

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

$23.1K $23.1K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

11.59%

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

$24.1K $24.1K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

2.75%

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

$208 $208

$84.8 MX$1,581

145.65%

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

$49.91 $49.91

$23.41 MX$436

113.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.9 $79.9

$28.66 MX$534

178.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$112 $112

$57.1 MX$1,063

95.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$14.57 $14.57

$5.14 MX$95.8

183.46%

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

$1,921 $1,921

$207 MX$3,851

830.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$34.9K $34.9K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

787.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.5 $52.5

$43.35 MX$808

21.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 $56.7

$41.44 MX$772

36.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.5 $93.5

$74.2 MX$1,383

26.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 $112

$89.3 MX$1,664

25.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,498 $2,498

$980 MX$18.3K

155.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,107 $2,107

$381 MX$7,099

453.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,056 $3,056

$1,708 MX$31.8K

78.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,695 $2,695

$1,075 MX$20.0K

150.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,635 $2,635

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-57.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,000 $5,000

$735 MX$13.7K

580.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

11.45

-40.70%

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

Last update for Ellicott City, MD: October 24, 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

Ellicott City, MD

$2.1K 60.4%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 81.9% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

Ellicott City, MD

$433 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 41.2% $179

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ellicott City, MD

$338 9.7%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 59.5% $201

Eating Out

Ellicott City, MD

$318 9.1%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 36.4% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Ellicott City, MD

$142 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 21.1% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Ellicott City, MD

$141 4%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 52.2% $74

Getting Around

Ellicott City, MD

$8.5 * 0.2%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 494% $42

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,498 in Ellicott City, MD 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 Ellicott City, MD are about 6.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $96 in Ellicott City, MD versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $433 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Ellicott City, MD

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:05 3:05 PM

14:05 2:05 PM

1 h behind Ellicott City, MD

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

65,834

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 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 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 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).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ellicott City, MD Playa del Carmen 2,290 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ellicott City, MD
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

Ellicott City, MD vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Ellicott City, MD is pricier by about 190%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,232 per month in Ellicott City, MD 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 $2,498 in Ellicott City, MD.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,488 in Ellicott City, MD and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 190%.

Kindergarten costs $1,921 per month in Ellicott City, MD and $207 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 $1,204, than in Ellicott City, MD at $3,488. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ellicott City, MD 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, Ellicott City, MD makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.