Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ar-rustaq

For one person, living is cheaper in Ar-rustaq: $953 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Playa del Carmen outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Ar-rustaq
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Ar-rustaq Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Ar-rustaq

🇴🇲 Oman

$953

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Ar-rustaq

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 Ar-rustaq actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $953 in Ar-rustaq, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Ar-rustaq $953

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,432 in Ar-rustaq, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Ar-rustaq $1,432

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,910 in Ar-rustaq, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Ar-rustaq $1,910

Playa del Carmen costs about 26% more than Ar-rustaq, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Playa del Carmen and Ar-rustaq are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Ar-rustaq 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$5.33 OMR 2.05

104.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$39.16 OMR 15.08

10.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$7.82 OMR 3.01

50.64%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$5.21 OMR 2.01

-26.87%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.84 OMR 0.32

52.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.27 OMR 0.10

188.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$12.78 OMR 4.92

-75.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$13.19 OMR 5.08

-62.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$2.39 OMR 0.92

-41.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.20 OMR 0.46

85.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.95 OMR 0.75

-27.18%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.08 OMR 1.19

-18.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$7.11 OMR 2.74

2.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.96 OMR 2.68

10.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$10.14 OMR 3.90

25.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$3.51 OMR 1.35

-20.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$2.03 OMR 0.78

-32.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.40 OMR 0.92

6.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.28 OMR 0.49

65.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.17 OMR 0.45

65.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.22 OMR 0.47

54.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.86 OMR 0.72

-38.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.68 OMR 0.26

73.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$6.65 OMR 2.56

-35.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$15.55 OMR 5.99

-36.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$5.85 OMR 2.25

-72.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$10.05 OMR 3.87

-73.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$3.24 OMR 1.25

53.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$2.57 OMR 0.99

29.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$8.03 OMR 3.09

-33.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$0.59 OMR 0.23

144.07%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$25.4K OMR 9,784

-18.68%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$20.9K OMR 8,060

12.08%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$177 OMR 68.3

-52.18%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$30.29 OMR 11.66

-22.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$71.6 OMR 27.58

-59.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$10.25 OMR 3.95

-49.85%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$508 OMR 196

-59.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$10.5K OMR 4,030

-62.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$55.9 OMR 21.53

-22.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$43.75 OMR 16.84

-5.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$88.6 OMR 34.12

-16.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$86.4 OMR 33.26

3.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$4,358 OMR 1,678

-83.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.25

118.10%

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 Ar-rustaq: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Ar-rustaq

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Ar-rustaq

$290 30.5% 13.9% $36

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Ar-rustaq

$223 23.4% 10.4% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Ar-rustaq

$279 29.3% 104% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Ar-rustaq

$124 13% 10.6% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Ar-rustaq

$21 * 2.2% 69.5% $47

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Ar-rustaq

$16 * 1.7% 68.1% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

Salaries in Ar-rustaq are about 5.9 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $39 in Ar-rustaq. Groceries tell a different story – $255 in Playa del Carmen vs $290 in Ar-rustaq – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇴🇲 Ar-rustaq

🕒 Local time

13:49 1:49 PM

22:49 10:49 PM

9 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

120,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.429 OMR (1 OMR = 2.33 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ar-rustaq 13,790 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ar-rustaq

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 Ar-rustaq: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 26%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,430 in Ar-rustaq. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $953 in Ar-rustaq. That’s a gap of about 26%.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $508 in Ar-rustaq. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $953 in Ar-rustaq to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.