Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Laurel, MD and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,538 in Laurel, MD, rent and utilities included – about $16,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Laurel, MD
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Laurel, MD Living Index
59

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

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Laurel, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$2,538

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,538 in Laurel, MD versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Laurel, MD $2,538
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,254 in Laurel, MD versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Laurel, MD $4,254
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,969 in Laurel, MD versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Laurel, MD $5,969
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Laurel, MD is roughly 111% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Laurel, MD is 87% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.12 $18.12

$10.86 MX$201

66.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.9 $94.9

$44.21 MX$817

114.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.82 $10.82

$11.76 MX$217

-7.99%

Cappuccino

$5.53 $5.53

$3.68 MX$68.0

50.27%

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

$3.07 $3.07

$1.34 MX$24.79

129.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 $2.71

$0.82 MX$15.24

230.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.82 $6.82

$3.06 MX$56.6

122.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.80 $7.80

$4.94 MX$91.2

57.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 $1.15

$1.47 MX$27.17

-21.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.94 $3.94

$2.22 MX$40.95

77.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.88 $3.88

$1.48 MX$27.32

162.16%

Eggs

$4.71 $4.71

$2.49 MX$45.99

89.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.86 $12.86

$7.52 MX$139

71.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.10 $13.10

$7.96 MX$147

64.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.67 $18.67

$12.57 MX$232

48.53%

Apples (1kg)

$6.12 $6.12

$2.78 MX$51.3

120.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 $1.52

$1.43 MX$26.37

6.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.09 $4.09

$2.62 MX$48.37

56.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.26 $4.26

$2.14 MX$39.49

99.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 $2.17

$2.02 MX$37.38

7.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.77 $2.77

$1.99 MX$36.74

39.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.49 $2.49

$1.14 MX$21.01

118.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$1.20 MX$22.18

111.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.44 $13.44

$4.26 MX$78.7

215.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.90 $15.90

$10.02 MX$185

58.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.54 MX$28.41

11.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 $3.18

$2.66 MX$49.17

19.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 $1.83

$4.90 MX$90.6

-62.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 $1.38

$3.43 MX$63.5

-59.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.67 $23.67

$5.38 MX$99.4

339.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.45 MX$26.76

-28.28%

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

$23.0K $23.0K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

8.83%

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

$23.8K $23.8K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

3.24%

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

$203 $203

$85.4 MX$1,577

137.29%

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

$67.7 $67.7

$23.46 MX$434

188.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$90.5 $90.5

$28.43 MX$525

218.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$14.46 $14.46

$5.10 MX$94.3

183.53%

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

$1,933 $1,933

$201 MX$3,715

861.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.2K $35.2K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

790.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.3 $52.3

$44.39 MX$820

17.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.3 $57.3

$41.35 MX$764

38.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.4 $91.4

$72.7 MX$1,344

25.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 $113

$89.6 MX$1,656

26.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,352 $1,352

$979 MX$18.1K

38.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 $1,260

$373 MX$6,887

237.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,399 $2,399

$1,681 MX$31.1K

42.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,073 $3,073

$1,095 MX$20.2K

180.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,215 $2,215

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-43.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,568 $2,568

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-58.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,478 $5,478

$738 MX$13.6K

642.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

11.45

-41.31%

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

Last update for Laurel, MD: 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

Laurel, MD

$1.3K 49.7%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 70.4% $887

Groceries & Markets

Laurel, MD

$422 16.6%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 38.8% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Laurel, MD

$361 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 62% $224

Eating Out

Laurel, MD

$317 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 36.8% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Laurel, MD

$141 5.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 21.1% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Laurel, MD

$29 * 1.1%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 150% $43

Getting Around

Laurel, MD

$8.8 * 0.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 491% $43

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 $1,352 in Laurel, MD and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Laurel, MD pays 643% 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: $95.0 in Laurel, MD vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $422 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Laurel, MD

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

19:14 7:14 PM

18:14 6:14 PM

1 h behind Laurel, MD

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

18,540

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Laurel, MD Playa del Carmen 2,270 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Laurel, MD
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

Laurel, MD vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Laurel, MD and Playa del Carmen differ by about 111% in total monthly costs ($2,538 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 643% higher in Laurel, MD, 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: $1,352 in Laurel, MD 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 63% higher in Laurel, MD. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,538 per month in Laurel, MD versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 111% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,538 in Laurel, MD, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Laurel, MD. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 111% less than in Laurel, MD. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.