Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Enschede and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,363 in Enschede, rent and utilities included – about $13,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Enschede
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Enschede Living Index
59

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

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Enschede

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,363

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,363 in Enschede versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Enschede $2,363
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,680 in Enschede versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Enschede $3,680
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,996 in Enschede versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Enschede $4,996
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Enschede is roughly 96% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Enschede is 74% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.35 €18.99

$10.86 MX$201

96.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.9 €71.1

$44.21 MX$817

80.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.56 €13.84

$11.76 MX$217

32.31%

Cappuccino

$4.06 €3.62

$3.68 MX$68.0

10.33%

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

$3.55 €3.16

$1.34 MX$24.79

164.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 €2.57

$0.82 MX$15.24

251.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.02 €5.35

$3.06 MX$56.6

96.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.31 €5.61

$4.94 MX$91.2

27.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.47 MX$27.17

-8.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.50 €2.22

$2.22 MX$40.95

12.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.64 €2.35

$1.48 MX$27.32

78.38%

Eggs

$4.39 €3.91

$2.49 MX$45.99

76.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.75 €12.23

$7.52 MX$139

82.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.53 €12.92

$7.96 MX$147

82.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.76 €13.13

$12.57 MX$232

17.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.78 MX$51.3

-3.24%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.43 MX$26.37

53.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$2.62 MX$48.37

-16.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.77 €4.24

$2.14 MX$39.49

122.90%

Potato (1kg)

$3.12 €2.77

$2.02 MX$37.38

54.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 €1.90

$1.99 MX$36.74

7.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 €1.06

$1.14 MX$21.01

5.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.20 MX$22.18

-36.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.10 €12.54

$4.26 MX$78.7

230.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.65 €5.91

$10.02 MX$185

-33.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.54 MX$28.41

-6.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 €2.64

$2.66 MX$49.17

11.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.96 €2.64

$0.53 MX$9.73

458.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$113 €101

$27.51 MX$508

310.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.76 €3.34

$4.90 MX$90.6

-23.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.56 €2.28

$3.43 MX$63.5

-25.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.53 €24.49

$5.38 MX$99.4

411.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.45 MX$26.76

75.17%

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

$41.9K €37.2K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

97.88%

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

$38.9K €34.6K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

69.00%

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

$262 €233

$85.4 MX$1,577

207.10%

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

$21.36 €19.00

$23.46 MX$434

-8.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.78 €39.83

$28.43 MX$525

57.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.20 €30.42

$62.2 MX$1,149

-45.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.17 €21.50

$28.68 MX$530

-15.73%

Cinema Ticket

$19.13 €17.02

$5.10 MX$94.3

275.10%

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

$1,198 €1,065

$201 MX$3,715

495.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,959 €7,079

$3,947 MX$72.9K

101.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.5 €83.1

$44.39 MX$820

110.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.39 €33.26

$41.35 MX$764

-9.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.6 €81.5

$72.7 MX$1,344

25.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 €89.7

$89.6 MX$1,656

12.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,334 €1,187

$979 MX$18.1K

36.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 €892

$373 MX$6,887

168.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,509 €2,232

$1,681 MX$31.1K

49.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,994 €1,774

$1,095 MX$20.2K

82.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,629 €4,118

$3,949 MX$73.0K

17.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,233 €2,876

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-47.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,857 €2,541

$738 MX$13.6K

287.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.6

11.45

-59.83%

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

Last update for Enschede: October 17, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Enschede

$1K 42.4%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 62.8% $630

Groceries & Markets

Enschede

$338 14.3%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 23.5% $79

Eating Out

Enschede

$335 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 40.2% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Enschede

$328 13.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 58.2% $191

Clothing & Footwear

Enschede

$145 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 23.3% $34

Getting Around

Enschede

$141 6%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 63.5% $90

Sport & Entertainment

Enschede

$72 3.1%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 0.1% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,334 in Enschede and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Enschede pays 287% 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: $80.0 in Enschede vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $338 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Enschede

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

00:51 12:51 AM

17:51 5:51 PM

7 h behind Enschede

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

161,235

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 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 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 →

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Between locations

Enschede Playa del Carmen 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Enschede
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

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

Enschede and Playa del Carmen differ by about 96% in total monthly costs ($2,363 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 287% higher in Enschede, 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: $1,334 in Enschede versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,363 per month in Enschede versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 96% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 311% less than in Enschede. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,363 in Enschede, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Enschede. 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.

Safety-wise, Enschede and Playa del Carmen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 96% less than in Enschede. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.