Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Badulla

For one person, living is cheaper in Badulla: $547 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
26

Cost of Living Index in Badulla
Learn more

Badulla Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Badulla

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$547

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $547 in Badulla.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Badulla $547

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $883 in Badulla.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Badulla $883

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,219 in Badulla.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Badulla $1,219

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 120% more expensive than in Badulla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Badulla 60% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.84 LKR 1,276

177.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$24.93 LKR 8,291

75.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.54 LKR 2,507

56.37%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.47 LKR 823

53.44%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.68 LKR 227

91.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.27 LKR 90.6

207.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$2.26 LKR 752

39.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.02 LKR 1,006

63.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.62 LKR 539

-12.96%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.57 LKR 190

285.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.61 LKR 203

140.98%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.65 LKR 548

51.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$15.15 LKR 5,038

-51.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.70 LKR 1,230

114.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.60 LKR 2,528

69.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$6.61 LKR 2,198

-56.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.89 LKR 296

55.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$4.27 LKR 1,421

-41.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.26 LKR 420

61.11%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.09 LKR 362

85.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.79 LKR 261

140.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.22 LKR 405

-6.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.46 LKR 152

169.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$10.15 LKR 3,375

-57.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$13.31 LKR 4,428

-26.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.91 LKR 634

-16.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.85 LKR 947

-3.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.41 LKR 136

1060.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.33 LKR 111

884.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$0.87 LKR 288

519.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.37 LKR 454

11.68%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$42.8K LKR 14.2M

-50.45%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$46.1K LKR 15.3M

-49.54%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$56.2 LKR 18.7K

48.45%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$4.32 LKR 1,437

436.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$20.66 LKR 6,873

33.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.39 LKR 1,461

13.90%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$40.51 LKR 13.5K

411.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$17.5K LKR 5.8M

-70.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$18.24 LKR 6,068

138.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$17.37 LKR 5,779

144.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$77.6 LKR 25.8K

-6.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$41.18 LKR 13.7K

114.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$76.3 LKR 25.4K

1203.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$44.38 LKR 14.8K

761.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$89.8 LKR 29.9K

1102.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$4,570 LKR 1.5M

-14.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$747 LKR 248.4K

721.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$222 LKR 73.7K

275.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

12.5

-8.40%

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 Badulla: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Badulla

$44 8.1% 88.4% $338

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Badulla

$237 43.3% 8.1% $21

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Badulla

$104 19.1% 48% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Badulla

$81 14.9% 39.5% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Badulla

$69 12.7% 37.5% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Badulla

$8.8 * 1.6% 86.8% $58

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Badulla

$2.1 * 0.4% 95.9% $48

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 $995 in Playa del Carmen and $76 in Badulla. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 3.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $25 in Badulla for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $237 per month, with Badulla cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇰 Badulla

🕒 Local time

01:20 1:20 AM

11:50 11:50 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

110,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 374 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.67 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Badulla 16,680 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Badulla

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 Badulla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Badulla is about 55% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, leisure, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Playa del Carmen is about 3.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $76 in Badulla. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $41 in Badulla. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Badulla – a meal for two runs $25 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $547 in Badulla versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Badulla but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Badulla the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Badulla wins on affordability, Playa del Carmen on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.