Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Hikkaduwa

For one person, living is cheaper in Hikkaduwa: $509 a month against $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Hikkaduwa
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Hikkaduwa Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Hikkaduwa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$509

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,210 in Playa del Carmen versus $509 in Hikkaduwa.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Hikkaduwa $509

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,113 in Playa del Carmen versus $826 in Hikkaduwa.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Hikkaduwa $826

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,016 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,144 in Hikkaduwa.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Hikkaduwa $1,144

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 138% more expensive than in Hikkaduwa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 10% lower, Hikkaduwa 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$198

$4.45 LKR 1,475

141.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$794

$24.59 LKR 8,144

74.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$217

$7.57 LKR 2,507

55.75%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.3

$2.50 LKR 827

54.80%

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

$1.37 MX$25.24

$0.72 LKR 238

90.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.41

$0.27 LKR 90.1

211.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.2

$2.16 LKR 716

43.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.4

$3.01 LKR 998

68.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.49

$1.57 LKR 520

-8.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.15

$0.53 LKR 175

320.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.12

$0.80 LKR 266

83.75%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.62

$1.60 LKR 530

58.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$14.00 LKR 4,636

-47.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$4.88 LKR 1,618

61.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$7.26 LKR 2,405

76.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.5

$6.84 LKR 2,265

-57.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$0.85 LKR 281

69.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$46.98

$4.46 LKR 1,478

-42.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$37.95

$1.23 LKR 406

67.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.90

$1.02 LKR 339

96.08%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$36.99

$0.82 LKR 270

145.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$21.97

$0.92 LKR 306

29.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.18

$0.44 LKR 145

186.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.2

$10.32 LKR 3,418

-57.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$13.70 LKR 4,536

-30.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.35

$1.89 LKR 625

-15.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.8

$3.01 LKR 998

-6.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.44

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$513

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$91.9

$0.38 LKR 126

1210.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.5

$0.37 LKR 123

845.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.6

$0.88 LKR 293

513.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.02

$1.33 LKR 441

10.53%

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

$21.0K MX$387.0K

$37.8K LKR 12.5M

-44.42%

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

$23.9K MX$440.9K

$40.9K LKR 13.5M

-41.56%

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

$84.2 MX$1,553

$54.8 LKR 18.2K

53.61%

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

$23.99 MX$442

$4.14 LKR 1,371

479.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$535

$21.01 LKR 6,959

38.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,162

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$537

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.2

$4.45 LKR 1,474

11.01%

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

$204 MX$3,755

$37.63 LKR 12.5K

441.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.7K

$1,227 LKR 406.4K

221.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$804

$18.35 LKR 6,077

137.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$795

$16.80 LKR 5,564

156.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,397

$77.6 LKR 25.7K

-2.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,634

$42.92 LKR 14.2K

106.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,898

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$113.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

12.69

-9.77%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Hikkaduwa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Hikkaduwa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Hikkaduwa

$239 46.9% 7.7% $20

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Hikkaduwa

$109 21.4% 46.1% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Hikkaduwa

$80 15.7% 41.7% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Hikkaduwa

$70 13.8% 38% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Hikkaduwa

$8.9 * 1.8% 87.8% $64

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Hikkaduwa

$2.2 * 0.4% 95.7% $50

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $43.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $25.00 in Hikkaduwa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $239 per month, with Hikkaduwa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇰 Hikkaduwa

🕒 Local time

07:03 7:03 AM

17:33 5:33 PM

10 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

101,342

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.42 USD

100 MXN = 4.83 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 18.44 MXN (100 MXN = 5.42 USD). 1 EUR = 20.68 MXN (100 MXN = 4.83 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 371 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Hikkaduwa 16,730 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Hikkaduwa

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 Hikkaduwa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hikkaduwa is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 138% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,816 in Playa del Carmen and $763 in Hikkaduwa 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 8% higher in Playa del Carmen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $509 in Hikkaduwa – a 138% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $509 in Hikkaduwa versus $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Hikkaduwa but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes Hikkaduwa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Hikkaduwa is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Playa del Carmen, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Hikkaduwa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 138% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.