Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Blythewood, SC

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,278 in Blythewood, SC, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Blythewood, SC
🇺🇸 United States
$2,278
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Blythewood, SC

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,278 in Blythewood, SC, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Blythewood, SC $2,278

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,219 in Blythewood, SC, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,102
  • Blythewood, SC $3,219

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,160 in Blythewood, SC, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,000
  • Blythewood, SC $4,160

Playa del Carmen is about 47% cheaper than Blythewood, SC, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Blythewood, SC is 68% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.86 MX$201
$11.91 $11.91
-8.82%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.21 MX$817
$39.58 $39.58
11.70%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.76 MX$217
$11.96 $11.96
-1.67%
Cappuccino
$3.68 MX$68.0
$2.98 $2.98
23.49%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.34 MX$24.79
$1.76 $1.76
-23.86%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 MX$15.24
$2.37 $2.37
-65.40%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.06 MX$56.6
$6.33 $6.33
-51.66%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.94 MX$91.2
$8.12 $8.12
-39.16%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$0.83 $0.83
77.11%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$40.95
$1.86 $1.86
19.35%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$27.32
$4.55 $4.55
-67.47%
Eggs
$2.49 MX$45.99
$5.46 $5.46
-54.40%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.52 MX$139
$22.98 $22.98
-67.28%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.96 MX$147
$14.31 $14.31
-44.37%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.57 MX$232
$20.22 $20.22
-37.83%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.3
$8.24 $8.24
-66.26%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$26.37
$1.70 $1.70
-15.88%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.62 MX$48.37
$4.99 $4.99
-47.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.49
$6.88 $6.88
-68.90%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.38
$5.19 $5.19
-61.08%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 MX$36.74
$3.66 $3.66
-45.63%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.01
$2.00 $2.00
-43.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 MX$22.18
$3.25 $3.25
-63.08%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 MX$78.7
$8.53 $8.53
-50.06%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.02 MX$185
$13.80 $13.80
-27.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.41
$2.83 $2.83
-45.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.66 MX$49.17
$3.05 $3.05
-12.79%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.73
$1.87 $1.87
-71.66%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.51 MX$508
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.90 MX$90.6
$3.04 $3.04
61.18%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.43 MX$63.5
$1.26 $1.26
172.22%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.38 MX$99.4
$31.64 $31.64
-83.00%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$26.76
$0.95 $0.95
52.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$391.0K
$26.4K $26.4K
-19.92%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.0K MX$425.3K
$25.4K $25.4K
-9.54%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$85.4 MX$1,577
$138 $138
-38.10%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.46 MX$434
$30.12 $30.12
-22.11%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.43 MX$525
$60.4 $60.4
-52.93%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.2 MX$1,149
$17.60 $17.60
253.35%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.68 MX$530
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.10 MX$94.3
$11.87 $11.87
-57.03%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,715
$1,261 $1,261
-84.06%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,947 MX$72.9K
$28.0K $28.0K
-85.90%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.39 MX$820
$45.28 $45.28
-1.97%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.35 MX$764
$20.02 $20.02
106.54%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.7 MX$1,344
$89.2 $89.2
-18.48%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.6 MX$1,656
$99.5 $99.5
-9.91%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$979 MX$18.1K
$1,436 $1,436
-31.78%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$373 MX$6,887
$1,154 $1,154
-67.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,681 MX$31.1K
$2,086 $2,086
-19.41%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,095 MX$20.2K
$1,738 $1,738
-36.97%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,949 MX$73.0K
$2,866 $2,866
37.77%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,137 MX$113.4K
$2,205 $2,205
178.28%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Blythewood, SC
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$738 MX$13.6K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
6.51
75.88%

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 Blythewood, SC: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$373
Blythewood, SC
$1.2K 210% $782
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Blythewood, SC
$492 90.3% $233
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Blythewood, SC
$231 15.5% $31
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Blythewood, SC
$228 66.4% $91
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Blythewood, SC
$114 2.4% $2.7
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$72
Blythewood, SC
$41 42.9% $31
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Blythewood, SC
$17 * 67.5% $35

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 $1,436 in Blythewood, SC. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $40.00 in Blythewood, SC. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Playa del Carmen vs $492 in Blythewood, SC – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇺🇸 Blythewood, SC
🕒 Local time
03:30 3:30 AM
04:30 4:30 AM
1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
5,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Blythewood, SC 1,630 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Blythewood, SC

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 Blythewood, SC: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Playa del Carmen or Blythewood, SC?
Blythewood, SC costs about 89% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Playa del Carmen and in Blythewood, SC?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,417 in Blythewood, SC. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Playa del Carmen or Blythewood, SC?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
How do dining costs compare in Playa del Carmen and in Blythewood, SC?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen and $40.00 in Blythewood, SC. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Playa del Carmen or in Blythewood, SC?
Groceries cost about 90% more in Blythewood, SC, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Can you live on $1,500/month in Playa del Carmen or in Blythewood, SC?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Blythewood, SC at $2,278. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Blythewood, SC it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Playa del Carmen or Blythewood, SC?
For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $2,278 in Blythewood, SC. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.
Should I move to Playa del Carmen or to Blythewood, SC?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Blythewood, SC makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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