Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Loughrea and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,512 in Loughrea, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Loughrea
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Loughrea Living Index
59

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

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Loughrea

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,512

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,512 in Loughrea versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen.

Loughrea $2,512
Playa del Carmen $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,724 in Loughrea versus $2,113 in Playa del Carmen.

Loughrea $3,724
Playa del Carmen $2,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,936 in Loughrea versus $3,016 in Playa del Carmen.

Loughrea $4,936
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Living in Loughrea is roughly 108% 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: Loughrea is 86% above, Playa del Carmen is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.22 €20.65

$10.76 MX$199

115.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 €90.9

$43.03 MX$795

137.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.62 €12.12

$11.79 MX$218

15.52%

Cappuccino

$3.38 €3.01

$3.87 MX$71.4

-12.66%

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

$2.17 €1.93

$1.37 MX$25.29

58.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 €1.99

$0.84 MX$15.44

165.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.10 MX$57.3

75.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 €3.91

$5.07 MX$93.6

-13.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.44 MX$26.55

15.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.26 €2.01

$2.23 MX$41.23

1.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$1.47 MX$27.17

34.69%

Eggs

$4.82 €4.29

$2.53 MX$46.71

90.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.45 €3.07

$7.30 MX$135

-52.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 €5.91

$7.86 MX$145

-15.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.08 €9.86

$12.79 MX$236

-13.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 €2.40

$2.90 MX$53.6

-6.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 €1.99

$1.44 MX$26.53

55.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.72 €2.41

$2.55 MX$47.07

6.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.44 €3.95

$2.06 MX$38.03

115.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.00 MX$36.97

-7.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$2.01 MX$37.07

-23.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.19 MX$22.02

-36.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.26 MX$23.23

65.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.25 €18.90

$4.40 MX$81.4

382.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.16 €11.71

$9.59 MX$177

37.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 €3.06

$1.59 MX$29.41

116.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.05

$2.81 MX$51.9

22.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 €2.36

$0.57 MX$10.47

366.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.0 €48.92

$27.82 MX$514

97.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 €4.65

$4.98 MX$92.1

5.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 €1.35

$3.50 MX$64.6

-56.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.00 €32.91

$5.40 MX$99.8

585.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 €1.58

$1.47 MX$27.08

21.09%

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

$38.6K €34.3K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

84.04%

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

$39.4K €35.0K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

64.76%

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

$164 €146

$84.2 MX$1,556

95.24%

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

$18.15 €16.14

$23.99 MX$443

-24.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.0 €46.22

$29.02 MX$536

79.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.6 €53.0

$63.0 MX$1,164

-5.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$49.26 €43.81

$29.14 MX$539

69.05%

Cinema Ticket

$15.35 €13.65

$4.94 MX$91.3

210.73%

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

$1,255 €1,116

$204 MX$3,763

516.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,363 €4,770

$3,941 MX$72.8K

36.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.5 €79.6

$43.60 MX$806

105.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.98 €44.45

$43.12 MX$797

15.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €101

$75.8 MX$1,400

49.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €114

$88.6 MX$1,637

44.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 €1,422

$1,008 MX$18.6K

58.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 €1,179

$374 MX$6,911

254.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,530 €2,250

$1,708 MX$31.6K

48.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,089 €1,858

$1,106 MX$20.4K

88.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,538 €2,257

$754 MX$13.9K

236.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

11.45

-66.64%

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

Last update for Loughrea: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Loughrea

$1.3K 52.8%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 71.8% $952

Eating Out

Loughrea

$321 12.8%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 37% $119

Groceries & Markets

Loughrea

$290 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 11% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Loughrea

$235 9.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 41.5% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Loughrea

$171 6.8%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 34% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Loughrea

$90 3.6%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 19.3% $17

Getting Around

Loughrea

$78 3.1%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 33% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,598 in Loughrea and $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Loughrea pays 236% 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: $102 in Loughrea vs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $290 vs $258 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Loughrea

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

05:21 5:21 AM

23:21 11:21 PM

6 h behind Loughrea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,600

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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Loughrea Playa del Carmen 7,430 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Loughrea
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

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

Loughrea and Playa del Carmen differ by about 108% in total monthly costs ($2,512 vs $1,210 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 236% higher in Loughrea, 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: $1,598 in Loughrea versus $1,008 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Loughrea. 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 $43.00 versus $102 in Loughrea. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,512 in Loughrea, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Loughrea. 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, Loughrea 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 108% less than in Loughrea. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.