Cost of Living Comparison Between Essen and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Essen and Playa del Carmen

😐 Solo nomad: Essen is 43.6% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 60.3% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Essen is 74.9% more expensive than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 35% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.28 €15.50

$11.61 MX$200

57.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.4 €58.9

$42.75 MX$738

62.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.84 €11.73

$10.60 MX$183

30.57%

Cappuccino

$3.55 €3.01

$3.59 MX$62.0

-1.11%

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

$2.44 €2.07

$1.45 MX$25.08

68.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 €2.03

$0.90 MX$15.50

165.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.80 €4.07

$3.03 MX$52.4

58.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 €3.85

$4.56 MX$78.8

-0.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.14

$1.45 MX$25.07

-6.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.11 €1.79

$1.83 MX$31.55

15.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.27 €2.77

$1.61 MX$27.77

103.11%

Eggs

$3.79 €3.22

$2.54 MX$43.82

49.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.02 €12.74

$8.54 MX$148

75.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.32 €12.14

$8.47 MX$146

69.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.21 €18.84

$10.86 MX$188

104.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 €2.66

$2.73 MX$47.13

15.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 €1.60

$1.49 MX$25.77

26.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 €1.96

$1.94 MX$33.55

19.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 €4.11

$2.16 MX$37.38

124.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 €1.37

$1.85 MX$31.88

-12.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 €1.39

$2.19 MX$37.80

-25.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.90 €1.61

$1.07 MX$18.52

77.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 €0.99

$1.08 MX$18.71

8.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.69 €8.22

$4.06 MX$70.1

138.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.79 €4.91

$10.46 MX$181

-44.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.93

$1.65 MX$28.56

-33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 €1.38

$2.55 MX$44.01

-36.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.05 €3.43

$0.56 MX$9.60

623.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$62.5 €53.0

$26.20 MX$453

138.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.08 €4.31

$3.14 MX$54.2

61.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.75 €2.34

$2.37 MX$40.96

16.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.93 €34.70

$3.24 MX$56.0

1163.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.73

$1.31 MX$22.70

55.73%

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

$31.4K €26.6K

$30.5K MX$527.4K

2.84%

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

$38.8K €32.9K

$23.8K MX$411.4K

62.99%

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

$394 €334

$83.1 MX$1,436

374.40%

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

$34.17 €28.98

$22.15 MX$383

54.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.2 €45.11

$29.37 MX$507

81.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.94 €31.33

$51.2 MX$884

-27.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.00 €29.68

$18.69 MX$323

87.27%

Cinema Ticket

$17.63 €14.95

$4.89 MX$84.4

260.53%

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

$462 €392

$199 MX$3,431

132.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,888 €8,385

$5,207 MX$89.9K

89.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.0 €81.4

$35.93 MX$621

167.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$72.0 €61.1

$39.39 MX$680

82.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €88.3

$80.3 MX$1,387

29.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 €117

$87.6 MX$1,512

58.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$749 €635

$963 MX$16.6K

-22.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 €512

$482 MX$8,326

25.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,513 €1,283

$1,645 MX$28.4K

-8.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,073 €910

$1,192 MX$20.6K

-9.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,035 €4,270

$3,957 MX$68.3K

27.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,104 €2,632

$6,513 MX$112.5K

-52.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,451 €2,926

$726 MX$12.5K

375.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.97

11.42

-65.24%

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

Last update for Essen: April 13, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: April 12, 2026

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

Essen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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