Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ikeja

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,409 in Ikeja, rent and utilities included – about $14,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ikeja outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Ikeja
Learn more

Ikeja Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Ikeja

🇳🇬 Nigeria

$2,409

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,409 in Ikeja, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Ikeja $2,409

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,149 in Ikeja, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Ikeja $4,149

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,890 in Ikeja, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Ikeja $5,890

Playa del Carmen is about 50% cheaper than Ikeja.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Ikeja is 78% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$0.54 ₦717

1875.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$11.14 ₦14.9K

293.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.50 ₦10.0K

57.20%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.86 ₦3,818

32.52%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.14 ₦190

828.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.07 ₦96.1

1085.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$0.31 ₦420

916.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.05 ₦2,740

140.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.76 ₦1,019

85.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.72 ₦956

205.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.21 ₦1,619

21.49%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$2.23 ₦2,984

12.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$3.58 ₦4,787

103.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$3.96 ₦5,292

100.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$4.34 ₦5,799

196.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.62 ₦2,161

79.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$1.27 ₦1,703

8.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$1.14 ₦1,524

118.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$1.48 ₦1,978

37.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.54 ₦2,058

31.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.57 ₦2,094

21.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.85 ₦1,133

34.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.39 ₦527

217.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$0.54 ₦724

690.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$2.36 ₦3,156

315.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$0.53 ₦713

200.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$0.46 ₦618

497.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.12 ₦154

325.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$3.45 ₦4,616

693.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.65 ₦875

632.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.90 ₦1,202

261.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$2.19 ₦2,929

146.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.14 ₦186

992.86%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$11.0K ₦14.7M

93.28%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$28.6K ₦38.3M

-18.71%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$111 ₦147.9K

-24.54%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$14.89 ₦19.9K

55.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$32.93 ₦44.0K

-16.16%

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

$6.07 ₦8,114

-17.63%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$659 ₦881.4K

-68.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$19.4K ₦26.0M

-73.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$14.80 ₦19.8K

193.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$17.73 ₦23.7K

139.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$35.66 ₦47.7K

104.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$49.16 ₦65.7K

79.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$3,536 ₦4.7M

-71.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$1,985 ₦2.7M

-80.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$6,548 ₦8.8M

-74.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$5,077 ₦6.8M

-78.71%

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

$74.2 ₦99.1K

1022.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

18.39

-37.74%

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 Ikeja: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Ikeja

$2K 82.4% 419% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Ikeja

$124 5.1% 51.9% $133

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Ikeja

$68 2.8% 66.3% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Ikeja

$158 6.6% 18% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Ikeja

$53 2.2% 52.5% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Ikeja

$12 * 0.5% 81.7% $54

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Ikeja

$9.1 0.4% 82% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,536 in Ikeja. 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 11 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $11 in Ikeja. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $124 – making Ikeja the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇬 Ikeja

🕒 Local time

08:11 8:11 AM

14:11 2:11 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

861,300

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Nigerian Naira NGN ₦

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

10,000 NGN = 7.48 USD

10,000 NGN = 6.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NGN, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Nigerian Naira exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1,337 NGN (10,000 NGN = 7.48 USD). 1 EUR = 1,499 NGN (10,000 NGN = 6.67 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ikeja 9,790 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ikeja

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 Ikeja: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,614 in Ikeja. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $995 there versus $3,536 in Ikeja.

Interestingly, groceries are about 52% cheaper in Ikeja – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen and $11 in Ikeja. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,202, than in Ikeja at $2,409. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ikeja it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Playa del Carmen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.