Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Douglas

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,644 in Douglas, rent and utilities included – about $17,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Douglas
Learn more

Douglas Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Douglas

🇮🇲 Isle of Man

$2,644

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,644 in Douglas.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Douglas $2,644

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,113 in Douglas.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Douglas $4,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $5,581 in Douglas.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Douglas $5,581

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

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Douglas is 94% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$28.36 IMP 21.18

-61.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$119 IMP 89.1

-63.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$11.84 IMP 8.85

-0.51%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$5.15 IMP 3.84

-26.02%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$2.76 IMP 2.06

-53.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$2.18 IMP 1.63

-64.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$6.49 IMP 4.85

-51.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$6.08 IMP 4.55

-18.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$2.44 IMP 1.82

-42.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$2.64 IMP 1.97

-15.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$2.10 IMP 1.57

-32.38%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$5.27 IMP 3.93

-52.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$7.98 IMP 5.96

-9.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$8.48 IMP 6.33

-9.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$12.57 IMP 9.39

0.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$3.04 IMP 2.27

-8.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$1.80 IMP 1.34

-23.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$3.79 IMP 2.83

-32.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$3.60 IMP 2.69

-41.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$3.02 IMP 2.26

-35.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$3.03 IMP 2.26

-37.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$2.07 IMP 1.55

-44.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$2.64 IMP 1.97

-55.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$22.86 IMP 17.08

-81.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$11.99 IMP 8.95

-17.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$4.39 IMP 3.28

-64.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$4.25 IMP 3.17

-37.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$2.96 IMP 2.21

-81.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$96.7 IMP 72.2

-72.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$5.08 IMP 3.79

-2.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$1.42 IMP 1.06

134.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$80.0 IMP 59.8

-93.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$1.99 IMP 1.48

-27.64%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$43.8K IMP 32.7K

-52.84%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$43.8K IMP 32.7K

-46.42%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$339 IMP 253

-74.96%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$63.1 IMP 47.16

-62.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$74.4 IMP 55.6

-61.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$66.5 IMP 49.68

-14.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$20.26 IMP 15.13

42.69%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$16.01 IMP 11.96

-67.90%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$1,784 IMP 1,333

-88.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$52.0K IMP 38.8K

-92.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$99.3 IMP 74.2

-56.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$45.02 IMP 33.63

-7.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$111 IMP 83.2

-33.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$70.7 IMP 52.8

26.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$1,245 IMP 930

-21.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$1,061 IMP 792

-64.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$2,289 IMP 1,710

-25.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$2,056 IMP 1,536

-47.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$5,053 IMP 3,774

-21.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$3,927 IMP 2,933

56.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$2,971 IMP 2,220

-75.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.76

140.55%

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 Douglas: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Douglas

$1.1K 40.1% 179% $680

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Douglas

$353 13.4% 38.5% $98

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Douglas

$389 14.7% 92% $186

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Douglas

$476 18% 248% $339

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Douglas

$147 5.6% 31.5% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Douglas

$99 3.7% 46.3% $31

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Douglas

$121 4.6% 139% $70

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $1,245 in Douglas. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Douglas pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $119 in Douglas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $353 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇲 Douglas

🕒 Local time

06:10 6:10 AM

11:10 11:10 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

26,218 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Isle of Man Pound IMP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 IMP = 1.34 USD

1 IMP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IMP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Isle of Man Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 IMP (1 IMP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 IMP (1 IMP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Douglas 7,690 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Douglas

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 Douglas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 75% 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,245 in Douglas. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $2,644 in Douglas – Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 72% less than in Douglas. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,644 in Douglas, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Douglas. 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 Douglas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.