Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Grimstad

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,179 in Grimstad, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Grimstad
Learn more

Grimstad Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Grimstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,179

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,179 in Grimstad.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Grimstad $2,179

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,734 in Grimstad.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Grimstad $3,734

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $5,290 in Grimstad.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Grimstad $5,290

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 45% less than in Grimstad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Grimstad is 60% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$21.29 NOK 198

-48.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$79.4 NOK 737

-45.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$15.38 NOK 143

-23.41%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$4.87 NOK 45.25

-21.77%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$4.20 NOK 38.99

-69.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$3.41 NOK 31.65

-77.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$11.76 NOK 109

-73.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$10.54 NOK 97.9

-53.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$2.65 NOK 24.59

-46.79%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$3.74 NOK 34.70

-40.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$3.24 NOK 30.07

-56.17%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.60 NOK 33.41

-30.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$12.94 NOK 120

-43.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$14.43 NOK 134

-46.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$24.57 NOK 228

-48.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.17 NOK 20.19

28.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$2.47 NOK 22.93

-44.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$3.57 NOK 33.20

-28.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$4.38 NOK 40.72

-51.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$2.73 NOK 25.37

-28.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$2.92 NOK 27.12

-35.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$3.25 NOK 30.18

-64.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$1.86 NOK 17.25

-36.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$19.23 NOK 179

-77.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$16.29 NOK 151

-38.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$3.52 NOK 32.71

-55.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$4.28 NOK 39.77

-37.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$5.27 NOK 48.95

-89.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$92.6 NOK 860

-71.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$12.16 NOK 113

-59.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$1.84 NOK 17.09

80.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$72.4 NOK 673

-92.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$2.36 NOK 21.89

-38.98%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$50.2K NOK 466.2K

-58.82%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$45.0K NOK 418.5K

-47.90%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$314 NOK 2,913

-72.96%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$34.50 NOK 321

-32.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$55.8 NOK 518

-48.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$43.72 NOK 406

30.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$16.41 NOK 152

-68.68%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$242 NOK 2,251

-14.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$15.9K NOK 148.1K

-75.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$94.8 NOK 881

-54.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$53.1 NOK 494

-21.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$106 NOK 985

-30.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$163 NOK 1,510

-45.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$902 NOK 8,382

8.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$545 NOK 5,062

-30.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,988 NOK 18.5K

-14.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$1,825 NOK 17.0K

-41.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$4,724 NOK 43.9K

-16.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$3,502 NOK 32.5K

75.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$4,577 NOK 42.5K

-83.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.9

133.67%

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 Grimstad: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Grimstad

$545 25% 43.1% $164

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Grimstad

$446 20.5% 75% $191

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Grimstad

$385 17.7% 90.4% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Grimstad

$404 18.5% 195% $267

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Grimstad

$187 8.6% 67.8% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Grimstad

$77 3.5% 13.7% $9.2

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Grimstad

$135 6.2% 168% $85

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $902 in Grimstad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Grimstad pays about 6.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $79 in Grimstad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $446 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇴 Grimstad

🕒 Local time

17:42 5:42 PM

23:42 11:42 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

25,093

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.29 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.34 NOK (100 NOK = 9.67 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Grimstad 8,390 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Grimstad

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 Grimstad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is about 45% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 84% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $902 in Grimstad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $2,179 in Grimstad – Playa del Carmen is about 45% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 71% less than in Grimstad. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,179 in Grimstad, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Grimstad. 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, Grimstad on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.