Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Guelmim

For one person, living is cheaper in Guelmim: $562 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Guelmim, Morocco
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Guelmim
🇲🇦 Morocco
$562
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $562 in Guelmim, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Guelmim $562

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $911 in Guelmim, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Guelmim $911

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,261 in Guelmim, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Guelmim $1,261

Playa del Carmen costs about 114% more than Guelmim, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Guelmim are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Guelmim 59% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$205
$5.05 MAD 49.68
116.24%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$815
$24.74 MAD 243
75.30%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$221
$7.32 MAD 72.0
60.93%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$71.6
$2.10 MAD 20.63
81.43%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$24.10
$0.80 MAD 7.85
60.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.71
$0.34 MAD 3.34
129.41%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$59.5
$4.95 MAD 48.65
-35.96%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$92.7
$4.38 MAD 43.01
12.56%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.43
$0.84 MAD 8.24
67.86%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.66
$0.40 MAD 3.98
455.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.64
$1.00 MAD 9.82
42.00%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$47.41
$1.61 MAD 15.87
56.52%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$137
$8.16 MAD 80.2
-11.03%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$145
$3.29 MAD 32.38
134.04%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$239
$8.55 MAD 84.1
48.42%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$52.3
$1.28 MAD 12.60
117.19%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.71
$1.11 MAD 10.92
23.42%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.94
$0.86 MAD 8.42
196.51%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.90
$0.58 MAD 5.71
265.52%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.43
$0.63 MAD 6.18
207.94%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$35.44
$0.58 MAD 5.74
225.86%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.55
$0.54 MAD 5.29
112.96%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$22.16
$0.54 MAD 5.35
118.52%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$80.7
$4.01 MAD 39.44
7.23%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$187
$11.11 MAD 109
-10.44%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.76
$1.20 MAD 11.82
31.67%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$50.2
$1.36 MAD 13.34
96.32%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.40
$0.74 MAD 7.26
-25.68%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$500
$20.72 MAD 204
28.47%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$93.4
$0.62 MAD 6.11
701.61%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$62.6
$0.59 MAD 5.76
464.41%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$101
$5.95 MAD 58.5
-9.92%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$27.14
$1.36 MAD 13.32
5.88%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$388.4K
$30.1K MAD 295.9K
-31.34%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$441.0K
$32.0K MAD 314.8K
-26.72%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,594
$23.35 MAD 230
263.13%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$440
$10.23 MAD 101
128.84%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$539
$20.19 MAD 198
41.95%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,072
$25.35 MAD 249
125.05%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$543
$20.58 MAD 202
40.48%
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$96.6
$5.23 MAD 51.4
-1.72%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,882
$69.8 MAD 686
195.89%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$73.8K
$1,853 MAD 18.2K
111.99%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$815
$18.13 MAD 178
139.11%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$779
$15.45 MAD 152
168.22%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,394
$58.3 MAD 573
27.23%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,677
$30.53 MAD 300
192.34%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.4K
$186 MAD 1,832
425.54%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,157
$113 MAD 1,110
237.22%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$32.1K
$326 MAD 3,207
423.46%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$20.2K
$219 MAD 2,153
390.79%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$74.1K
$1,175 MAD 11.5K
235.67%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$115.7K
$818 MAD 8,045
652.35%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Guelmim
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.8K
$311 MAD 3,057
136.15%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
6.5
76.15%

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 Guelmim: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Guelmim
$113 70.3% $268
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Guelmim
$152 40.5% $103
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Guelmim
$126 37.9% $77
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Guelmim
$54 60.7% $83
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Guelmim
$55 50.7% $57
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Guelmim
$36 46.8% $31
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Guelmim
$27 46% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $186 in Guelmim. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Playa del Carmen are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $25 in Guelmim. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $152 – making Guelmim the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇲🇦 Guelmim
🕒 Local time
20:07 8:07 PM
01:07 1:07 AM
5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
118,318
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 9.83 MAD (1 MAD = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.98 MAD (100 MAD = 9.11 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Guelmim 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Guelmim

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 Guelmim: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Guelmim cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 114%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $843 in Guelmim. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Guelmim, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $186 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.
What are total monthly expenses in Playa del Carmen and in Guelmim?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $562 in Guelmim. That makes Guelmim about 53% cheaper.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 22% less in Guelmim. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is $1,000 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Guelmim?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Guelmim, where all-in costs run around $562, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Guelmim it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Playa del Carmen or Guelmim more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Guelmim – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Guelmim. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?