Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Kafue

For one person, living is cheaper in Kafue: $564 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Kafue
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Kafue Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Kafue

🇿🇲 Zambia

$564

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $564 in Kafue, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Kafue $564

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $902 in Kafue, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Kafue $902

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,239 in Kafue, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Kafue $1,239

Playa del Carmen costs about 113% more than Kafue, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Kafue are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Kafue 58% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$5.37 ZMW 109

98.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$29.41 ZMW 596

48.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$5.04 ZMW 102

133.93%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.86 ZMW 57.9

32.52%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.72 ZMW 14.48

80.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.48 ZMW 9.70

72.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.22 ZMW 24.78

158.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.27 ZMW 45.89

117.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.68 ZMW 33.96

-16.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.16 ZMW 23.56

89.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$2.01 ZMW 40.62

-26.87%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.94 ZMW 39.30

28.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$10.19 ZMW 206

-28.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$6.17 ZMW 125

28.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$6.62 ZMW 134

94.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.38 ZMW 68.5

-14.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$2.36 ZMW 47.84

-41.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$3.24 ZMW 65.6

-23.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.54 ZMW 31.16

31.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$2.60 ZMW 52.7

-22.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.77 ZMW 35.82

7.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.11 ZMW 22.41

2.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.71 ZMW 14.47

74.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$3.01 ZMW 61.0

41.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$9.92 ZMW 201

-1.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.37 ZMW 27.82

16.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.27 ZMW 45.99

21.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$2.43 ZMW 49.14

95.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.44 ZMW 29.07

125.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$5.01 ZMW 102

7.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.46 ZMW 29.61

4.79%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$7,396 ZMW 149.8K

186.83%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$24.7K ZMW 500.5K

-5.87%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$69.0 ZMW 1,397

21.05%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$10.75 ZMW 218

115.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$53.6 ZMW 1,085

-48.46%

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

$5.82 ZMW 118

-14.09%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$145 ZMW 2,945

42.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$20.5K ZMW 414.8K

-74.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$24.90 ZMW 504

74.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$17.39 ZMW 352

144.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$44.90 ZMW 909

62.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$65.1 ZMW 1,319

35.68%

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

-60.52%

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 Kafue: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Kafue

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Kafue

$233 41.3% 9.6% $25

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Kafue

$108 19.1% 46.2% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Kafue

$133 23.6% 0.7% $1

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Kafue

$69 12.2% 38.4% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Kafue

$12 * 2.1% 82.5% $55

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Kafue

$9.6 * 1.7% 81% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $29 in Kafue. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $233 – making Kafue the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇿🇲 Kafue

🕒 Local time

11:15 11:15 AM

18:15 6:15 PM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

104,174

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

100 ZMW = 4.94 USD

100 ZMW = 4.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZMW, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 20.25 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.94 USD). 1 EUR = 22.67 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.41 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Kafue 13,200 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Kafue

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 Kafue: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, $564 in Kafue – Kafue comes out roughly 53% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $846 in Kafue. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $564 in Kafue. That makes Kafue about 53% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $145 in Kafue. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Kafue, where all-in costs run around $564, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Kafue it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $564 in Kafue to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.