Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Newquay and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,475 in Newquay, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Newquay
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Newquay Living Index
57

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

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Newquay

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,475

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,475 per month in Newquay vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Newquay $2,475
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $3,640 per month in Newquay vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Newquay $3,640
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,804 per month in Newquay vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Newquay $4,804
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Newquay costs about 106% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Newquay sits 83% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.95 £14.80

$10.67 MX$199

86.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.6 £60.5

$43.80 MX$815

86.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.90 £7.34

$11.79 MX$219

-16.03%

Cappuccino

$5.14 £3.81

$3.79 MX$70.5

35.62%

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

$2.35 £1.74

$1.30 MX$24.14

80.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 £1.18

$0.83 MX$15.51

91.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.17 £4.58

$3.15 MX$58.6

95.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.76 £5.01

$4.93 MX$91.8

37.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 £1.27

$1.41 MX$26.22

21.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.59 £1.18

$2.20 MX$40.86

-27.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.34 £1.73

$1.47 MX$27.40

59.18%

Eggs

$4.31 £3.20

$2.50 MX$46.47

72.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.55 £4.86

$7.29 MX$136

-10.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.96 £8.87

$7.95 MX$148

50.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.81 £9.50

$12.86 MX$239

-0.39%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 £1.66

$2.90 MX$53.9

-22.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 £1.32

$1.38 MX$25.74

29.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 £1.38

$2.49 MX$46.36

-24.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.27 £1.69

$2.03 MX$37.78

11.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 £1.63

$2.02 MX$37.69

8.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 £0.98

$1.90 MX$35.42

-30.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.98 £1.47

$1.14 MX$21.30

73.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 £1.41

$1.24 MX$23.06

53.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.12 £17.89

$4.27 MX$79.5

464.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.54 £7.08

$9.81 MX$183

-2.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.83 £2.10

$1.59 MX$29.51

77.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.63

$2.75 MX$51.1

-20.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 £3.88

$4.76 MX$88.6

9.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.40 £1.78

$3.25 MX$60.5

-26.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.89 £19.20

$5.39 MX$100

380.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.91 £1.42

$1.53 MX$28.44

24.84%

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

$38.4K £28.5K

$21.2K MX$394.8K

80.85%

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

$41.3K £30.6K

$23.3K MX$432.9K

77.60%

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

$357 £264

$83.5 MX$1,554

327.03%

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

$16.31 £12.10

$23.19 MX$431

-29.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.34 £32.88

$27.61 MX$514

60.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.6 £40.52

$56.4 MX$1,050

-3.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$20.76 £15.39

$5.00 MX$93.1

315.20%

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

$2,179 £1,616

$207 MX$3,854

952.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K £16.7K

$5,231 MX$97.4K

330.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 £67.2

$43.45 MX$809

108.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.2 £37.19

$42.54 MX$792

17.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$159 £118

$72.8 MX$1,354

118.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$142 £105

$88.4 MX$1,645

60.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,362 £1,010

$995 MX$18.5K

36.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,138 £844

$382 MX$7,116

197.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,443 £1,812

$1,674 MX$31.2K

45.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,986 £1,473

$1,081 MX$20.1K

83.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,190 £1,624

$832 MX$15.5K

163.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.96

11.45

-56.68%

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

Last update for Newquay: November 1, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Newquay

$1.1K 46%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 66.4% $756

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Newquay

$417 16.9%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 67.8% $283

Eating Out

Newquay

$311 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 35.6% $111

Groceries & Markets

Newquay

$296 12%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 13% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Newquay

$199 8%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 44.1% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Newquay

$96 3.9%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 30.9% $30

Getting Around

Newquay

$17 * 0.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 193% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,362 in Newquay versus $995 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 in Newquay are about 2.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $82 in Newquay versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $296 vs $257 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Newquay

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:17 10:17 PM

17:17 5:17 PM

5 h behind Newquay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,189

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Newquay Playa del Carmen 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Newquay
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,475 in Newquay, $1,202 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen comes out roughly 51% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,712 per month in Newquay and $1,804 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $995 there versus $1,362 in Newquay.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,475 in Newquay and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 51% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $2,179 per month in Newquay and $207 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 $1,202, than in Newquay at $2,475. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Newquay 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.

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