Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Barisal

For one person, living is cheaper in Barisal: $304 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Barisal
🇧🇩 Bangladesh
$304
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $304 in Barisal, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Barisal $304

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $492 in Barisal, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,102
  • Barisal $492

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $681 in Barisal, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,000
  • Barisal $681

Playa del Carmen costs about 296% more than Barisal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Barisal are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Barisal 78% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.86 MX$201
$1.44 ৳178
654.17%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.21 MX$817
$10.51 ৳1,298
320.65%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.76 MX$217
$4.34 ৳536
170.97%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$2.60 ৳322
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$4.61 ৳569
-
Cappuccino
$3.68 MX$68.0
$1.89 ৳234
94.71%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.34 MX$24.79
$0.29 ৳35.86
362.07%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 MX$15.24
$0.12 ৳14.94
583.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.06 MX$56.6
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.94 MX$91.2
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$0.69 ৳85.4
113.04%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$40.95
$0.63 ৳77.5
252.38%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$27.32
$0.55 ৳67.8
169.09%
Eggs
$2.49 MX$45.99
$1.13 ৳140
120.35%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.52 MX$139
$6.17 ৳762
21.88%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.96 MX$147
$2.27 ৳280
250.66%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.57 MX$232
$6.48 ৳800
93.98%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.3
$2.34 ৳289
18.80%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$26.37
$0.92 ৳113
55.43%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.62 MX$48.37
$1.93 ৳239
35.75%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.49
$0.56 ৳68.9
282.14%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.38
$0.29 ৳35.34
596.55%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 MX$36.74
$0.46 ৳57.3
332.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.01
$0.41 ৳51.0
178.05%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 MX$22.18
$0.29 ৳36.17
313.79%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$6.97 ৳862
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$3.74 ৳462
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$4.48 ৳554
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 MX$78.7
$3.30 ৳408
29.09%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.02 MX$185
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.41
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.66 MX$49.17
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.73
$0.43 ৳52.6
23.26%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.51 MX$508
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.90 MX$90.6
$1.37 ৳169
257.66%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.43 MX$63.5
$0.43 ৳53.0
697.67%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.38 MX$99.4
$2.80 ৳345
92.14%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$26.76
$1.06 ৳131
36.79%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$391.0K
$30.1K ৳3.7M
-29.81%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.0K MX$425.3K
$32.8K ৳4.0M
-29.75%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$85.4 MX$1,577
$20.35 ৳2,514
319.46%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.46 MX$434
$5.16 ৳638
354.65%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.43 MX$525
$10.38 ৳1,282
173.89%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.2 MX$1,149
$7.24 ৳894
758.98%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.68 MX$530
$11.99 ৳1,481
139.20%
Cinema Ticket
$5.10 MX$94.3
$4.86 ৳600
4.94%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,715
$13.34 ৳1,648
1407.27%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,947 MX$72.9K
$700 ৳86.5K
463.85%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.39 MX$820
$16.69 ৳2,063
165.97%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.35 MX$764
$18.57 ৳2,294
122.67%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.7 MX$1,344
$32.54 ৳4,021
123.54%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.6 MX$1,656
$24.09 ৳2,976
271.98%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$979 MX$18.1K
$73.1 ৳9,036
1239.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$373 MX$6,887
$51.8 ৳6,403
619.24%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,681 MX$31.1K
$133 ৳16.4K
1166.57%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,095 MX$20.2K
$86.5 ৳10.7K
1166.54%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,949 MX$73.0K
$688 ৳85.1K
473.59%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,137 MX$113.4K
$309 ৳38.2K
1886.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Barisal
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$738 MX$13.6K
$184 ৳22.7K
301.54%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
10.48
9.26%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barisal: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$373
Barisal
$52 86.1% $321
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Barisal
$104 59.8% $155
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Barisal
$49 75.6% $151
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Barisal
$36 73.8% $101
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Barisal
$41 63% $70
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$72
Barisal
$17 76.6% $55
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Barisal
$5.2 * 89.9% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $73.1 in Barisal. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 302% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $11.00 in Barisal. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $104 – making Barisal the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇧🇩 Barisal
🕒 Local time
11:12 11:12 AM
22:12 10:12 PM
11 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
339,308
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Barisal 15,190 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Barisal

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 Barisal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Barisal cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 296%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $456 in Barisal. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Barisal, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
What are total monthly expenses in Playa del Carmen and in Barisal?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $304 in Barisal. That's a gap of about 296%.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $201 per month in Playa del Carmen and $13.34 in Barisal. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Barisal?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Barisal, where all-in costs run around $304, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Barisal it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Playa del Carmen or Barisal more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Barisal – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Barisal. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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