Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lusaka and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Lusaka: $872 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Lusaka
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Lusaka Living Index
59

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

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Lusaka

🇿🇲 Zambia

$872

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $872 in Lusaka versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Lusaka $872
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,488 in Lusaka versus $2,102 in Playa del Carmen.

Lusaka $1,488
Playa del Carmen $2,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,103 in Lusaka versus $3,000 in Playa del Carmen.

Lusaka $2,103
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Living in Lusaka costs roughly 28% less than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lusaka 36% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.58 ZMW 111

$10.86 MX$201

-48.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.94 ZMW 595

$44.21 MX$817

-32.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.99 ZMW 99.3

$11.76 MX$217

-57.57%

Cappuccino

$2.84 ZMW 56.5

$3.68 MX$68.0

-22.83%

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

$0.77 ZMW 15.27

$1.34 MX$24.79

-42.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ZMW 9.13

$0.82 MX$15.24

-43.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.27 ZMW 25.34

$3.06 MX$56.6

-58.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 ZMW 45.73

$4.94 MX$91.2

-53.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ZMW 33.64

$1.47 MX$27.17

14.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ZMW 23.28

$2.22 MX$40.95

-47.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 ZMW 39.99

$1.48 MX$27.32

35.81%

Eggs

$1.96 ZMW 39.04

$2.49 MX$45.99

-21.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.49 ZMW 209

$7.52 MX$139

39.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.34 ZMW 126

$7.96 MX$147

-20.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.61 ZMW 131

$12.57 MX$232

-47.41%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ZMW 65.6

$2.78 MX$51.3

18.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 ZMW 48.81

$1.43 MX$26.37

71.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.66 ZMW 72.8

$2.62 MX$48.37

39.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.57 ZMW 31.27

$2.14 MX$39.49

-26.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.52 ZMW 50.1

$2.02 MX$37.38

24.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.79 ZMW 35.66

$1.99 MX$36.74

-10.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ZMW 22.24

$1.14 MX$21.01

-1.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ZMW 14.75

$1.20 MX$22.18

-38.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.94 ZMW 58.5

$4.26 MX$78.7

-30.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.09 ZMW 201

$10.02 MX$185

0.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 ZMW 28.21

$1.54 MX$28.41

-7.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 ZMW 46.18

$2.66 MX$49.17

-12.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.97 ZMW 19.35

$0.53 MX$9.73

83.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.0 ZMW 995

$27.51 MX$508

81.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.46 ZMW 48.89

$4.90 MX$90.6

-49.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 ZMW 30.18

$3.43 MX$63.5

-55.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.99 ZMW 99.2

$5.38 MX$99.4

-7.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 ZMW 29.99

$1.45 MX$26.76

4.14%

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

$7,644 ZMW 152.0K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

-63.87%

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

$27.8K ZMW 553.6K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

20.92%

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

$81.7 ZMW 1,626

$85.4 MX$1,577

-4.25%

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

$10.28 ZMW 204

$23.46 MX$434

-56.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.4 ZMW 1,081

$28.43 MX$525

91.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.1 ZMW 1,096

$62.2 MX$1,149

-11.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.21 ZMW 303

$28.68 MX$530

-46.97%

Cinema Ticket

$6.03 ZMW 120

$5.10 MX$94.3

18.24%

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

$139 ZMW 2,774

$201 MX$3,715

-30.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K ZMW 328.6K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

318.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.04 ZMW 458

$44.39 MX$820

-48.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.19 ZMW 302

$41.35 MX$764

-63.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.38 ZMW 903

$72.7 MX$1,344

-37.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.9 ZMW 1,450

$89.6 MX$1,656

-18.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$380 ZMW 7,564

$979 MX$18.1K

-61.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$177 ZMW 3,513

$373 MX$6,887

-52.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,067 ZMW 21.2K

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-36.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 ZMW 11.8K

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-45.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,895 ZMW 37.7K

$3,949 MX$73.0K

-52.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,017 ZMW 99.8K

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-18.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$316 ZMW 6,290

$738 MX$13.6K

-57.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

153.28%

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

Last update for Lusaka: 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.

Groceries & Markets

Lusaka

$238 27.3%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 8.7% $21

Accommodation & Living

Lusaka

$177 20.3%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 111% $196

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lusaka

$146 16.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 6.2% $9.1

Eating Out

Lusaka

$110 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 82.7% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Lusaka

$70 8.1%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 58.5% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Lusaka

$67 7.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 7.8% $5.2

Getting Around

Lusaka

$64 7.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 19.2% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $380 in Lusaka and $979 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 133% 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: $30.00 in Lusaka vs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $238 vs $258 per month, with Lusaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Lusaka

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

13:39 1:39 PM

06:39 6:39 AM

7 h behind Lusaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,742,979 Capital

149,923

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 5.03 USD

100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 19.89 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.03 USD). 1 EUR = 22.36 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.47 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).

USD to ZMW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lusaka Playa del Carmen 13,200 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Lusaka
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

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

Lusaka and Playa del Carmen differ by about 38% in total monthly costs ($872 vs $1,204 including rent). Lusaka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 133% lower in Playa del Carmen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $380 in Lusaka 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 $872 per month in Lusaka versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – a 38% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Lusaka runs roughly 82% less than in Playa del Carmen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $872 in Lusaka versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lusaka but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Lusaka 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 Lusaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.