Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Artem

For one person, living is cheaper in Artem: $1,095 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. The total is higher in Playa del Carmen despite lower rent and utilities.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Artem
Learn more

Artem Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Artem

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,095

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,215 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,095 in Artem.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Artem $1,095

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,144 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,729 in Artem.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Artem $1,729

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,072 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,362 in Artem.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Artem $2,362

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 11% more expensive than in Artem, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Artem 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$11.95 ₽1,017

-8.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$35.43 ₽3,015

26.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$6.30 ₽536

89.21%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$3.02 ₽257

25.83%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$1.04 ₽88.6

25.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$0.69 ₽58.5

24.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

$1.45 ₽123

121.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

$2.30 ₽196

117.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.68 ₽143

-13.10%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$0.66 ₽56.0

253.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.61 ₽137

-10.56%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$2.34 ₽199

5.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$13.16 ₽1,120

-41.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$6.23 ₽530

26.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$11.07 ₽942

15.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$2.90 ₽247

0.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$2.08 ₽177

-31.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$2.69 ₽229

-4.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$4.12 ₽351

-48.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$0.98 ₽83.3

98.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$1.03 ₽87.7

88.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$1.29 ₽110

-10.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$1.05 ₽89.3

16.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$2.91 ₽248

50.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

$7.61 ₽648

29.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

$1.16 ₽98.6

32.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

$2.30 ₽196

18.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$0.56 ₽47.30

-7.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$2.40 ₽204

104.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$0.34 ₽29.07

935.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$5.89 ₽501

-3.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$0.86 ₽72.8

79.07%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$44.8K ₽3.8M

-52.64%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$35.2K ₽3.0M

-30.44%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$153 ₽13.0K

-45.37%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$8.22 ₽699

192.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$9.21 ₽784

218.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$37.85 ₽3,221

71.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$20.31 ₽1,728

45.05%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$5.34 ₽454

-4.68%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$348 ₽29.6K

-40.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

$6,051 ₽514.9K

-33.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$78.1 ₽6,643

-42.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$51.6 ₽4,389

-18.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$97.2 ₽8,270

-22.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$125 ₽10.6K

-26.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$387 ₽32.9K

155.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$312 ₽26.5K

23.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$983 ₽83.7K

74.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$629 ₽53.5K

76.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$2,160 ₽183.8K

85.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$1,297 ₽110.3K

381.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

23.6

-51.48%

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 Artem: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Artem

$312 28% 19.1% $73

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Artem

$250 22.4% 4.1% $11

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Artem

$170 15.2% 16.9% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Artem

$170 15.3% 24.5% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Artem

$158 14.2% 38.7% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Artem

$49 4.4% 35.3% $27

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Artem

$6.3 * 0.6% 87.8% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $986 in Playa del Carmen and $387 in Artem. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $45.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $35.00 in Artem for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $250 per month, with Artem cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇷🇺 Artem

🕒 Local time

09:05 9:05 AM

00:05 12:05 AM

15 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

104,926

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.09 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.35 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Artem 11,850 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Artem

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 Artem: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Artem wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Artem the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,823 in Playa del Carmen and $1,643 in Artem to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $387 in Artem. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $208 in Playa del Carmen versus $348 in Artem. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Artem – a meal for two runs $35.00 versus $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,095 in Artem versus $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Artem but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Artem the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Artem delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,095 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Artem hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Artem gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.