Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Aguascalientes

For one person, living is cheaper in Aguascalientes: $1,084 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Aguascalientes
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Aguascalientes Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Aguascalientes

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,084

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Aguascalientes

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 Aguascalientes actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,084 in Aguascalientes.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Aguascalientes $1,084

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,720 in Aguascalientes.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Aguascalientes $1,720

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,355 in Aguascalientes.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Aguascalientes $2,355

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 11% more expensive than in Aguascalientes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Aguascalientes 20% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$12.56 MX$236

-13.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$814

$42.51 MX$798

2.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$6.83 MX$128

72.47%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.5

$3.70 MX$69.4

2.97%

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

$1.28 MX$24.07

$1.66 MX$31.09

-22.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.70

$1.21 MX$22.64

-35.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$2.21 MX$41.49

43.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$3.26 MX$61.3

51.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.40

$1.46 MX$27.42

-3.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.62

$2.23 MX$41.87

-0.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.61

$1.46 MX$27.42

-2.74%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.36

$2.37 MX$44.57

6.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$136

$7.74 MX$145

-6.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$144

$8.38 MX$157

-8.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$238

$11.17 MX$210

13.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$2.22 MX$41.69

25.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.68

$1.31 MX$24.59

4.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.89

$1.53 MX$28.78

66.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.86

$1.69 MX$31.64

25.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.39

$1.54 MX$28.85

25.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.41

$1.37 MX$25.69

37.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.53

$1.02 MX$19.13

12.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.13

$0.83 MX$15.53

42.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.6

$4.30 MX$80.7

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$8.77 MX$165

13.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.73

$1.78 MX$33.44

-11.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.1

$3.39 MX$63.7

-21.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.39

$0.58 MX$10.81

-5.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$29.38 MX$552

-9.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.3

$1.18 MX$22.14

321.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.5

$1.13 MX$21.19

194.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$10.94 MX$205

-51.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.11

$1.49 MX$27.94

-3.36%

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

$20.7K MX$388.0K

$24.5K MX$459.7K

-15.61%

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

$23.5K MX$440.5K

$23.6K MX$443.3K

-0.63%

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

$84.8 MX$1,592

$55.2 MX$1,036

53.66%

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

$23.41 MX$439

$24.45 MX$459

-4.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$538

$24.00 MX$451

19.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,071

$30.44 MX$572

87.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$21.61 MX$406

33.78%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.5

$5.10 MX$95.8

0.78%

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

$207 MX$3,878

$210 MX$3,945

-1.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.7K

$2,885 MX$54.2K

36.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$814

$54.1 MX$1,016

-19.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$778

$38.42 MX$721

7.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,393

$103 MX$1,930

-27.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,676

$68.8 MX$1,291

29.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$496 MX$9,316

97.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,150

$349 MX$6,561

8.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$772 MX$14.5K

121.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$622 MX$11.7K

72.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.0K

$1,149 MX$21.6K

243.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.6K

$1,155 MX$21.7K

433.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$864 MX$16.2K

-15.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.2

2.23%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Last update for Aguascalientes: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Aguascalientes

$349 32.2% 8.2% $31

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Aguascalientes

$239 22% 6.2% $16

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Aguascalientes

$194 17.9% 3.9% $8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Aguascalientes

$104 9.6% 24.3% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Aguascalientes

$119 11% 6.4% $7.1

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Aguascalientes

$41 3.8% 39.6% $27

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Aguascalientes

$39 3.6% 23.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $496 in Aguascalientes. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aguascalientes pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $43 in Aguascalientes. Groceries flip the comparison at $255 vs $239, with Aguascalientes cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Aguascalientes

🕒 Local time

18:11 6:11 PM

17:11 5:11 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

863,893

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Aguascalientes 1,580 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Aguascalientes

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 Aguascalientes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aguascalientes is about 10% cheaper overall, especially in leisure, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 15% 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $496 in Aguascalientes. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $210 in Aguascalientes. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 9% less than in Aguascalientes. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Aguascalientes gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.