Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lexington, MA and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,672 in Lexington, MA, rent and utilities included – about $17,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Lexington, MA
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Lexington, MA Living Index
59

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

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Lexington, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,672

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,672 in Lexington, MA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Lexington, MA $2,672
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,542 in Lexington, MA versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Lexington, MA $4,542
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,412 in Lexington, MA versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Lexington, MA $6,412
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Lexington, MA is roughly 122% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lexington, MA is 97% above, Playa del Carmen is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.23 $20.23

$10.86 MX$201

86.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.1 $74.1

$44.21 MX$817

67.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.84 $15.84

$11.76 MX$217

34.69%

Cappuccino

$4.89 $4.89

$3.68 MX$68.0

32.88%

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

$2.86 $2.86

$1.34 MX$24.79

113.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 $2.05

$0.82 MX$15.24

150.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.81 $6.81

$3.06 MX$56.6

122.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.98 $7.98

$4.94 MX$91.2

61.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 $1.17

$1.47 MX$27.17

-20.41%

White Bread (500g)

$3.93 $3.93

$2.22 MX$40.95

77.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.72 $4.72

$1.48 MX$27.32

218.92%

Eggs

$4.18 $4.18

$2.49 MX$45.99

67.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.65 $12.65

$7.52 MX$139

68.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.65 $12.65

$7.96 MX$147

58.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.08 $17.08

$12.57 MX$232

35.88%

Apples (1kg)

$4.32 $4.32

$2.78 MX$51.3

55.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 $1.83

$1.43 MX$26.37

27.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.53 $4.53

$2.62 MX$48.37

72.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.17 $5.17

$2.14 MX$39.49

141.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$2.02 MX$37.38

18.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.93 $2.93

$1.99 MX$36.74

47.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.99 $1.99

$1.14 MX$21.01

74.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.20 MX$22.18

84.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.55 $8.55

$4.26 MX$78.7

100.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.74 $16.74

$10.02 MX$185

67.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 $1.82

$1.54 MX$28.41

18.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 $3.42

$2.66 MX$49.17

28.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.20 $2.20

$0.53 MX$9.73

315.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$4.90 MX$90.6

-44.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.74 $1.74

$3.43 MX$63.5

-49.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.81 $28.81

$5.38 MX$99.4

435.50%

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)

$27.7K $27.7K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

31.12%

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

$28.1K $28.1K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

22.07%

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

$189 $189

$85.4 MX$1,577

121.61%

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

$59.2 $59.2

$23.46 MX$434

152.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.5 $70.5

$28.43 MX$525

148.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.12 $42.12

$62.2 MX$1,149

-32.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$13.93 $13.93

$5.10 MX$94.3

173.14%

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

$1,400 $1,400

$201 MX$3,715

596.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.6K $23.6K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

498.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.6 $58.6

$44.39 MX$820

32.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.47 $36.47

$41.35 MX$764

-11.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.4 $88.4

$72.7 MX$1,344

21.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 $111

$89.6 MX$1,656

24.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 $1,530

$979 MX$18.1K

56.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,380 $1,380

$373 MX$6,887

270.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,878 $2,878

$1,681 MX$31.1K

71.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,564 $3,564

$1,095 MX$20.2K

225.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,775 $2,775

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-29.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,356 $2,356

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-61.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

11.45

-40.70%

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

Last update for Lexington, MA: 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

Lexington, MA

$1.4K 51.6%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 73% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Lexington, MA

$413 15.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 37.4% $154

Eating Out

Lexington, MA

$338 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 40.7% $138

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lexington, MA

$319 11.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 57% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Lexington, MA

$133 5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 15.8% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Lexington, MA

$70 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 3.5% $2.4

Getting Around

Lexington, MA

$20 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 156% $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 $1,530 in Lexington, MA and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $74.0 in Lexington, MA vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $413 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Lexington, MA

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

06:52 6:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

1 h behind Lexington, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

322,570

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 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Lexington, MA Playa del Carmen 2,840 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Lexington, MA
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

Lexington, MA vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lexington, MA and Playa del Carmen differ by about 122% in total monthly costs ($2,672 vs $1,204 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,007 in Lexington, MA 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: $1,530 in Lexington, MA 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 60% higher in Lexington, MA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,672 per month in Lexington, MA versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 122% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,672 in Lexington, MA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Lexington, MA. 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.

Safety-wise, Lexington, MA 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 122% less than in Lexington, MA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.