Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Drangsnes

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,726 in Drangsnes, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. The total is higher in Drangsnes despite lower rent and utilities.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Drangsnes
Learn more

Drangsnes Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Drangsnes

🇮🇸 Iceland

$1,726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,726 in Drangsnes.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Drangsnes $1,726

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,935 in Drangsnes.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Drangsnes $2,935

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,144 in Drangsnes.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Drangsnes $4,144

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 30% less than in Drangsnes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Drangsnes is 28% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$31.74 ISK 3,856

-66.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$122 ISK 14.9K

-64.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$26.90 ISK 3,268

-56.17%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$6.91 ISK 840

-45.15%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$3.41 ISK 414

-61.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$3.15 ISK 383

-73.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$14.01 ISK 1,702

-77.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$12.12 ISK 1,473

-59.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$2.12 ISK 257

-33.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$4.23 ISK 514

-47.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$3.65 ISK 444

-59.73%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$6.96 ISK 845

-64.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$21.86 ISK 2,656

-66.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$24.27 ISK 2,948

-67.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$42.46 ISK 5,159

-69.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$3.28 ISK 398

-11.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$2.84 ISK 344

-51.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$3.17 ISK 385

-21.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$6.60 ISK 801

-69.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$3.94 ISK 479

-48.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$1.70 ISK 207

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$3.66 ISK 444

-68.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$1.74 ISK 212

-28.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$13.77 ISK 1,673

-68.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$23.74 ISK 2,885

-58.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$3.67 ISK 446

-56.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$3.49 ISK 424

-21.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$6.64 ISK 806

-28.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$2.79 ISK 339

16.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$80.7 ISK 9,799

-93.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$2.11 ISK 256

-27.49%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$69.7K ISK 8.5M

-69.57%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$55.5K ISK 6.7M

-58.05%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$95.5 ISK 11.6K

-12.56%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$33.11 ISK 4,023

-29.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$87.1 ISK 10.6K

-68.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$19.31 ISK 2,347

-74.11%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$1,168 ISK 142.0K

-82.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$26.3K ISK 3.2M

-80.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$152 ISK 18.5K

-71.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$65.6 ISK 7,971

-35.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$179 ISK 21.7K

-59.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$248 ISK 30.1K

-64.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

$6,094 ISK 740.4K

-86.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.81

29.97%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Drangsnes: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Drangsnes

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Drangsnes

$623 36.1% 142% $365

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Drangsnes

$538 31.2% 169% $338

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Drangsnes

$216 12.5% 60.7% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Drangsnes

$290 16.8% 161% $179

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Drangsnes

$39 * 2.2% 41.9% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Drangsnes

$21 * 1.2% 59.2% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

Drangsnes pays about 7.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $122 in Drangsnes for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $623 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇸 Drangsnes

🕒 Local time

23:16 11:16 PM

04:16 4:16 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

100

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.75 EUR

1,000 ISK = 8.23 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ISK, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.05 MXN (100 MXN = 4.75 EUR).

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 122 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 136 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.36 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Drangsnes 6,820 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Drangsnes

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 Drangsnes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 30% lower than in Drangsnes. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 86% 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.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,168 in Drangsnes. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44 versus $122 in Drangsnes. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,726 in Drangsnes, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Drangsnes. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Drangsnes on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.