Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Greenwich and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,237 in Greenwich, rent and utilities included – about $12,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Greenwich
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Greenwich Living Index
59

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

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Greenwich

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,237

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,237 per month in Greenwich vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Greenwich $2,237
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,322 per month in Greenwich vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Greenwich $3,322
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $4,408 per month in Greenwich vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Greenwich $4,408
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Greenwich costs about 86% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Greenwich sits 65% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.39 £18.30

$10.86 MX$201

124.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.4 £61.1

$44.21 MX$817

84.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.29 £9.97

$11.76 MX$217

13.01%

Cappuccino

$3.95 £2.96

$3.68 MX$68.0

7.34%

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

$2.58 £1.93

$1.34 MX$24.79

92.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 £1.54

$0.82 MX$15.24

151.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.35 £4.76

$3.06 MX$56.6

107.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.03 £4.52

$4.94 MX$91.2

22.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 £1.25

$1.47 MX$27.17

12.93%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.29

$2.22 MX$40.95

-22.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.06 £1.54

$1.48 MX$27.32

39.19%

Eggs

$3.68 £2.76

$2.49 MX$45.99

47.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.94 £6.71

$7.52 MX$139

18.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.48 £5.61

$7.96 MX$147

-6.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.05 £15.04

$12.57 MX$232

59.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 £2.03

$2.78 MX$51.3

-2.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.97

$1.43 MX$26.37

-9.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 £1.41

$2.62 MX$48.37

-28.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$2.14 MX$39.49

-36.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.37 £1.02

$2.02 MX$37.38

-32.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.31 £0.98

$1.99 MX$36.74

-34.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 £1.17

$1.14 MX$21.01

36.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 £1.06

$1.20 MX$22.18

18.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.34 £17.51

$4.26 MX$78.7

447.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.28 £8.46

$10.02 MX$185

12.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.54 MX$28.41

24.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 £2.21

$2.66 MX$49.17

10.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.03 £3.02

$0.53 MX$9.73

660.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.6 £68.0

$27.51 MX$508

229.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.20 £3.90

$4.90 MX$90.6

6.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 £1.53

$3.43 MX$63.5

-40.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.37 £22.03

$5.38 MX$99.4

445.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.45 MX$26.76

40.00%

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

$39.2K £29.4K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

85.39%

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

$40.7K £30.5K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

76.81%

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

$300 £225

$85.4 MX$1,577

251.17%

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

$15.50 £11.63

$23.46 MX$434

-33.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.60 £34.96

$28.43 MX$525

63.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.79 £35.10

$62.2 MX$1,149

-24.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$17.92 £13.45

$5.10 MX$94.3

251.37%

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

$1,309 £982

$201 MX$3,715

551.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.6K £18.4K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

522.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 £49.28

$44.39 MX$820

47.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.31 £35.49

$41.35 MX$764

14.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.1 £55.6

$72.7 MX$1,344

1.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.5 £60.4

$89.6 MX$1,656

-10.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,206 £905

$979 MX$18.1K

23.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$920 £690

$373 MX$6,887

146.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,306 £1,730

$1,681 MX$31.1K

37.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,576 £1,182

$1,095 MX$20.2K

43.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,586 £4,190

$3,949 MX$73.0K

41.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,853 £2,891

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-37.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

11.45

-51.62%

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

Last update for Greenwich: October 19, 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

Greenwich

$920 41.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 59.5% $547

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Greenwich

$362 16.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 62.1% $225

Eating Out

Greenwich

$345 15.4%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 41.9% $145

Groceries & Markets

Greenwich

$285 12.7%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 9.3% $26

Getting Around

Greenwich

$122 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 57.7% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Greenwich

$120 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 7.3% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Greenwich

$83 3.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 12.4% $10

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,206 in Greenwich versus $979 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $81.0 in Greenwich versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $285 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Greenwich

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:11 4:11 PM

10:11 10:11 AM

6 h behind Greenwich

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

285,000

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

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Between locations

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

From you

Greenwich
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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

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

Yes – Greenwich is pricier by about 86%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,355 per month in Greenwich 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 10% more in Greenwich, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $81.0 in Greenwich and $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap 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 Greenwich at $2,237. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Greenwich 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Greenwich makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.