Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ndola and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Ndola: $719 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Ndola
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Ndola Living Index
59

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

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Ndola

🇿🇲 Zambia

$719

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $719 per month in Ndola vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ndola $719
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $1,721 per month in Ndola vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ndola $1,721
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $2,723 per month in Ndola vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ndola $2,723
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Ndola is about 40% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ndola and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Ndola 47% 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

$30.02 ZMW 597

$44.21 MX$817

-32.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.00 ZMW 99.4

$11.76 MX$217

-57.48%

Cappuccino

$2.76 ZMW 54.8

$3.68 MX$68.0

-25.00%

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

$0.52 ZMW 10.25

$1.34 MX$24.79

-61.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 ZMW 4.73

$0.82 MX$15.24

-70.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ZMW 24.31

$3.06 MX$56.6

-60.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 ZMW 44.02

$4.94 MX$91.2

-55.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 ZMW 32.92

$1.47 MX$27.17

12.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 ZMW 23.56

$2.22 MX$40.95

-46.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 ZMW 42.31

$1.48 MX$27.32

43.92%

Eggs

$1.56 ZMW 31.07

$2.49 MX$45.99

-37.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.15 ZMW 202

$7.52 MX$139

34.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.18 ZMW 123

$7.96 MX$147

-22.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.71 ZMW 133

$12.57 MX$232

-46.62%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 ZMW 29.27

$2.78 MX$51.3

-47.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 ZMW 48.00

$1.43 MX$26.37

68.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.74 ZMW 74.3

$2.62 MX$48.37

42.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ZMW 30.72

$2.14 MX$39.49

-28.04%

Potato (1kg)

$2.53 ZMW 50.4

$2.02 MX$37.38

25.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 ZMW 35.84

$1.99 MX$36.74

-9.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ZMW 21.93

$1.14 MX$21.01

-3.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ZMW 11.60

$1.20 MX$22.18

-51.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.09 ZMW 61.5

$4.26 MX$78.7

-27.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.83 ZMW 196

$10.02 MX$185

-1.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 ZMW 28.97

$1.54 MX$28.41

-5.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 ZMW 46.73

$2.66 MX$49.17

-11.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.72 ZMW 14.29

$0.53 MX$9.73

35.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.57 ZMW 51.2

$4.90 MX$90.6

-47.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 ZMW 30.41

$3.43 MX$63.5

-55.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.03 ZMW 100

$5.38 MX$99.4

-6.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 ZMW 26.78

$1.45 MX$26.76

-6.90%

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

$7,392 ZMW 147.0K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

-65.06%

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

$26.9K ZMW 534.7K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

16.79%

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

$80.2 ZMW 1,596

$85.4 MX$1,577

-6.00%

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

$10.45 ZMW 208

$23.46 MX$434

-55.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.2 ZMW 1,098

$28.43 MX$525

94.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$6.04 ZMW 120

$5.10 MX$94.3

18.43%

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

$135 ZMW 2,692

$201 MX$3,715

-32.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.3K ZMW 324.7K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

313.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.64 ZMW 470

$44.39 MX$820

-46.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.39 ZMW 306

$41.35 MX$764

-62.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.69 ZMW 909

$72.7 MX$1,344

-37.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.4 ZMW 1,421

$89.6 MX$1,656

-20.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$177 ZMW 3,526

$979 MX$18.1K

-81.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 ZMW 2,948

$373 MX$6,887

-60.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$370 ZMW 7,365

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-77.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,482 ZMW 29.5K

$1,095 MX$20.2K

35.28%

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)

$596 ZMW 11.9K

$738 MX$13.6K

-19.15%

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 Ndola: 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.

Groceries & Markets

Ndola

$223 31.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 15.7% $35

Accommodation & Living

Ndola

$148 20.6%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 152% $225

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ndola

$146 20.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 5.9% $8.7

Eating Out

Ndola

$106 14.8%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 88.4% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Ndola

$70 9.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 58.9% $41

Getting Around

Ndola

$13 * 1.8%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 295% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Ndola

$12 * 1.7%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 499% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $177 in Ndola 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 24% higher in Playa del Carmen, 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 $30.00 in Ndola versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $258 – making Ndola the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Ndola

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:58 3:58 PM

08:58 8:58 AM

7 h behind Ndola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

455,194

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 22, 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 22, 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

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Highest

Between locations

Ndola Playa del Carmen 13,160 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Ndola
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 67%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,079 per month in Ndola 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 Ndola, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Ndola and $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 16% more in Playa del Carmen, 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 Ndola, where all-in costs run around $719, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Ndola it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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