Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Altamura

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,710 in Altamura, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Altamura, Italy
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Altamura
🇮🇹 Italy
$1,710
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,710 in Altamura.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Altamura $1,710

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,567 in Altamura.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Altamura $2,567

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,424 in Altamura.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Altamura $3,424

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 30% less than in Altamura, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Altamura is 26% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$203
$16.50 €14.77
-33.82%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$805
$73.5 €65.8
-41.00%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$218
$11.21 €10.03
5.08%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$70.7
$2.33 €2.09
63.52%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$23.79
$2.44 €2.19
-47.54%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.52
$1.32 €1.19
-40.91%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$58.7
$5.54 €4.96
-42.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$91.5
$5.51 €4.93
-10.53%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.09
$1.94 €1.74
-27.32%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.12
$1.93 €1.72
15.03%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.29
$3.31 €2.96
-57.10%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$46.80
$4.59 €4.10
-45.10%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$135
$16.46 €14.73
-55.89%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$143
$12.53 €11.21
-38.55%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$235
$20.45 €18.30
-37.95%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.6
$2.49 €2.23
11.65%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.38
$2.06 €1.84
-33.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.32
$2.21 €1.97
15.38%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.38
$3.74 €3.35
-43.32%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$35.96
$1.71 €1.53
13.45%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$34.98
$1.82 €1.63
3.85%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.27
$1.42 €1.27
-19.01%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$21.87
$0.62 €0.56
90.32%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$79.7
$6.80 €6.08
-36.76%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$185
$6.12 €5.48
62.58%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.37
$1.85 €1.66
-14.59%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$49.55
$3.16 €2.82
-15.51%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.26
$1.47 €1.32
-62.59%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$494
$37.65 €33.69
-29.30%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$92.2
$4.58 €4.10
8.52%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$61.8
$1.21 €1.09
175.21%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$99.4
$23.20 €20.75
-76.90%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$26.79
$2.17 €1.94
-33.64%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$383.4K
$35.8K €32.0K
-42.20%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$435.3K
$37.8K €33.8K
-37.85%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,573
$200 €179
-57.54%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$434
$9.15 €8.19
155.85%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$532
$31.06 €27.79
-7.73%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,058
$57.2 €51.2
-0.26%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$536
$26.11 €23.36
10.72%
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$95.3
$9.86 €8.83
-47.87%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,832
$446 €399
-53.73%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$72.9K
$7,838 €7,013
-49.90%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$804
$94.1 €84.2
-53.95%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$769
$41.91 €37.50
-1.12%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,376
$105 €93.7
-29.12%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,656
$137 €122
-34.66%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.2K
$809 €723
21.14%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,064
$576 €516
-33.91%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$31.7K
$1,042 €932
63.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$19.9K
$820 €733
31.15%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$73.1K
$2,936 €2,626
34.32%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$114.2K
$2,216 €1,983
177.84%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Altamura
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.6K
$1,721 €1,540
-57.31%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
3.08
271.75%

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 Altamura: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Altamura
$576 51.3% $195
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Altamura
$346 35.7% $91
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Altamura
$247 22.3% $45
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Altamura
$240 75.3% $103
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Altamura
$170 52% $58
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Altamura
$77 14.3% $9.6
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Altamura
$54 7.4% $3.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $809 in Altamura. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Altamura pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $74 in Altamura for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $346 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇮🇹 Altamura
🕒 Local time
17:34 5:34 PM
23:34 11:34 PM
6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
70,396
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 18.55 MXN (100 MXN = 5.39 USD). 1 EUR = 20.68 MXN (100 MXN = 4.84 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Altamura 9,600 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Altamura

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 Altamura: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Altamura?
Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 42% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Playa del Carmen or Altamura?
On paper, salaries run 57% 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.
What is the rent difference between Playa del Carmen and Altamura?
Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $809 in Altamura. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do food prices compare in Playa del Carmen and in Altamura?
Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Altamura. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Is eating out cheaper in Playa del Carmen or in Altamura?
Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $74 in Altamura. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Altamura?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,710 in Altamura, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Altamura. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is it better to live in Playa del Carmen or in Altamura?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Altamura on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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