Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ad Dammam

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Ad Dammam: $1,215 and $1,180 a month, rent and utilities included.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Ad Dammam
Learn more

Ad Dammam Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Ad Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,180

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Ad Dammam

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Ad Dammam actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,215 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,180 in Ad Dammam.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Ad Dammam $1,180

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,144 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,809 in Ad Dammam.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Ad Dammam $1,809

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,072 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,437 in Ad Dammam.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Ad Dammam $2,437

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 3% more expensive than in Ad Dammam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Ad Dammam 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$7.04 SAR 26.45

55.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$34.90 SAR 131

28.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$6.69 SAR 25.12

78.18%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.89 SAR 7.09

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 SAR 8.66

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$3.08 SAR 11.55

23.38%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$0.76 SAR 2.86

72.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$0.16 SAR 0.60

437.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.81 SAR 6.80

-19.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$1.33 SAR 5.01

75.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.96 SAR 7.36

-26.53%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$2.17 SAR 8.16

13.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$7.29 SAR 27.38

5.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$8.10 SAR 30.40

-2.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$12.71 SAR 47.73

0.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$2.21 SAR 8.30

32.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$1.67 SAR 6.27

-14.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$1.60 SAR 5.99

60.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$1.63 SAR 6.10

31.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$1.13 SAR 4.24

72.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$1.21 SAR 4.54

60.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$1.28 SAR 4.79

-10.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$0.58 SAR 2.17

110.34%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.04 SAR 15.18

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 SAR 5.60

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 SAR 8.29

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$7.71 SAR 28.97

-43.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$0.97 SAR 3.64

-46.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

$35.53 SAR 133

-22.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$2.71 SAR 10.16

81.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$2.73 SAR 10.27

28.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$13.52 SAR 50.8

-57.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$0.63 SAR 2.38

144.44%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$67.2K SAR 252.4K

-68.40%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$21.3K SAR 80.1K

14.86%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$131 SAR 494

-36.39%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$32.52 SAR 122

-26.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$63.8 SAR 240

-54.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$75.6 SAR 284

-14.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$27.99 SAR 105

5.25%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$13.59 SAR 51.0

-62.55%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$421 SAR 1,582

-50.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

$7,860 SAR 29.5K

-48.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$42.50 SAR 160

4.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$49.83 SAR 187

-15.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$95.7 SAR 359

-21.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$92.1 SAR 346

-0.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$583 SAR 2,188

69.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$370 SAR 1,390

4.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$1,003 SAR 3,767

70.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$677 SAR 2,543

63.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$1,395 SAR 5,238

187.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$609 SAR 2,287

925.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

$1,507 SAR 5,659

-49.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.9

94.07%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Ad Dammam: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Ad Dammam

$370 30.8% 3.9% $15

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Ad Dammam

$202 16.8% 22.4% $58

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Ad Dammam

$117 9.7% 42.6% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Ad Dammam

$228 19% 66.3% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Ad Dammam

$126 10.5% 10.5% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Ad Dammam

$103 8.6% 36.9% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Ad Dammam

$56 4.6% 7.2% $3.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $986 in Playa del Carmen and $583 in Ad Dammam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ad Dammam pays 99% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $45.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $35.00 in Ad Dammam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $202 per month, with Ad Dammam cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇦 Ad Dammam

🕒 Local time

07:26 7:26 AM

15:26 3:26 PM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

903,312

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.238 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.238 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ad Dammam 13,040 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ad Dammam

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

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

Ad Dammam wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ad Dammam the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 99% lower in Ad Dammam. 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: $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $583 in Ad Dammam. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $1,180 in Ad Dammam – a 3% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ad Dammam runs roughly 30% less than in Playa del Carmen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,180 in Ad Dammam versus $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ad Dammam but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Ad Dammam the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Ad Dammam delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,180 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Ad Dammam hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Playa del Carmen and Ad Dammam 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 Ad Dammam gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.