Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Helsingborg and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,710 in Helsingborg, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Helsingborg
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Helsingborg Living Index
59

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

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Helsingborg

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,710

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,710 per month in Helsingborg vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Helsingborg $1,710
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,636 per month in Helsingborg vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Helsingborg $2,636
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $3,561 per month in Helsingborg vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Helsingborg $3,561
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Helsingborg costs about 42% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Helsingborg sits 26% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.35 SEK 132

$10.86 MX$201

22.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.2 SEK 686

$44.21 MX$817

56.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.75 SEK 126

$11.76 MX$217

8.42%

Cappuccino

$4.53 SEK 44.87

$3.68 MX$68.0

23.10%

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

$2.88 SEK 28.49

$1.34 MX$24.79

114.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 SEK 23.60

$0.82 MX$15.24

190.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.81 SEK 67.5

$3.06 MX$56.6

122.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.20 SEK 61.4

$4.94 MX$91.2

25.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 SEK 14.61

$1.47 MX$27.17

White Bread (500g)

$2.69 SEK 26.65

$2.22 MX$40.95

21.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.93 SEK 29.08

$1.48 MX$27.32

97.97%

Eggs

$3.90 SEK 38.60

$2.49 MX$45.99

56.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.24 SEK 111

$7.52 MX$139

49.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.27 SEK 112

$7.96 MX$147

41.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.15 SEK 150

$12.57 MX$232

20.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 SEK 31.11

$2.78 MX$51.3

12.95%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 SEK 25.03

$1.43 MX$26.37

76.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.89 SEK 28.67

$2.62 MX$48.37

10.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 SEK 44.31

$2.14 MX$39.49

108.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.72 SEK 17.02

$2.02 MX$37.38

-14.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 SEK 15.64

$1.99 MX$36.74

-20.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.86 SEK 18.38

$1.14 MX$21.01

63.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 SEK 15.99

$1.20 MX$22.18

34.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.18 SEK 81.0

$4.26 MX$78.7

92.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.09 SEK 90.1

$10.02 MX$185

-9.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 SEK 20.78

$1.54 MX$28.41

36.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 SEK 21.77

$2.66 MX$49.17

-17.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.26 SEK 32.25

$0.53 MX$9.73

515.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$62.2 SEK 616

$27.51 MX$508

125.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.28 SEK 62.2

$4.90 MX$90.6

28.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 SEK 17.00

$3.43 MX$63.5

-49.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$60.5 SEK 599

$5.38 MX$99.4

1023.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 SEK 17.80

$1.45 MX$26.76

24.14%

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

$32.8K SEK 325.2K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

55.13%

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

$33.8K SEK 335.2K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

46.97%

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

$103 SEK 1,020

$85.4 MX$1,577

20.57%

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

$19.97 SEK 198

$23.46 MX$434

-14.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.57 SEK 333

$28.43 MX$525

18.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.54 SEK 382

$62.2 MX$1,149

-38.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.23 SEK 220

$28.68 MX$530

-22.49%

Cinema Ticket

$14.82 SEK 147

$5.10 MX$94.3

190.59%

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

$176 SEK 1,746

$201 MX$3,715

-12.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.1 SEK 794

$44.39 MX$820

80.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.62 SEK 333

$41.35 MX$764

-18.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.2 SEK 864

$72.7 MX$1,344

19.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 SEK 1,060

$89.6 MX$1,656

19.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$846 SEK 8,380

$979 MX$18.1K

-13.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$652 SEK 6,464

$373 MX$6,887

75.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,399 SEK 13.9K

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-16.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,079 SEK 10.7K

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-1.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,133 SEK 31.0K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-20.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,265 SEK 22.4K

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-63.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,880 SEK 28.5K

$738 MX$13.6K

290.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.06

11.45

-73.28%

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

Last update for Helsingborg: October 20, 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

Helsingborg

$652 38.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 42.9% $280

Groceries & Markets

Helsingborg

$337 19.7%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 23.4% $79

Eating Out

Helsingborg

$267 15.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 25% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Helsingborg

$156 9.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 12.3% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Helsingborg

$139 8.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 19.5% $27

Getting Around

Helsingborg

$90 5.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 42.6% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Helsingborg

$68 4%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 6.2% $4.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $846 in Helsingborg 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.

Salaries run about 290% higher in Helsingborg, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Helsingborg versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $337 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Helsingborg

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:23 4:23 PM

09:23 9:23 AM

7 h behind Helsingborg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

93,838

149,923

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Helsingborg Playa del Carmen 8,700 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Helsingborg
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,710 in Helsingborg, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 42% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,565 per month in Helsingborg 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.

Public transport costs about 126% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $176 per month in Helsingborg and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing 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 Helsingborg at $1,710. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Helsingborg it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,710 in Helsingborg. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Helsingborg makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.