Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ely, Cambridgeshire and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,360 in Ely, Cambridgeshire, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Ely, Cambridgeshire
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Ely, Cambridgeshire Living Index
57

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

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Ely, Cambridgeshire

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,360

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,360 per month in Ely, Cambridgeshire vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $2,360
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $3,574 per month in Ely, Cambridgeshire vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $3,574
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,789 per month in Ely, Cambridgeshire vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $4,789
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Ely, Cambridgeshire costs about 96% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ely, Cambridgeshire sits 75% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.91 £17.77

$10.67 MX$200

124.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.0 £70.6

$43.80 MX$823

116.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.26 £9.86

$11.79 MX$221

12.47%

Cappuccino

$5.34 £3.97

$3.79 MX$71.1

40.90%

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

$2.40 £1.78

$1.30 MX$24.36

84.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 £1.26

$0.83 MX$15.65

103.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.25 £3.90

$3.15 MX$59.1

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 £2.52

$4.93 MX$92.7

-31.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.41 MX$26.46

-14.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 £1.19

$2.20 MX$41.23

-27.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.74 £2.04

$1.47 MX$27.66

86.39%

Eggs

$3.51 £2.61

$2.50 MX$46.89

40.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.78 £8.01

$7.29 MX$137

47.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.58 £8.61

$7.95 MX$149

45.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.28 £12.84

$12.86 MX$242

34.37%

Apples (1kg)

$4.03 £2.99

$2.90 MX$54.4

38.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 £1.02

$1.38 MX$25.98

-0.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 £1.97

$2.49 MX$46.78

6.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.49 £3.34

$2.03 MX$38.12

121.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.66 £1.23

$2.02 MX$38.03

-17.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 £1.17

$1.90 MX$35.74

-16.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 £0.86

$1.14 MX$21.49

1.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 £1.11

$1.24 MX$23.27

20.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.53 £16.00

$4.27 MX$80.2

404.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.70 £7.95

$9.81 MX$184

9.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 £1.59

$1.59 MX$29.78

33.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 £2.10

$2.75 MX$51.6

2.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.83 £4.34

$0.51 MX$9.67

1043.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.7 £42.88

$27.39 MX$514

110.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 £3.32

$4.76 MX$89.4

-6.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.29 £1.70

$3.25 MX$61.0

-29.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 £1.61

$1.53 MX$28.70

41.18%

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

$40.7K £30.2K

$21.2K MX$398.4K

91.73%

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

$41.2K £30.6K

$23.3K MX$436.9K

77.07%

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

$284 £211

$83.5 MX$1,568

239.56%

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

$16.89 £12.55

$23.19 MX$435

-27.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.61 £24.98

$27.61 MX$519

21.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.40 £33.00

$56.4 MX$1,060

-21.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 £11.86

$28.19 MX$529

-43.38%

Cinema Ticket

$15.90 £11.82

$5.00 MX$93.9

218.00%

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

$1,747 £1,298

$207 MX$3,889

743.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K £11.0K

$5,231 MX$98.2K

182.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.0 £72.1

$43.45 MX$816

123.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 £41.65

$42.54 MX$799

31.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 £92.6

$72.8 MX$1,367

71.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 £76.7

$88.4 MX$1,660

16.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 £858

$995 MX$18.7K

16.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 £752

$382 MX$7,181

164.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,895 £1,408

$1,674 MX$31.4K

13.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,749 £1,300

$1,081 MX$20.3K

61.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,812 £4,319

$3,909 MX$73.4K

48.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,135 £3,816

$6,138 MX$115.3K

-16.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,333 £2,477

$832 MX$15.6K

300.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.62

11.45

-59.65%

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

Last update for Ely, Cambridgeshire: October 31, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$1K 42.9%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 62.2% $629

Eating Out

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$345 14.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 41.9% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$334 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 59.8% $200

Groceries & Markets

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$325 13.8%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 20.8% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$171 7.3%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 35.1% $60

Getting Around

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$97 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 48% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$76 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 12.8% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,155 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $995 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 Ely, Cambridgeshire are about 4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $325 vs $257 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Ely, Cambridgeshire

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

17:39 5:39 PM

12:39 12:39 PM

5 h behind Ely, Cambridgeshire

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,574

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.743 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ely, Cambridgeshire Playa del Carmen 8,030 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Ely, Cambridgeshire
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

Ely, Cambridgeshire vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Ely, Cambridgeshire is pricier by about 96%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,540 per month in Ely, Cambridgeshire and $1,804 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 $995 there versus $1,155 in Ely, Cambridgeshire.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,360 in Ely, Cambridgeshire and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 49% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 53% 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 $1,202, than in Ely, Cambridgeshire at $2,360. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ely, Cambridgeshire 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 or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ely, Cambridgeshire makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.