Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gresham, OR and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,758 in Gresham, OR, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Gresham, OR, United States
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Gresham, OR
🇺🇸 United States
$2,758
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,758 in Gresham, OR versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Gresham, OR $2,758
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,721 in Gresham, OR versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Gresham, OR $3,721
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,684 in Gresham, OR versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

  • Gresham, OR $4,684
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Gresham, OR is roughly 129% 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: Gresham, OR is 103% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$25.35 $25.35
$10.92 MX$204
132.14%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$83.7 $83.7
$43.37 MX$808
93.08%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.27 $12.27
$11.78 MX$220
4.16%
Cappuccino
$6.08 $6.08
$3.81 MX$71.0
59.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.94 $2.94
$1.28 MX$23.90
129.69%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 $1.67
$0.78 MX$14.59
114.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.40 $6.40
$3.17 MX$59.0
101.89%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.92 $6.92
$4.93 MX$92.0
40.37%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.04 $1.04
$1.41 MX$26.22
-26.24%
White Bread (500g)
$4.21 $4.21
$2.22 MX$41.33
89.64%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.18 $3.18
$1.42 MX$26.42
123.94%
Eggs
$4.24 $4.24
$2.52 MX$47.03
68.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.08 $12.08
$7.26 MX$135
66.39%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.52 $10.52
$7.70 MX$143
36.62%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.30 $17.30
$12.69 MX$237
36.33%
Apples (1kg)
$4.47 $4.47
$2.78 MX$51.9
60.79%
Banana (1kg)
$1.63 $1.63
$1.37 MX$25.50
18.98%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.69 $2.69
$2.55 MX$47.55
5.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.55 $2.55
$2.12 MX$39.58
20.28%
Potato (1kg)
$2.20 $2.20
$1.94 MX$36.13
13.40%
Onion (1kg)
$1.79 $1.79
$1.89 MX$35.16
-5.29%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.07 $2.07
$1.15 MX$21.37
80.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.77 $1.77
$1.18 MX$21.98
50.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$12.12 $12.12
$4.30 MX$80.1
181.86%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.19 $11.19
$9.95 MX$185
12.46%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.14 $2.14
$1.58 MX$29.52
35.44%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.44 $2.44
$2.67 MX$49.79
-8.61%
🚌 Getting Around
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.82 $2.82
$0.55 MX$10.31
412.73%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.62 MX$496
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.47 $4.47
$4.97 MX$92.6
-10.06%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.71 $0.71
$3.33 MX$62.1
-78.68%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$23.91 $23.91
$5.36 MX$99.8
346.08%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.30 $1.30
$1.44 MX$26.92
-9.72%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.6K $28.6K
$20.7K MX$385.2K
38.34%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$27.0K $27.0K
$23.5K MX$437.4K
14.97%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$199 $199
$84.8 MX$1,581
134.89%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$71.6 $71.6
$23.41 MX$436
205.64%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$67.4 $67.4
$28.66 MX$534
135.07%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$30.12 $30.12
$57.1 MX$1,063
-47.20%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$28.91 MX$539
-
Cinema Ticket
$11.94 $11.94
$5.14 MX$95.8
132.30%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,335 $1,335
$207 MX$3,851
546.16%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$13.2K $13.2K
$3,927 MX$73.2K
237.32%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$40.31 $40.31
$43.35 MX$808
-7.01%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.49 $30.49
$41.44 MX$772
-26.42%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$84.6 $84.6
$74.2 MX$1,383
13.95%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$83.8 $83.8
$89.3 MX$1,664
-6.10%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,626 $1,626
$980 MX$18.3K
66.01%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,506 $1,506
$381 MX$7,099
295.54%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,825 $2,825
$1,708 MX$31.8K
65.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,875 $1,875
$1,075 MX$20.0K
74.35%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$3,943 MX$73.5K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$6,158 MX$114.8K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Gresham, OR
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,984 $3,984
$735 MX$13.7K
442.44%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.7
11.45
-41.48%

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

Last update for Gresham, OR: October 27, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Gresham, OR
$1.5K
Playa del Carmen
$381 74.7% $1.1K
Eating Out
Gresham, OR
$377
Playa del Carmen
$202 46.3% $174
Groceries & Markets
Gresham, OR
$356
Playa del Carmen
$255 28.5% $101
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Gresham, OR
$338
Playa del Carmen
$137 59.5% $201
Clothing & Footwear
Gresham, OR
$108
Playa del Carmen
$112 3.8% $4.1
Sport & Entertainment
Gresham, OR
$54
Playa del Carmen
$67 24.7% $13
Getting Around
Gresham, OR
$19 *
Playa del Carmen
$50 161% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,626 in Gresham, OR and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gresham, OR pays about 5.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $84 in Gresham, OR vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $356 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇺🇸 Gresham, OR
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
14:50 2:50 PM
16:50 4:50 PM
2 h ahead of Gresham, OR
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
114,247
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Gresham, OR Playa del Carmen 4,240 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Gresham, OR
  • 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
Gresham, OR vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Gresham, OR and in Playa del Carmen?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,758 in Gresham, OR and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Gresham, OR or Playa del Carmen?
Average pay in Gresham, OR is about 5.4 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Gresham, OR and in Playa del Carmen?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,626 in Gresham, OR versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Gresham, OR and Playa del Carmen?
Childcare runs $1,335 in Gresham, OR versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $84 in Gresham, OR. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,758 in Gresham, OR, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Gresham, OR. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Gresham, OR and Playa del Carmen?
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.
How do I decide between Gresham, OR and Playa del Carmen?
It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Gresham, OR on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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