Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fredrikstad and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,983 in Fredrikstad, rent and utilities included – about $21,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

144

Cost of Living Index in Fredrikstad
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Fredrikstad Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Fredrikstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,983

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,983 in Fredrikstad versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Fredrikstad $2,983
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,345 in Fredrikstad versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Fredrikstad $4,345
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,707 in Fredrikstad versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Fredrikstad $5,707
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Fredrikstad is roughly 146% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Fredrikstad is 121% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.28 NOK 247

$10.76 MX$199

144.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$124 NOK 1,170

$43.03 MX$795

188.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.65 NOK 119

$11.79 MX$218

7.29%

Cappuccino

$6.77 NOK 63.7

$3.87 MX$71.4

74.94%

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

$5.55 NOK 52.3

$1.37 MX$25.29

305.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 NOK 41.36

$0.84 MX$15.44

422.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.55 NOK 109

$3.10 MX$57.3

272.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.57 NOK 90.1

$5.07 MX$93.6

88.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.34 NOK 22.00

$1.44 MX$26.55

62.50%

White Bread (500g)

$4.31 NOK 40.56

$2.23 MX$41.23

93.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.43 NOK 32.31

$1.47 MX$27.17

133.33%

Eggs

$5.82 NOK 54.8

$2.53 MX$46.71

130.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.06 NOK 123

$7.30 MX$135

78.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.96 NOK 169

$7.86 MX$145

128.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$34.38 NOK 324

$12.79 MX$236

168.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.37 NOK 31.71

$2.90 MX$53.6

16.21%

Banana (1kg)

$3.64 NOK 34.24

$1.44 MX$26.53

152.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.30 NOK 40.49

$2.55 MX$47.07

68.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.00 NOK 47.06

$2.06 MX$38.03

142.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 NOK 24.74

$2.00 MX$36.97

31.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.71 NOK 25.53

$2.01 MX$37.07

34.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.82 NOK 26.50

$1.19 MX$22.02

136.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 NOK 21.95

$1.26 MX$23.23

84.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$15.51 NOK 146

$4.40 MX$81.4

252.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.16 NOK 209

$9.59 MX$177

131.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.49 NOK 32.81

$1.59 MX$29.41

119.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 NOK 41.34

$2.81 MX$51.9

56.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.11 NOK 38.71

$0.57 MX$10.47

621.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.5 NOK 607

$27.82 MX$514

131.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.56 NOK 118

$4.98 MX$92.1

152.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 NOK 18.79

$3.50 MX$64.6

-42.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.1 NOK 660

$5.40 MX$99.8

1198.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.30 NOK 21.64

$1.47 MX$27.08

56.46%

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

$49.8K NOK 468.4K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

137.10%

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

$46.9K NOK 441.1K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

95.99%

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

$331 NOK 3,118

$84.2 MX$1,556

293.35%

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

$45.60 NOK 429

$23.99 MX$443

90.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.9 NOK 630

$29.02 MX$536

130.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.3 NOK 549

$63.0 MX$1,164

-7.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.86 NOK 385

$29.14 MX$539

40.22%

Cinema Ticket

$20.19 NOK 190

$4.94 MX$91.3

308.70%

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

$168 NOK 1,579

$204 MX$3,763

-17.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K NOK 117.8K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

217.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$155 NOK 1,459

$43.60 MX$806

255.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$78.7 NOK 741

$43.12 MX$797

82.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 NOK 1,358

$75.8 MX$1,400

90.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 NOK 1,051

$88.6 MX$1,637

26.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,329 NOK 12.5K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

31.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,131 NOK 10.6K

$374 MX$6,911

202.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,822 NOK 17.1K

$1,708 MX$31.6K

6.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 NOK 14.3K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

37.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,022 NOK 56.7K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

52.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,131 NOK 38.9K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-33.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,372 NOK 31.7K

$754 MX$13.9K

347.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.95

11.45

-56.77%

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

Last update for Fredrikstad: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Fredrikstad

$1.1K 37.9%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 66.9% $757

Groceries & Markets

Fredrikstad

$540 18.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 52.1% $281

Eating Out

Fredrikstad

$446 15%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 54.7% $244

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fredrikstad

$444 14.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 69.1% $307

Clothing & Footwear

Fredrikstad

$220 7.4%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 48.7% $107

Getting Around

Fredrikstad

$103 3.5%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 49.2% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Fredrikstad

$99 3.3%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 26.2% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,329 in Fredrikstad and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fredrikstad pays 347% 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: $124 in Fredrikstad vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $540 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Fredrikstad

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

22:25 10:25 PM

7 h behind Fredrikstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

85,267

149,923

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Fredrikstad Playa del Carmen 8,490 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Fredrikstad
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

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

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 146% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 347% higher in Fredrikstad, 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: $1,329 in Fredrikstad versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $168 in Fredrikstad versus $204 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 109% higher in Fredrikstad. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,983 in Fredrikstad, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Fredrikstad. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Fredrikstad, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Fredrikstad 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 146% less than in Fredrikstad. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.