Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Al Mahwit

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Mahwit: $761 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Al Mahwit
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Al Mahwit Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Al Mahwit

🇾🇪 Yemen

$761

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Al Mahwit

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $761 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Al Mahwit $761

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,197 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Al Mahwit $1,197

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,634 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Al Mahwit $1,634

Playa del Carmen costs about 60% more than Al Mahwit, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Al Mahwit are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Al Mahwit 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$200

$6.23 YER 1,469

76.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$819

$25.53 YER 6,021

75.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$218

$9.47 YER 2,233

25.87%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.94 YER 459

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 YER 609

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.5

$3.64 YER 859

4.40%

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

$1.31 MX$23.95

$1.17 YER 275

11.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.63

$0.55 YER 130

56.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$58.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$91.5

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.62

$2.07 YER 488

-29.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.48

$1.63 YER 384

42.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.34

$1.98 YER 466

-27.27%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$44.94

$3.58 YER 845

-31.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$16.97 YER 4,003

-54.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$144

$8.17 YER 1,926

-3.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$234

$18.64 YER 4,395

-31.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.3

$3.31 YER 782

-11.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$25.96

$1.05 YER 248

35.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$46.84

$2.17 YER 511

18.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.02

$1.67 YER 394

28.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.55

$1.47 YER 346

32.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.35

$1.37 YER 323

41.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.01

$1.26 YER 298

-8.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.29

$0.68 YER 161

79.41%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.48 YER 585

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 YER 440

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 YER 590

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$79.9

$5.58 YER 1,316

-21.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$180

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.07

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.58

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.58

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$501

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$89.7

$4.19 YER 988

17.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.3

$2.15 YER 508

63.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$7.19 YER 1,696

-20.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.12

$2.14 YER 505

-28.04%

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

$21.2K MX$387.8K

$17.2K YER 4.1M

23.49%

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

$24.5K MX$447.1K

$34.5K YER 8.1M

-28.93%

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

$83.6 MX$1,527

$108 YER 25.4K

-22.29%

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

$24.03 MX$439

$23.33 YER 5,502

3.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$536

$103 YER 24.3K

-71.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,184

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$538

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$92.9

$5.76 YER 1,358

-11.63%

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

$208 MX$3,792

$115 YER 27.1K

80.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$73.9K

$2,173 YER 512.6K

86.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$813

$42.19 YER 9,949

5.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$768

$121 YER 28.5K

-65.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,379

$48.73 YER 11.5K

55.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,668

$40.93 YER 9,654

123.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.0K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,033

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

11.25

1.78%

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 Al Mahwit: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Al Mahwit

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Al Mahwit

$267 34.7% 2.7% $6.9

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Al Mahwit

$129 16.7% 36.8% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Al Mahwit

$234 30.4% 70.7% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Al Mahwit

$114 14.8% 0.2% $0.3

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Al Mahwit

$12 * 1.5% 84.6% $64

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Al Mahwit

$15 * 1.9% 71.3% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $26.00 in Al Mahwit. Groceries tell a different story – $260 in Playa del Carmen vs $267 in Al Mahwit – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇾🇪 Al Mahwit

🕒 Local time

20:44 8:44 PM

04:44 4:44 AM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

12,817

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Yemeni Rial YER ﷼

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.48 USD

100 MXN = 4.89 EUR

1,000 YER = 4.24 USD

1,000 YER = 3.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

YER, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 18.26 MXN (100 MXN = 5.48 USD). 1 EUR = 20.46 MXN (100 MXN = 4.89 EUR).

Yemeni Rial exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 236 YER (1,000 YER = 4.24 USD). 1 EUR = 264 YER (1,000 YER = 3.78 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Al Mahwit 13,290 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Al Mahwit

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 Al Mahwit: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 60%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,142 in Al Mahwit. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,215 in Playa del Carmen and $761 in Al Mahwit. That's a gap of about 60%.

Kindergarten costs $208 per month in Playa del Carmen and $115 in Al Mahwit. 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 Al Mahwit, where all-in costs run around $761, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In Al Mahwit it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Al Mahwit – 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 Al Mahwit. 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.