Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cary, NC

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,842 in Cary, NC, rent and utilities included – about $19,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Cary, NC
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Cary, NC Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Cary, NC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,842

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Cary, NC

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,842 in Cary, NC.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Cary, NC $2,842

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,113 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,173 in Cary, NC.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Cary, NC $4,173

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,016 in Playa del Carmen versus $5,505 in Cary, NC.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Cary, NC $5,505

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 57% less than in Cary, NC, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 10% below, Cary, NC is 111% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$19.35 $19.35

-44.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$99.3 $99.3

-56.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$10.42 $10.42

13.15%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$5.06 $5.06

-23.52%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$2.03 $2.03

-32.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$1.85 $1.85

-54.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$4.51 $4.51

-31.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$6.39 $6.39

-20.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$1.04 $1.04

38.46%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$5.51 $5.51

-59.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$6.18 $6.18

-76.21%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$4.02 $4.02

-37.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$17.74 $17.74

-58.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$16.62 $16.62

-52.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$17.96 $17.96

-28.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$6.25 $6.25

-53.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$1.93 $1.93

-25.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$3.75 $3.75

-32.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$6.90 $6.90

-70.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$3.25 $3.25

-38.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$4.17 $4.17

-51.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.97 $2.97

-59.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$2.38 $2.38

-47.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$10.06 $10.06

-56.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$9.71 $9.71

-1.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$2.33 $2.33

-31.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$4.04 $4.04

-30.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$2.53 $2.53

-77.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$78.7 $78.7

-64.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$0.93 $0.93

58.06%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$28.7K $28.7K

-16.59%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$179 $179

-52.92%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$47.18 $47.18

-49.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$67.6 $67.6

-57.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$77.8 $77.8

-19.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$21.88 $21.88

33.18%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$15.26 $15.26

-67.63%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$1,455 $1,455

-86.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$65.9 $65.9

-33.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$32.18 $32.18

34.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$119 $119

-36.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$137 $137

-35.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$1,904 $1,904

-47.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$1,407 $1,407

-73.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$2,710 $2,710

-36.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$2,162 $2,162

-48.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$2,859 $2,859

37.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$2,643 $2,643

133.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$6,032 $6,032

-87.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.42

78.35%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cary, NC: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Cary, NC

$1.4K 49.5% 276% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Cary, NC

$486 17.1% 88.2% $228

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Cary, NC

$298 10.5% 47.2% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Cary, NC

$294 10.3% 114% $156

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Cary, NC

$160 5.6% 41.2% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Cary, NC

$108 3.8% 48.7% $35

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Cary, NC

$89 * 3.1% 68.9% $36

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 $1,008 in Playa del Carmen and $1,904 in Cary, NC. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cary, NC pays 700% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $43.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $99.0 in Cary, NC for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $486 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 Cary, NC

🕒 Local time

00:24 12:24 AM

01:24 1:24 AM

1 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

176,987

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 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 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Cary, NC 1,870 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Cary, NC

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 Cary, NC: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 135% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 700% lower in Cary, NC. 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: $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,904 in Cary, NC. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,455 in Cary, NC. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 88% higher in Cary, NC. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,842 in Cary, NC, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Cary, NC. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cary, NC, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 135% less than in Cary, NC. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.