Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Hama

For one person, living is cheaper in Hama: $549 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 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
26

Cost of Living Index in Hama
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Hama Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Hama

🇸🇾 Syria

$549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $549 in Hama.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Hama $549

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

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Hama $859

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,170 in Hama.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Hama $1,170

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 119% more expensive than in Hama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Hama 59% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$7.51 SYP 912

42.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$30.27 SYP 3,678

44.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$2.72 SYP 331

333.46%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.16 SYP 141

226.72%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$2.27 SYP 276

-42.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.83 SYP 101

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.86 SYP 226

69.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$1.72 SYP 209

186.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.02 SYP 124

38.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.42 SYP 50.7

423.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.60 SYP 194

-8.13%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.53 SYP 186

63.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$4.02 SYP 488

81.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$5.81 SYP 706

36.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$14.00 SYP 1,701

-8.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.03 SYP 125

181.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.40 SYP 170

-1.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$1.09 SYP 132

128.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.02 SYP 124

99.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.74 SYP 89.6

172.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.76 SYP 92.9

150.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.43 SYP 52.7

165.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.67 SYP 81.5

85.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.75 SYP 334

55.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$5.06 SYP 615

93.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.14 SYP 138

39.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.76 SYP 335

-0.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.21 SYP 25.66

142.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$1.02 SYP 124

366.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.49 SYP 181

118.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$7.81 SYP 949

-30.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$3.70 SYP 450

-58.65%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$15.1K SYP 1.8M

40.43%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$18.8K SYP 2.3M

23.88%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$138 SYP 16.7K

-39.31%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$9.18 SYP 1,116

152.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$22.91 SYP 2,784

20.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$5.45 SYP 662

-8.26%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$67.6 SYP 8,215

206.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$1,761 SYP 213.9K

197.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$28.71 SYP 3,489

51.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$39.53 SYP 4,803

7.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$61.0 SYP 7,405

19.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$57.9 SYP 7,038

52.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

14.25

-19.65%

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 Hama: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Hama

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Hama

$168 30.6% 34.8% $90

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Hama

$107 19.5% 46.4% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Hama

$170 30.9% 26.3% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Hama

$84 15.3% 24.3% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Hama

$11 * 2% 83.6% $56

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Hama

$9.3 * 1.7% 81.5% $41

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $30 in Hama for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $168 per month, with Hama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇾 Hama

🕒 Local time

04:35 4:35 AM

12:35 12:35 PM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

312,994

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Syrian Pound SYP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD

1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SYP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 137 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.32 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Hama 11,440 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Hama

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 Hama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $549 in Hama, so Hama is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,804 in Playa del Carmen and $824 in Hama 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.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $549 in Hama – Hama is about 54% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $549 in Hama versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Hama but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Hama 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.