Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lerwick and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,368 in Lerwick, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Lerwick
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Lerwick Living Index
59

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

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Lerwick

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,368

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,368 in Lerwick versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Lerwick $2,368
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,415 in Lerwick versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Lerwick $3,415
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,462 in Lerwick versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Lerwick $4,462
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Lerwick is roughly 97% 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: Lerwick is 75% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.15 £15.11

$10.86 MX$201

85.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 £73.9

$44.21 MX$817

122.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 £7.76

$11.76 MX$217

-11.99%

Cappuccino

$5.40 £4.05

$3.68 MX$68.0

46.74%

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

$2.25 £1.69

$1.34 MX$24.79

67.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$0.82 MX$15.24

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 £4.84

$3.06 MX$56.6

110.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.86 £4.40

$4.94 MX$91.2

18.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.47 MX$27.17

5.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 £1.27

$2.22 MX$40.95

-23.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 £1.66

$1.48 MX$27.32

49.32%

Eggs

$4.02 £3.02

$2.49 MX$45.99

61.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.37 £7.03

$7.52 MX$139

24.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.57 £6.43

$7.96 MX$147

7.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 £10.84

$12.57 MX$232

14.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.27

$2.78 MX$51.3

8.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.43 MX$26.37

5.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 £2.07

$2.62 MX$48.37

5.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$2.14 MX$39.49

53.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$2.02 MX$37.38

-9.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.99 MX$36.74

-14.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 £0.95

$1.14 MX$21.01

10.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.20 MX$22.18

29.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.02 £18.02

$4.26 MX$78.7

463.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.48 £7.86

$10.02 MX$185

4.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.00 £2.25

$1.54 MX$28.41

94.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 £2.46

$2.66 MX$49.17

22.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.07 £2.30

$0.53 MX$9.73

479.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.1 £62.3

$27.51 MX$508

202.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.23 £3.18

$4.90 MX$90.6

-13.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.76

$3.43 MX$63.5

-31.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.03 £18.03

$5.38 MX$99.4

346.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 £1.75

$1.45 MX$26.76

61.38%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

83.76%

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

$34.5K £25.9K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

49.75%

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

$309 £232

$85.4 MX$1,577

262.55%

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

$19.33 £14.50

$23.46 MX$434

-17.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.26 £33.95

$28.43 MX$525

59.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 £39.61

$62.2 MX$1,149

-15.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$13.32 £9.99

$5.10 MX$94.3

161.18%

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

$1,392 £1,045

$201 MX$3,715

592.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.5K £18.4K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

520.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 £66.5

$44.39 MX$820

99.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 £37.93

$41.35 MX$764

22.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.1 £66.8

$72.7 MX$1,344

22.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 £82.8

$89.6 MX$1,656

23.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,112 £834

$979 MX$18.1K

13.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £777

$373 MX$6,887

177.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,395 £1,797

$1,681 MX$31.1K

42.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,523 £1,143

$1,095 MX$20.2K

39.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,646 £3,486

$3,949 MX$73.0K

17.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,438 £2,579

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-43.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

11.45

-55.55%

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

Last update for Lerwick: 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

Lerwick

$1K 43.7%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 64% $663

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lerwick

$374 15.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 63.3% $237

Eating Out

Lerwick

$317 13.4%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 36.8% $116

Groceries & Markets

Lerwick

$298 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 13.4% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Lerwick

$152 6.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 26.7% $41

Getting Around

Lerwick

$111 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 53.6% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Lerwick

$79 3.4%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 8.9% $7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,112 in Lerwick and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99.0 in Lerwick vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Lerwick

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

17:22 5:22 PM

11:22 11:22 AM

6 h behind Lerwick

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,000

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 22, 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 22, 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

Lerwick Playa del Carmen 7,810 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Lerwick
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

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

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 97% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,552 in Lerwick 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: $1,112 in Lerwick versus $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,368 per month in Lerwick versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 97% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 202% less than in Lerwick. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,368 in Lerwick, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Lerwick. 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 Lerwick, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Lerwick 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 97% less than in Lerwick. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.