Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ames, IA

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,142 in Ames, IA, rent and utilities included – about $11,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Ames, IA
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Ames, IA Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Ames, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Ames, IA

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,142 in Ames, IA.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Ames, IA $2,142

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,113 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,242 in Ames, IA.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Ames, IA $3,242

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,016 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,342 in Ames, IA.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Ames, IA $4,342

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 43% less than in Ames, IA, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 10% below, Ames, IA is 59% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$18.13 $18.13

-40.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$52.0 $52.0

-17.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$12.18 $12.18

-3.20%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$4.87 $4.87

-20.53%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$2.60 $2.60

-47.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$2.25 $2.25

-62.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$4.05 $4.05

-23.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$6.81 $6.81

-25.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$0.89 $0.89

61.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$3.55 $3.55

-37.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$3.26 $3.26

-54.91%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$3.34 $3.34

-24.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$10.08 $10.08

-27.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$13.62 $13.62

-42.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$19.05 $19.05

-32.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$5.88 $5.88

-50.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$1.82 $1.82

-20.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$6.69 $6.69

-61.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$5.22 $5.22

-60.54%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$4.54 $4.54

-55.95%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$4.07 $4.07

-50.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.32 $2.32

-48.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$2.44 $2.44

-48.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$13.03 $13.03

-66.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$16.11 $16.11

-40.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$2.87 $2.87

-44.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$4.98 $4.98

-43.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$0.99 $0.99

-42.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$35.57 $35.57

-21.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$5.09 $5.09

-2.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$1.69 $1.69

107.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$24.13 $24.13

-77.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$0.96 $0.96

53.13%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$24.7K $24.7K

-15.16%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$25.1K $25.1K

-4.65%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$176 $176

-52.23%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$54.3 $54.3

-55.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$71.2 $71.2

-59.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$69.0 $69.0

-8.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$19.74 $19.74

47.62%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$15.97 $15.97

-69.07%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$1,370 $1,370

-85.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$36.1K $36.1K

-89.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$58.4 $58.4

-25.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$44.68 $44.68

-3.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$90.1 $90.1

-15.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$105 $105

-15.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$1,005 $1,005

0.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$822 $822

-54.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$1,860 $1,860

-8.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$1,505 $1,505

-26.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$2,432 $2,432

62.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$2,185 $2,185

182.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$3,597 $3,597

-79.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.41

78.63%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Ames, IA: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Ames, IA

$822 38.4% 120% $448

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Ames, IA

$436 20.4% 68.9% $178

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Ames, IA

$293 13.7% 45% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Ames, IA

$302 14.1% 120% $165

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Ames, IA

$134 6.3% 18.6% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Ames, IA

$101 4.7% 38.5% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Ames, IA

$53 2.5% 1% $0.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen and $1,005 in Ames, IA. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ames, IA pays 377% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $43.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $52.0 in Ames, IA for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $436 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 Ames, IA

🕒 Local time

15:30 3:30 PM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

66,427

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ames, IA 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ames, IA

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 Ames, IA: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 77% lower than in Ames, IA. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 377% lower in Ames, IA. 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: $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,005 in Ames, IA. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 28% less than in Ames, IA. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,370 in Ames, IA. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,142 in Ames, IA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Ames, IA. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Playa del Carmen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,210 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Playa del Carmen hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 77% less than in Ames, IA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.