Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Birgunj

For one person, living is cheaper in Birgunj: $354 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
17

Cost of Living Index in Birgunj
Learn more

Birgunj Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Birgunj

🇳🇵 Nepal

$354

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $354 in Birgunj.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Birgunj $354

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $576 in Birgunj.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Birgunj $576

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $797 in Birgunj.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Birgunj $797

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 240% more expensive than in Birgunj, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Birgunj 74% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$1.29 NPR 197

746.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$805

$19.97 NPR 3,031

117.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$7.17 NPR 1,088

64.30%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$70.7

$1.53 NPR 232

149.02%

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

$1.28 MX$23.81

$0.56 NPR 84.4

128.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.54

$0.15 NPR 22.24

420.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$58.8

$2.25 NPR 341

40.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.7

$3.37 NPR 512

46.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.12

$0.63 NPR 95.9

123.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.17

$0.24 NPR 36.13

825.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.32

$0.60 NPR 91.7

136.67%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$46.85

$1.58 NPR 240

59.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$7.28 NPR 1,105

-0.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$2.30 NPR 350

234.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$6.15 NPR 934

106.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.7

$2.00 NPR 304

39.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.41

$0.95 NPR 144

44.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.37

$1.36 NPR 206

87.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.43

$0.56 NPR 84.3

278.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.00

$0.41 NPR 62.6

373.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.02

$0.51 NPR 77.4

270.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.29

$0.12 NPR 17.64

858.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.89

$0.22 NPR 33.92

436.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$79.8

$1.62 NPR 246

165.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$8.06 NPR 1,223

23.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.41

$2.22 NPR 337

-28.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.60

$3.07 NPR 466

-13.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.28

$0.13 NPR 19.79

323.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$494

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.3

$1.84 NPR 280

170.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$61.9

$1.21 NPR 183

175.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.5

$3.18 NPR 483

68.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.82

$1.09 NPR 166

32.11%

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

$20.7K MX$383.8K

$36.4K NPR 5.5M

-43.15%

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

$23.5K MX$435.8K

$36.2K NPR 5.5M

-35.18%

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

$84.8 MX$1,575

$31.67 NPR 4,808

167.73%

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

$23.41 MX$435

$3.32 NPR 504

605.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$532

$9.24 NPR 1,403

210.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,059

$13.32 NPR 2,022

328.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.4

$1.93 NPR 293

166.32%

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

$207 MX$3,836

$67.5 NPR 10.3K

205.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$72.9K

$5,584 NPR 847.7K

-29.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$805

$24.27 NPR 3,684

78.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$770

$27.21 NPR 4,130

52.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,378

$26.11 NPR 3,964

184.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,657

$16.21 NPR 2,460

450.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$33.93 NPR 5,150

2787.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,072

$39.29 NPR 5,965

869.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.7K

$123 NPR 18.7K

1286.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$77.4 NPR 11.8K

1288.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.2K

$654 NPR 99.3K

502.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.4K

$495 NPR 75.2K

1143.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

9.98

14.73%

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 Birgunj: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Birgunj

$39 11.1% 89.7% $342

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Birgunj

$132 37.2% 48.2% $123

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Birgunj

$71 20% 64.9% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Birgunj

$44 12.5% 67.7% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Birgunj

$42 11.9% 62.2% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Birgunj

$17 4.9% 74.5% $50

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Birgunj

$8.4 * 2.4% 83.3% $42

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 $980 in Playa del Carmen and $34 in Birgunj. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $20 in Birgunj for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $132 per month, with Birgunj cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇵 Birgunj

🕒 Local time

22:55 10:55 PM

09:40 9:40 AM

10 h 45 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

135,904

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Nepalese Rupee NPR रु

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1,000 NPR = 6.59 USD

1,000 NPR = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NPR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Nepalese Rupee exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 152 NPR (1,000 NPR = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 170 NPR (1,000 NPR = 5.88 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Birgunj 14,650 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Birgunj

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 Birgunj: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Birgunj wins on cost – living expenses run 71% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Birgunj the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $531 in Birgunj 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $34 in Birgunj. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $68 in Birgunj. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Birgunj – a meal for two runs $20 versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $354 in Birgunj versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $800 budget is realistic in Birgunj but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Birgunj 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.