Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hitchin and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,553 in Hitchin, rent and utilities included – about $16,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Hitchin
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Hitchin Living Index
59

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

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Hitchin

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,553

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,553 in Hitchin versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Hitchin $2,553
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,685 in Hitchin versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Hitchin $3,685
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,817 in Hitchin versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Hitchin $4,817
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Hitchin is roughly 112% 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: Hitchin is 88% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.35 £19.77

$10.86 MX$201

142.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.1 £60.8

$44.21 MX$817

83.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.09 £6.07

$11.76 MX$217

-31.21%

Cappuccino

$4.63 £3.47

$3.68 MX$68.0

25.82%

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

$1.35 £1.01

$1.34 MX$24.79

0.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 £0.97

$0.82 MX$15.24

57.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.72 £4.29

$3.06 MX$56.6

86.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.43 £4.08

$4.94 MX$91.2

9.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.47 MX$27.17

2.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 £1.43

$2.22 MX$40.95

-13.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 £1.86

$1.48 MX$27.32

68.24%

Eggs

$3.15 £2.36

$2.49 MX$45.99

26.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.10 £6.83

$7.52 MX$139

21.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.43 £6.33

$7.96 MX$147

5.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.57 £12.43

$12.57 MX$232

31.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.42 £2.56

$2.78 MX$51.3

23.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.43 MX$26.37

-14.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 £1.75

$2.62 MX$48.37

-10.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 £2.55

$2.14 MX$39.49

58.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 £0.92

$2.02 MX$37.38

-39.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 £1.03

$1.99 MX$36.74

-31.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.14 MX$21.01

13.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 £0.93

$1.20 MX$22.18

3.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.93 £14.95

$4.26 MX$78.7

367.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.94 £7.46

$10.02 MX$185

-0.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.52 £1.89

$1.54 MX$28.41

63.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 £2.25

$2.66 MX$49.17

12.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 £2.41

$0.53 MX$9.73

505.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$101 £75.7

$27.51 MX$508

266.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.12 £3.09

$4.90 MX$90.6

-15.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.80 £2.85

$3.43 MX$63.5

10.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.77 £23.83

$5.38 MX$99.4

490.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.46

$1.45 MX$26.76

34.48%

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

$38.3K £28.7K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

80.87%

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

$41.0K £30.7K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

77.97%

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

$366 £275

$85.4 MX$1,577

329.15%

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

$17.71 £13.29

$23.46 MX$434

-24.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.01 £33.76

$28.43 MX$525

58.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.37 £34.03

$62.2 MX$1,149

-27.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.68 £11.01

$28.68 MX$530

-48.81%

Cinema Ticket

$13.54 £10.16

$5.10 MX$94.3

165.49%

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

$1,598 £1,199

$201 MX$3,715

694.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K £18.9K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

537.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.5 £65.6

$44.39 MX$820

97.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.83 £29.88

$41.35 MX$764

-3.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.1 £54.8

$72.7 MX$1,344

0.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$61.0 £45.77

$89.6 MX$1,656

-31.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,245 £934

$979 MX$18.1K

27.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,165 £874

$373 MX$6,887

212.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,069 £1,552

$1,681 MX$31.1K

23.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,883 £1,413

$1,095 MX$20.2K

71.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,092 £3,820

$3,949 MX$73.0K

28.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,910 £2,933

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-36.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.21

11.45

-54.50%

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

Last update for Hitchin: October 18, 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

Hitchin

$1.2K 45.6%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 68% $792

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hitchin

$429 16.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 68% $292

Eating Out

Hitchin

$341 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 41.2% $140

Groceries & Markets

Hitchin

$292 11.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 11.4% $33

Getting Around

Hitchin

$137 5.4%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 62.2% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Hitchin

$118 4.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 5.1% $6

Sport & Entertainment

Hitchin

$72 2.8%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 0.1% $0

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,245 in Hitchin and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $81.0 in Hitchin vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Hitchin

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

04:09 4:09 AM

22:09 10:09 PM

6 h behind Hitchin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,266

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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Hitchin Playa del Carmen 8,000 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Hitchin
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

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

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. The 112% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,830 in Hitchin and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,245 in Hitchin versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Hitchin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $81.0 in Hitchin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,553 in Hitchin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Hitchin. 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 Hitchin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Hitchin 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 112% less than in Hitchin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.