Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Dudley

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,131 in Dudley, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Dudley
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,131
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,131 in Dudley.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Dudley $2,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,381 in Dudley.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,102
  • Dudley $2,381

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,630 in Dudley.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,000
  • Dudley $2,630

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 43% less than in Dudley, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Dudley is 57% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.86 MX$201
$20.44 £15.33
-46.87%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.21 MX$817
$96.4 £72.3
-54.12%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.76 MX$217
$9.39 £7.04
25.24%
Cappuccino
$3.68 MX$68.0
$5.01 £3.76
-26.55%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.34 MX$24.79
$2.56 £1.92
-47.66%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 MX$15.24
$1.95 £1.47
-57.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.06 MX$56.6
$6.62 £4.97
-53.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.94 MX$91.2
$6.84 £5.13
-27.78%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$1.84 £1.38
-20.11%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$40.95
$1.43 £1.07
55.24%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$27.32
$2.32 £1.74
-36.21%
Eggs
$2.49 MX$45.99
$3.76 £2.82
-33.78%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.52 MX$139
$8.17 £6.13
-7.96%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.96 MX$147
$8.50 £6.38
-6.35%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.57 MX$232
$15.24 £11.44
-17.52%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.3
$2.60 £1.95
6.92%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$26.37
$1.69 £1.26
-15.38%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.62 MX$48.37
$2.42 £1.81
8.26%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.49
$3.72 £2.79
-42.47%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.38
$1.52 £1.14
32.89%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 MX$36.74
$1.56 £1.17
27.56%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.01
$1.09 £0.82
4.59%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 MX$22.18
$1.39 £1.04
-13.67%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 MX$78.7
$22.28 £16.71
-80.88%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.02 MX$185
$10.68 £8.01
-6.18%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.41
$3.26 £2.45
-52.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.66 MX$49.17
$3.29 £2.47
-19.15%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.73
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.51 MX$508
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.90 MX$90.6
$4.35 £3.26
12.64%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.43 MX$63.5
$1.66 £1.25
106.63%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.38 MX$99.4
$24.36 £18.27
-77.91%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$26.76
$2.02 £1.52
-28.22%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$391.0K
$37.9K £28.5K
-44.25%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.0K MX$425.3K
$40.9K £30.6K
-43.66%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$85.4 MX$1,577
$324 £243
-73.66%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.46 MX$434
$20.11 £15.08
16.66%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.43 MX$525
$39.35 £29.52
-27.75%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.2 MX$1,149
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.68 MX$530
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.10 MX$94.3
$15.51 £11.63
-67.12%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,715
$1,588 £1,192
-87.34%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,947 MX$72.9K
$20.2K £15.1K
-80.45%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.39 MX$820
$107 £80.3
-58.51%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.35 MX$764
$48.74 £36.57
-15.16%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.7 MX$1,344
$86.5 £64.9
-15.94%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.6 MX$1,656
$98.5 £73.9
-9.06%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$979 MX$18.1K
$1,288 £966
-23.96%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$373 MX$6,887
$940 £705
-60.34%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,681 MX$31.1K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,095 MX$20.2K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,949 MX$73.0K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,137 MX$113.4K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Dudley
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$738 MX$13.6K
$2,489 £1,868
-70.38%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
5
129.00%

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 Dudley: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$373
Dudley
$940 152% $567
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Dudley
$294 13.8% $36
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Dudley
$317 58.2% $116
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Dudley
$383 179% $246
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Dudley
$153 37.4% $42
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$72
Dudley
$31 * 57.2% $41
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Dudley
$13 * 75.5% $39

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 $979 in Playa del Carmen and $1,288 in Dudley. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dudley pays 238% 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: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $96.0 in Dudley for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $294 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇬🇧 Dudley
🕒 Local time
12:49 12:49 PM
18:49 6:49 PM
6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
195,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Dudley 7,870 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Dudley

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 Dudley: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Playa del Carmen and in Dudley?
Playa del Carmen and Dudley differ by about 77% in total monthly costs ($1,204 vs $2,131 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 238% lower in Dudley. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Playa del Carmen and in Dudley?
Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,288 in Dudley. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Playa del Carmen and Dudley?
Childcare runs $201 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,588 in Dudley. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $96.0 in Dudley. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,131 in Dudley, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Dudley. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Playa del Carmen and Dudley?
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.
Where should expats move: Playa del Carmen or Dudley?
Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 77% less than in Dudley. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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