Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and El Oued

For one person, living is cheaper in El Oued: $524 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 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 Oued
Learn more

El Oued Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

El Oued

🇩🇿 Algeria

$524

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $524 in El Oued.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
El Oued $524

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $859 in El Oued.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
El Oued $859

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,194 in El Oued.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
El Oued $1,194

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 130% more expensive than in El Oued, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$2.85 DZD 386

274.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$19.88 DZD 2,691

120.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$4.23 DZD 572

178.72%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.26 DZD 170

200.79%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.13 DZD 153

15.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.51 DZD 69.6

62.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.53 DZD 206

105.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.23 DZD 302

121.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.88 DZD 120

60.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.16 DZD 21.62

1275.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.10 DZD 149

33.64%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.23 DZD 167

103.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$7.81 DZD 1,057

-6.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.91 DZD 529

103.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$14.23 DZD 1,927

-9.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$2.02 DZD 274

43.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$2.82 DZD 382

-51.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$1.06 DZD 143

134.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$0.91 DZD 123

123.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.63 DZD 84.6

220.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.45 DZD 61.0

322.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.76 DZD 103

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.25 DZD 34.17

396.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.70 DZD 366

58.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$6.21 DZD 840

57.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.10 DZD 149

44.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.90 DZD 257

44.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.23 DZD 30.82

121.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$7.02 DZD 950

290.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.57 DZD 77.7

735.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.41 DZD 55.1

692.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$5.31 DZD 719

1.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.32 DZD 43.95

378.13%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$31.7K DZD 4.3M

-33.13%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$34.7K DZD 4.7M

-32.96%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$36.65 DZD 4,961

127.80%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$9.37 DZD 1,269

147.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$11.74 DZD 1,589

135.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$22.11 DZD 2,992

155.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.48 DZD 606

11.61%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$336 DZD 45.4K

-38.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$10.3K DZD 1.4M

-49.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$32.04 DZD 4,337

35.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$34.41 DZD 4,658

23.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$65.8 DZD 8,906

10.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$73.4 DZD 9,939

20.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$142 DZD 19.3K

599.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$90.6 DZD 12.3K

322.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$272 DZD 36.8K

515.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$197 DZD 26.7K

448.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$970 DZD 131.3K

302.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$918 DZD 124.2K

568.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$259 DZD 35.1K

221.00%

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 Oued: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

El Oued

$91 17.3% 76.3% $292

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

El Oued

$172 32.8% 33.3% $86

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

El Oued

$69 13.2% 65.4% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

El Oued

$58 11% 57% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

El Oued

$93 17.7% 16.8% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

El Oued

$31 5.9% 53.3% $35

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

El Oued

$11 2% 79.1% $40

Cost Breakdown

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

Playa del Carmen pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $20 in El Oued for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $172 per month, with El Oued cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇩🇿 El Oued

🕒 Local time

15:42 3:42 PM

21:42 9:42 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

134,699

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 DZD = 7.39 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 = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.39 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 Oued 9,110 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
El Oued

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 Oued: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $524 in El Oued, so El Oued is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Playa del Carmen is about 3.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

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

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $336 in El Oued. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 50% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $524 in El Oued versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in El Oued but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes El Oued 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 Oued gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.