Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Gush Etzion

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,801 in Gush Etzion, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Gush Etzion, Israel
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Gush Etzion
🇮🇱 Israel
$2,801
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Gush Etzion

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,801 in Gush Etzion.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Gush Etzion $2,801

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,246 in Gush Etzion.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Gush Etzion $4,246

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $5,691 in Gush Etzion.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Gush Etzion $5,691

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 57% less than in Gush Etzion, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 12% below, Gush Etzion is 106% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$204
$24.88 ₪77.5
-56.11%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$808
$92.1 ₪287
-52.89%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$220
$17.85 ₪55.6
-34.01%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$71.0
$5.30 ₪16.52
-28.11%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$23.90
$3.26 ₪10.17
-60.74%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.59
$2.69 ₪8.37
-71.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$59.0
$9.72 ₪30.28
-67.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$92.0
$8.45 ₪26.31
-41.66%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.22
$2.31 ₪7.18
-38.96%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.33
$3.51 ₪10.92
-36.75%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.42
$3.05 ₪9.51
-53.44%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$47.03
$5.24 ₪16.32
-51.91%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$135
$17.97 ₪56.0
-59.60%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$143
$14.14 ₪44.05
-45.54%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$237
$27.27 ₪84.9
-53.47%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.9
$4.62 ₪14.39
-39.83%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.50
$3.26 ₪10.15
-57.98%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.55
$2.62 ₪8.15
-2.67%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.58
$2.54 ₪7.92
-16.54%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.13
$1.67 ₪5.21
16.17%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$35.16
$1.66 ₪5.16
13.86%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.37
$2.49 ₪7.76
-53.82%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$21.98
$1.77 ₪5.52
-33.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$80.1
$14.10 ₪43.91
-69.50%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$185
$11.85 ₪36.91
-16.03%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.52
$3.38 ₪10.54
-53.25%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$49.79
$3.78 ₪11.77
-29.37%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.31
$2.39 ₪7.45
-76.99%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$496
$105 ₪326
-74.60%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$92.6
$4.03 ₪12.56
23.33%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$62.1
$1.22 ₪3.81
172.95%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$99.8
$24.45 ₪76.2
-78.08%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$26.92
$2.79 ₪8.71
-48.39%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$385.2K
$63.4K ₪197.3K
-67.38%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$437.4K
$58.2K ₪181.2K
-59.66%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,581
$287 ₪895
-70.48%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$436
$11.74 ₪36.55
99.40%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$534
$41.79 ₪130
-31.42%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,063
$73.0 ₪227
-21.86%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$539
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$95.8
$15.42 ₪48.04
-66.67%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,851
$1,173 ₪3,652
-82.39%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$73.2K
$32.9K ₪102.6K
-88.08%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$808
$94.0 ₪293
-53.86%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$772
$73.9 ₪230
-43.89%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,383
$164 ₪511
-54.75%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,664
$151 ₪470
-40.90%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.3K
$1,441 ₪4,489
-32.03%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,099
$1,158 ₪3,606
-67.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$31.8K
$2,425 ₪7,552
-29.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$20.0K
$2,070 ₪6,447
-48.05%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$73.5K
$9,608 ₪29.9K
-58.96%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$114.8K
$7,473 ₪23.3K
-17.61%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Gush Etzion
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.7K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
5.02
128.09%

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 Gush Etzion: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Gush Etzion
$1.2K 204% $777
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Gush Etzion
$451 77.1% $197
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Gush Etzion
$406 100% $203
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Gush Etzion
$341 149% $204
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Gush Etzion
$217 94.5% $106
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Gush Etzion
$104 54.3% $37
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Gush Etzion
$125 147% $74

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $1,441 in Gush Etzion. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $92 in Gush Etzion for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $451 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇮🇱 Gush Etzion
🕒 Local time
14:11 2:11 PM
21:11 9:11 PM
7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
3,151
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ILS, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

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).

Israeli New Shekel exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.11 ILS (1 ILS = 0.321 USD). 1 EUR = 3.47 ILS (1 ILS = 0.288 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Gush Etzion 11,550 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Gush Etzion

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 Gush Etzion: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Playa del Carmen or Gush Etzion?
Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 57% lower than in Gush Etzion. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Playa del Carmen and in Gush Etzion?
You’d need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $4,201 in Gush Etzion 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.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Playa del Carmen compared to Gush Etzion?
Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,441 in Gush Etzion. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do dining costs compare in Playa del Carmen and in Gush Etzion?
Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $92 in Gush Etzion. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
How much does it cost to live in Playa del Carmen compared to Gush Etzion?
All in, you’ll spend $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $2,801 in Gush Etzion – a 133% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Can you live on $1,500/month in Playa del Carmen or in Gush Etzion?
At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,801 in Gush Etzion, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Gush Etzion. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Playa del Carmen or Gush Etzion?
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.
Which city is more affordable for expats?
Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Gush Etzion. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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