Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Katerini

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,301 in Katerini, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Katerini
Learn more

Katerini Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Katerini

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,301

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,301 in Katerini.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Katerini $1,301

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,993 in Katerini.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Katerini $1,993

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,959 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,684 in Katerini.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Katerini $2,684

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 7% less than in Katerini, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Katerini 4% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$15.03 €13.50

-27.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$55.7 €50.0

-22.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$8.92 €8.02

32.06%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$3.93 €3.53

-3.05%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$1.85 €1.67

-30.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.77 €0.69

1.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$4.00 €3.60

-20.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$6.51 €5.85

-24.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.36 €1.23

3.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.55 €1.39

43.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.97 €1.77

-27.92%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.64 €3.27

-30.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$10.94 €9.83

-33.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$9.00 €8.09

-14.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$14.17 €12.73

-10.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.82 €1.63

52.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.83 €1.65

-25.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$1.35 €1.22

88.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$1.79 €1.61

18.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$1.28 €1.15

51.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$1.22 €1.10

54.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.31 €1.17

-12.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.50 €0.45

136.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$4.88 €4.39

-11.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$7.27 €6.53

36.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.14 €1.02

38.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$1.52 €1.37

75.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$1.37 €1.23

-59.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$55.5 €49.89

-52.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$2.90 €2.60

71.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.99 €0.89

236.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$16.59 €14.90

-67.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$2.06 €1.85

-30.10%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$27.9K €25.0K

-25.89%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$24.5K €22.0K

-4.06%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$214 €192

-60.39%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$23.08 €20.74

1.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$30.91 €27.77

-7.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$42.61 €38.28

33.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$24.90 €22.37

16.10%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$8.99 €8.07

-42.83%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$345 €310

-40.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$4,386 €3,940

-10.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$93.0 €83.5

-53.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$42.03 €37.76

-1.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$80.6 €72.4

-7.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$70.2 €63.0

27.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$334 €300

193.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$290 €261

31.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$562 €505

203.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$475 €427

126.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$1,588 €1,426

148.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$1,243 €1,116

395.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$1,124 €1,010

-34.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.52

153.32%

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 Katerini: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Katerini

$290 22.3% 23.8% $91

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Katerini

$247 19% 3% $7.6

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Katerini

$238 18.3% 17.5% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Katerini

$268 20.6% 95.9% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Katerini

$129 9.9% 15.1% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Katerini

$61 4.7% 10% $6.7

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Katerini

$69 5.3% 36.4% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Playa del Carmen and $334 in Katerini. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Katerini pays 53% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Playa del Carmen vs $56 in Katerini. Groceries flip the comparison at $255 vs $247, with Katerini cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇷 Katerini

🕒 Local time

18:07 6:07 PM

01:07 1:07 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

56,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Katerini 10,080 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Katerini

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 Katerini: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,301 in Katerini, so Playa del Carmen is about 7% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 35% lower in Playa del Carmen. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $334 in Katerini. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $207 in Playa del Carmen versus $345 in Katerini. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Katerini pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Playa del Carmen gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Katerini on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.