Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Giza

For one person, living is cheaper in Giza: $446 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Giza
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Giza Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Giza

🇪🇬 Egypt

$446

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $446 in Giza.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Giza $446

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $705 in Giza.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Giza $705

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $965 in Giza.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Giza $965

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 170% more expensive than in Giza, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Giza 67% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$205

$3.82 E£213

185.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$815

$13.22 E£737

228.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$221

$4.34 E£242

171.43%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.6

$1.11 E£61.9

243.24%

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

$1.28 MX$24.10

$0.32 E£18.07

300.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.71

$0.13 E£7.49

500.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.5

$1.34 E£74.8

136.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

$2.60 E£145

89.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.43

$0.79 E£44.06

78.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.66

$0.35 E£19.25

534.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.64

$0.63 E£34.90

125.40%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.41

$1.32 E£73.8

90.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$137

$2.25 E£125

222.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$145

$3.48 E£194

121.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$239

$7.44 E£415

70.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$52.3

$1.38 E£76.7

101.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.71

$0.53 E£29.53

158.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.94

$0.40 E£22.56

537.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.90

$0.32 E£17.84

562.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.43

$0.40 E£22.45

385.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.44

$0.43 E£23.80

339.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.55

$0.25 E£13.91

360.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$22.16

$0.20 E£10.95

490.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.7

$1.81 E£101

137.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$187

$4.53 E£252

119.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.76

$0.96 E£53.3

64.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$50.2

$1.55 E£86.3

72.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.40

$0.31 E£17.29

77.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$500

$8.05 E£449

230.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$93.4

$0.26 E£14.34

1811.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.6

$0.37 E£20.72

800.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$101

$1.74 E£96.7

208.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$27.14

$0.40 E£22.07

260.00%

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

$20.7K MX$388.4K

$29.8K E£1.7M

-30.70%

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

$23.5K MX$441.0K

$23.1K E£1.3M

1.37%

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

$84.8 MX$1,594

$14.40 E£803

488.82%

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

$23.41 MX$440

$6.70 E£373

249.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$539

$23.12 E£1,288

23.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,072

$17.14 E£955

232.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$543

$6.30 E£351

358.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$96.6

$3.46 E£193

48.55%

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

$207 MX$3,882

$79.4 E£4,426

160.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.8K

$2,188 E£121.9K

79.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$815

$9.65 E£538

349.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$779

$44.28 E£2,468

-6.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,394

$147 E£8,172

-49.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,677

$51.3 E£2,856

74.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.4K

$144 E£8,049

578.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,157

$80.9 E£4,507

370.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$32.1K

$310 E£17.3K

451.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.2K

$141 E£7,868

661.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$74.1K

$541 E£30.2K

628.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$115.7K

$267 E£14.9K

2209.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.8K

$136 E£7,594

439.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

22.5

-49.11%

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 Giza: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Giza

$81 18.1% 78.8% $300

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Giza

$101 22.7% 60.3% $154

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Giza

$71 15.9% 65.1% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Giza

$44 9.9% 67.7% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Giza

$113 25.4% 1.4% $1.6

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Giza

$24 5.4% 64.3% $43

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Giza

$11 2.6% 77.4% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $144 in Giza. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays about 5.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $13 in Giza for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $101 per month, with Giza cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇪🇬 Giza

🕒 Local time

02:32 2:32 AM

09:32 9:32 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

2,681,863

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, 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).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 55.73 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.19 EGP (100 EGP = 1.61 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Giza 11,340 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Giza

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 Giza: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Giza is about 63% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Playa del Carmen is about 5.4 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: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $144 in Giza. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Giza runs roughly 70% less than in Playa del Carmen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $79 in Giza. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $446 in Giza versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Giza but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Giza 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 Giza gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.