Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Balbriggan

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,642 in Balbriggan, rent and utilities included – about $17,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
127

Cost of Living Index in Balbriggan
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Balbriggan Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Balbriggan

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,642

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,642 in Balbriggan.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Balbriggan $2,642

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,945 in Balbriggan.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Balbriggan $3,945

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $5,248 in Balbriggan.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Balbriggan $5,248

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 54% less than in Balbriggan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Balbriggan is 95% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$23.05 €20.56

-53.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$102 €90.7

-56.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$13.25 €11.82

-11.02%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$4.87 €4.35

-22.18%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$3.00 €2.67

-56.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$2.26 €2.02

-63.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$7.74 €6.91

-59.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$8.02 €7.16

-38.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$1.65 €1.48

-14.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$2.32 €2.07

-5.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$1.96 €1.75

-25.00%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$3.02 €2.69

-17.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$9.89 €8.82

-26.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$12.79 €11.41

-37.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$15.91 €14.19

-19.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$2.86 €2.55

1.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$2.19 €1.96

-36.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$2.72 €2.43

-8.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$5.27 €4.70

-61.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$1.92 €1.71

5.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.53 €1.36

24.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$1.37 €1.22

-16.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$2.03 €1.81

-38.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$21.33 €19.03

-79.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$13.39 €11.95

-26.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$2.83 €2.52

-43.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$2.50 €2.23

10.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$2.41 €2.15

-78.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

$134 €119

-79.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$5.02 €4.47

-5.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$1.49 €1.33

118.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$38.34 €34.20

-85.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$2.10 €1.87

-27.14%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$38.4K €34.2K

-44.72%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$37.9K €33.8K

-38.64%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$169 €150

-50.46%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$16.54 €14.76

40.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$44.38 €39.59

-37.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$53.9 €48.04

4.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$13.57 €12.10

-63.15%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$1,253 €1,118

-83.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$5,205 €4,643

0.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$107 €95.8

-59.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$28.48 €25.41

49.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$61.6 €55.0

18.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$131 €117

-32.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$1,588 €1,417

-37.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$1,319 €1,176

-71.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$2,562 €2,285

-34.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$2,162 €1,929

-50.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$3,396 €3,029

80.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$2,323 €2,072

-64.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

3.81

200.52%

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 Balbriggan: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Balbriggan

$1.3K 49.9% 245% $937

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Balbriggan

$350 13.3% 36% $93

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Balbriggan

$358 13.6% 79% $158

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Balbriggan

$229 8.7% 70.9% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Balbriggan

$148 5.6% 32.9% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Balbriggan

$81 3.1% 21.9% $15

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Balbriggan

$156 5.9% 209% $105

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $1,588 in Balbriggan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Balbriggan pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $102 in Balbriggan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $350 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇪 Balbriggan

🕒 Local time

03:16 3:16 AM

08:16 8:16 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

24,322

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Balbriggan 7,580 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Balbriggan

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 Balbriggan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $2,642 in Balbriggan, so Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 64% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,588 in Balbriggan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Balbriggan. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44 versus $102 in Balbriggan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,642 in Balbriggan, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Balbriggan. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen 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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Balbriggan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.