Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisse and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,645 in Lisse, rent and utilities included – about $17,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Lisse
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Lisse Living Index
59

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

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Lisse

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,645

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,645 per month in Lisse vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lisse $2,645
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,951 per month in Lisse vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lisse $3,951
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $5,257 per month in Lisse vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Lisse $5,257
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Lisse costs about 120% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisse sits 95% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.24 €19.78

$10.86 MX$201

104.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.9 €80.8

$44.21 MX$817

105.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.23 €9.10

$11.76 MX$217

-13.01%

Cappuccino

$3.66 €3.25

$3.68 MX$68.0

-0.54%

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

$3.41 €3.03

$1.34 MX$24.79

154.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 €2.43

$0.82 MX$15.24

234.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.87 €6.11

$3.06 MX$56.6

124.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 €3.70

$4.94 MX$91.2

-15.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.47 MX$27.17

-0.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.24 €1.99

$2.22 MX$40.95

0.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 €2.22

$1.48 MX$27.32

68.24%

Eggs

$4.72 €4.20

$2.49 MX$45.99

89.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.89 €13.24

$7.52 MX$139

98.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.97 €11.54

$7.96 MX$147

62.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.34 €17.20

$12.57 MX$232

53.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$2.78 MX$51.3

-6.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.43 MX$26.37

59.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 €1.75

$2.62 MX$48.37

-25.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.54 €3.15

$2.14 MX$39.49

65.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.02 MX$37.38

-32.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 €1.18

$1.99 MX$36.74

-33.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.14 MX$21.01

3.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.20 MX$22.18

-26.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.72 €13.10

$4.26 MX$78.7

245.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.99 €5.33

$10.02 MX$185

-40.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.54 MX$28.41

-14.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 €1.73

$2.66 MX$49.17

-26.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.99 €3.55

$0.53 MX$9.73

652.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$91.3 €81.2

$27.51 MX$508

231.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.72 €4.20

$4.90 MX$90.6

-3.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.49 €3.10

$3.43 MX$63.5

1.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.11 €29.45

$5.38 MX$99.4

515.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.54 €2.25

$1.45 MX$26.76

75.17%

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

$41.7K €37.1K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

96.91%

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

$39.1K €34.8K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

69.73%

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

$284 €253

$85.4 MX$1,577

232.95%

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

$28.12 €25.01

$23.46 MX$434

19.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.1 €49.00

$28.43 MX$525

93.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.63 €38.81

$62.2 MX$1,149

-29.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.33 €18.98

$28.68 MX$530

-25.63%

Cinema Ticket

$17.14 €15.24

$5.10 MX$94.3

236.08%

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

$2,453 €2,182

$201 MX$3,715

1119.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K €10.3K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

193.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.4 €85.7

$44.39 MX$820

117.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.07 €38.31

$41.35 MX$764

4.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.1

$72.7 MX$1,344

46.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €121

$89.6 MX$1,656

52.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,527 €1,358

$979 MX$18.1K

55.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,248 €1,110

$373 MX$6,887

234.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,318 €2,062

$1,681 MX$31.1K

37.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,146 €1,909

$1,095 MX$20.2K

95.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,656 €5,031

$3,949 MX$73.0K

43.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,515 €4,016

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-26.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

11.45

-70.31%

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

Last update for Lisse: October 19, 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

Lisse

$1.2K 47.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 70.1% $875

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisse

$367 13.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 62.6% $230

Groceries & Markets

Lisse

$330 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 21.7% $72

Eating Out

Lisse

$320 12.1%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 37.4% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Lisse

$172 6.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 35.1% $60

Getting Around

Lisse

$129 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 60.1% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Lisse

$78 3%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 7.1% $5.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,527 in Lisse 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Lisse versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $330 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Lisse

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

19:14 7:14 PM

12:14 12:14 PM

7 h behind Lisse

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,995

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisse Playa del Carmen 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisse
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

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

Yes – Lisse is pricier by about 120%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,967 per month in Lisse 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.

Kindergarten costs $2,453 per month in Lisse and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Lisse, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Lisse at $2,645. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisse it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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