Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Albox

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Albox: $1,202 and $1,185 a month, rent and utilities included.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Albox, Spain
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,202
/mo nomad
Albox
🇪🇸 Spain
$1,185
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,185 in Albox, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,202
  • Albox $1,185

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,738 in Albox, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Albox $1,738

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,291 in Albox, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,962
  • Albox $2,291

Playa del Carmen and Albox have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Albox are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Albox 12% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.67 MX$199
$13.27 €11.87
-19.59%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.80 MX$815
$33.30 €29.78
31.53%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.79 MX$219
$10.09 €9.03
16.85%
Cappuccino
$3.79 MX$70.5
$2.22 €1.98
70.72%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.30 MX$24.14
$1.63 €1.46
-20.25%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.83 MX$15.51
$1.36 €1.22
-38.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.15 MX$58.6
$2.73 €2.44
15.38%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$91.8
$2.76 €2.47
78.62%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.22
$1.12 €1.01
25.89%
White Bread (500g)
$2.20 MX$40.86
$1.14 €1.02
92.98%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.47 MX$27.40
$1.16 €1.03
26.72%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$46.46
$2.80 €2.50
-10.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.29 MX$136
$11.81 €10.56
-38.27%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.95 MX$148
$7.39 €6.61
7.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.86 MX$239
$14.35 €12.83
-10.38%
Apples (1kg)
$2.90 MX$53.9
$2.06 €1.84
40.78%
Banana (1kg)
$1.38 MX$25.74
$1.56 €1.39
-11.54%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.49 MX$46.35
$1.15 €1.03
116.52%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.03 MX$37.77
$2.10 €1.88
-3.33%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.68
$1.11 €0.99
81.98%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 MX$35.42
$1.14 €1.02
66.67%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.30
$0.91 €0.82
25.27%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.24 MX$23.05
$0.42 €0.38
195.24%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.27 MX$79.5
$5.83 €5.21
-26.76%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.81 MX$183
$3.67 €3.28
167.30%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.59 MX$29.51
$0.94 €0.84
69.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.75 MX$51.1
$0.88 €0.79
212.50%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.51 MX$9.58
$1.56 €1.39
-67.31%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.39 MX$510
$31.31 €28.00
-12.52%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.76 MX$88.6
$4.00 €3.58
19.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.25 MX$60.5
$3.03 €2.71
7.26%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.39 MX$100
$34.16 €30.54
-84.22%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.53 MX$28.44
$1.68 €1.50
-8.93%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$394.8K
$35.1K €31.4K
-39.63%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.3K MX$432.9K
$29.1K €26.0K
-19.98%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.5 MX$1,554
$71.3 €63.7
17.16%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.19 MX$431
$9.19 €8.22
152.34%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.61 MX$514
$23.49 €21.01
17.54%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$56.4 MX$1,050
$41.89 €37.46
34.71%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.19 MX$525
$15.87 €14.19
77.63%
Cinema Ticket
$5.00 MX$93.1
$7.19 €6.43
-30.46%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,854
$493 €441
-57.96%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,231 MX$97.3K
$8,351 €7,468
-37.36%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.45 MX$809
$32.60 €29.15
33.28%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$42.54 MX$792
$21.22 €18.97
100.47%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.8 MX$1,354
$65.0 €58.1
12.01%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,645
$67.5 €60.3
31.01%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$995 MX$18.5K
$609 €544
63.41%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$382 MX$7,116
$474 €424
-19.27%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,674 MX$31.2K
$947 €847
76.76%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,081 MX$20.1K
$666 €595
62.32%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,909 MX$72.7K
$3,261 €2,916
19.87%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,138 MX$114.2K
$2,241 €2,004
173.92%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Albox
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$832 MX$15.5K
$2,864 €2,561
-70.94%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
2.9
294.83%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Albox: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$382
Albox
$474 23.9% $91
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$257
Albox
$217 15.8% $41
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Albox
$194 3% $6.1
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$134
Albox
$104 22.6% $30
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$111
Albox
$84 24.6% $27
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$66
Albox
$56 15.3% $10
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Albox
$57 12.3% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $609 in Albox. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Albox are about 3.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $33 in Albox. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $217 – making Albox the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇪🇸 Albox
🕒 Local time
00:23 12:23 AM
06:23 6:23 AM
6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
12,311
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Albox 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Albox

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 Albox: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Playa del Carmen and in Albox?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,778 in Albox. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Playa del Carmen or Albox?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Albox, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $609 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.
Are groceries more expensive in Playa del Carmen or in Albox?
Groceries cost about 19% more in Playa del Carmen, though the gap depends on what you buy.
How do childcare costs compare in Playa del Carmen and in Albox?
Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $493 in Albox. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Playa del Carmen or in Albox?
$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,185 in Albox. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Playa del Carmen or Albox?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,185 in Albox to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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