Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and El Bayadh

For one person, living is cheaper in El Bayadh: $521 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in El Bayadh
Learn more

El Bayadh Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

El Bayadh

🇩🇿 Algeria

$521

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in El Bayadh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $521 in El Bayadh.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
El Bayadh $521

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $851 in El Bayadh.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
El Bayadh $851

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,181 in El Bayadh.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
El Bayadh $1,181

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 131% more expensive than in El Bayadh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, El Bayadh 61% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$198

$3.23 DZD 436

230.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$813

$17.39 DZD 2,351

151.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$3.88 DZD 525

203.87%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.3

$0.65 DZD 87.7

483.08%

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

$1.30 MX$24.09

$0.62 DZD 84.5

109.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.48

$0.24 DZD 32.33

245.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.4

$1.55 DZD 210

103.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.6

$2.11 DZD 285

133.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.16

$0.90 DZD 122

56.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.77

$0.14 DZD 19.38

1471.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.35

$1.15 DZD 156

27.83%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.37

$1.18 DZD 159

111.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$135

$8.00 DZD 1,081

-8.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.89 DZD 525

104.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$14.26 DZD 1,928

-9.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.8

$2.10 DZD 284

38.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.69

$2.72 DZD 368

-49.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.26

$1.07 DZD 145

132.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.70

$0.90 DZD 121

125.56%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.61

$0.59 DZD 79.6

242.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.35

$0.45 DZD 60.8

322.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.25

$0.71 DZD 96.4

60.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.01

$0.25 DZD 33.72

396.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.3

$2.60 DZD 351

64.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$182

$6.57 DZD 889

49.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.45

$1.28 DZD 172

24.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.0

$1.89 DZD 255

45.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.56

$0.24 DZD 32.47

112.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$509

$6.68 DZD 903

310.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.4

$0.53 DZD 72.0

798.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.3

$0.40 DZD 54.3

712.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$5.25 DZD 710

2.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.38

$0.36 DZD 48.15

325.00%

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

$21.2K MX$393.9K

$31.5K DZD 4.3M

-32.76%

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

$23.3K MX$432.0K

$34.5K DZD 4.7M

-32.52%

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

$83.5 MX$1,550

$36.26 DZD 4,901

130.25%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$9.03 DZD 1,221

156.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$513

$12.06 DZD 1,630

128.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,048

$22.44 DZD 3,033

151.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$524

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$92.9

$4.39 DZD 594

13.90%

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

$207 MX$3,846

$336 DZD 45.4K

-38.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.1K

$4,750 DZD 642.0K

10.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$807

$32.09 DZD 4,338

35.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$790

$34.00 DZD 4,596

25.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,351

$69.8 DZD 9,430

4.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,641

$81.1 DZD 11.0K

8.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$142 DZD 19.1K

602.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,102

$90.8 DZD 12.3K

320.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.1K

$269 DZD 36.4K

521.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$198 DZD 26.8K

445.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.6K

$979 DZD 132.3K

299.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.0K

$1,026 DZD 138.7K

498.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.3

116.04%

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 El Bayadh: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

El Bayadh

$91 17.4% 76.2% $292

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

El Bayadh

$173 33.3% 32.6% $84

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

El Bayadh

$61 11.6% 69.7% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

El Bayadh

$57 11% 57.3% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

El Bayadh

$98 18.7% 12.2% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

El Bayadh

$31 6% 53% $35

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

El Bayadh

$10 2% 79.8% $40

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $142 in El Bayadh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $17 in El Bayadh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $173 per month, with El Bayadh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇩🇿 El Bayadh

🕒 Local time

07:38 7:38 AM

13:38 1:38 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

91,632

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DZD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD). 1 EUR = 151 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen El Bayadh 8,590 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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Playa del Carmen
El Bayadh

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 El Bayadh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

El Bayadh wins on cost – living expenses run 57% lower than in Playa del Carmen. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making El Bayadh the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,804 in Playa del Carmen and $782 in El Bayadh to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $142 in El Bayadh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in El Bayadh – a meal for two runs $17 versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $521 in El Bayadh – El Bayadh is about 57% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $521 in El Bayadh versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $800 budget is realistic in El Bayadh but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes El Bayadh 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 El Bayadh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.