Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Merthyr Tydfil and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,071 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent and utilities included – about $10,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Merthyr Tydfil
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Merthyr Tydfil Living Index
59

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

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Merthyr Tydfil

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,071

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,071 per month in Merthyr Tydfil vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Merthyr Tydfil $2,071
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,871 per month in Merthyr Tydfil vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Merthyr Tydfil $2,871
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $3,671 per month in Merthyr Tydfil vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Merthyr Tydfil $3,671
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Merthyr Tydfil costs about 72% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Merthyr Tydfil sits 53% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.21 £18.16

$10.86 MX$201

122.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 £46.76

$44.21 MX$817

40.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.85 £8.14

$11.76 MX$217

-7.74%

Cappuccino

$4.45 £3.34

$3.68 MX$68.0

20.92%

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

$2.51 £1.88

$1.34 MX$24.79

87.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$0.82 MX$15.24

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.16 £4.62

$3.06 MX$56.6

101.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.81 £4.36

$4.94 MX$91.2

17.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.47 MX$27.17

-2.04%

White Bread (500g)

$0.61 £0.46

$2.22 MX$40.95

-72.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 £1.28

$1.48 MX$27.32

14.86%

Eggs

$4.10 £3.08

$2.49 MX$45.99

64.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.51 £6.39

$7.52 MX$139

13.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.66 £6.50

$7.96 MX$147

8.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.08 £9.82

$12.57 MX$232

4.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.62 £1.97

$2.78 MX$51.3

-5.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 £1.35

$1.43 MX$26.37

26.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 £1.95

$2.62 MX$48.37

-0.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 £2.41

$2.14 MX$39.49

50.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 £0.88

$2.02 MX$37.38

-41.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.34 £1.00

$1.99 MX$36.74

-32.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 £0.88

$1.14 MX$21.01

2.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.20 MX$22.18

-9.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.15 £17.37

$4.26 MX$78.7

443.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.72 £8.04

$10.02 MX$185

6.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 £2.09

$1.54 MX$28.41

80.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 £2.73

$2.66 MX$49.17

36.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.9 £72.7

$27.51 MX$508

252.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 £2.57

$4.90 MX$90.6

-30.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.70 £1.28

$3.43 MX$63.5

-50.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.34 £19.76

$5.38 MX$99.4

389.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 £1.62

$1.45 MX$26.76

48.97%

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

$38.2K £28.7K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

80.66%

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

$40.4K £30.3K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

75.36%

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

$320 £240

$85.4 MX$1,577

275.04%

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

$13.18 £9.89

$23.46 MX$434

-43.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.40 £28.06

$28.43 MX$525

31.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.24 £29.44

$62.2 MX$1,149

-36.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$8.02 £6.02

$5.10 MX$94.3

57.25%

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

$2,211 £1,659

$201 MX$3,715

999.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.5K £19.1K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

545.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 £76.2

$44.39 MX$820

128.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.44 £36.34

$41.35 MX$764

17.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 £80.0

$72.7 MX$1,344

46.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 £73.4

$89.6 MX$1,656

9.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$807 £605

$979 MX$18.1K

-17.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$770 £577

$373 MX$6,887

106.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,171 £878

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-30.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$979 £734

$1,095 MX$20.2K

-10.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,572 £1,180

$738 MX$13.6K

113.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.87

11.45

-57.47%

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

Last update for Merthyr Tydfil: 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

Merthyr Tydfil

$770 37.2%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 51.6% $397

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Merthyr Tydfil

$371 17.9%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 63% $233

Eating Out

Merthyr Tydfil

$339 16.3%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 40.9% $138

Groceries & Markets

Merthyr Tydfil

$269 13%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 3.9% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Merthyr Tydfil

$160 7.7%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 30% $48

Getting Around

Merthyr Tydfil

$109 * 5.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 52.5% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Merthyr Tydfil

$55 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 31% $17

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $807 in Merthyr Tydfil 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.

Salaries run about 113% higher in Merthyr Tydfil, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62.0 in Merthyr Tydfil versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Merthyr Tydfil

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

6 h behind Merthyr Tydfil

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,820

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 20, 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 20, 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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Highest

Between locations

Merthyr Tydfil Playa del Carmen 7,800 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Merthyr Tydfil
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,071 in Merthyr Tydfil, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 72% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,107 per month in Merthyr Tydfil 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.

Public transport costs about 252% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,211 per month in Merthyr Tydfil and $201 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Merthyr Tydfil at $2,071. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Merthyr Tydfil it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $2,071 in Merthyr Tydfil. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Merthyr Tydfil makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.