Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Kolonnawa

For one person, living is cheaper in Kolonnawa: $512 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Kolonnawa
Learn more

Kolonnawa Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Kolonnawa

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$512

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $512 in Kolonnawa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Kolonnawa $512

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $830 in Kolonnawa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Kolonnawa $830

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,148 in Kolonnawa, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Kolonnawa $1,148

Playa del Carmen costs about 135% more than Kolonnawa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Kolonnawa are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Kolonnawa 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.83 LKR 1,273

178.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$24.52 LKR 8,154

78.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.65 LKR 2,546

54.12%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.44 LKR 811

55.33%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.73 LKR 244

78.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.27 LKR 90.7

207.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$2.19 LKR 727

43.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$3.08 LKR 1,026

60.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.61 LKR 536

-12.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.54 LKR 179

307.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.81 LKR 270

81.48%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$1.64 LKR 545

52.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$15.54 LKR 5,170

-53.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$4.89 LKR 1,627

62.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.53 LKR 2,505

70.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$6.63 LKR 2,205

-56.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.88 LKR 292

56.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$4.18 LKR 1,389

-40.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$1.28 LKR 425

58.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$1.04 LKR 347

94.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.82 LKR 272

131.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.20 LKR 400

-5.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$0.42 LKR 140

195.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$10.12 LKR 3,365

-57.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$13.52 LKR 4,497

-27.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.91 LKR 635

-16.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.96 LKR 984

-7.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.15 LKR 49.86

240.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.37 LKR 124

1186.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.33 LKR 110

884.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$0.88 LKR 293

512.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.33 LKR 441

15.04%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$43.8K LKR 14.6M

-51.52%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$45.2K LKR 15.0M

-48.54%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$57.6 LKR 19.2K

44.87%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$4.22 LKR 1,405

449.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$20.81 LKR 6,922

32.68%

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

$4.49 LKR 1,492

11.36%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$39.87 LKR 13.3K

419.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$17.2K LKR 5.7M

-69.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$17.91 LKR 5,958

142.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$17.59 LKR 5,852

141.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$79.1 LKR 26.3K

-7.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$41.99 LKR 14.0K

110.48%

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

12.5

-8.40%

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 Kolonnawa: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Kolonnawa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Kolonnawa

$244 47.5% 5.4% $14

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Kolonnawa

$104 20.3% 48.1% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Kolonnawa

$83 16.1% 38.4% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Kolonnawa

$70 13.8% 36.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Kolonnawa

$9 * 1.8% 86.5% $57

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Kolonnawa

$2.6 * 0.5% 94.8% $48

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 $25 in Kolonnawa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $244 – making Kolonnawa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇰 Kolonnawa

🕒 Local time

13:38 1:38 PM

00:08 12:08 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

64,800

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.68 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 373 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Kolonnawa 16,640 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Kolonnawa

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 Kolonnawa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen costs about 135% more than Kolonnawa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $768 in Kolonnawa. 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 $512 in Kolonnawa. That makes Kolonnawa about 57% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $40 in Kolonnawa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Kolonnawa, where all-in costs run around $512, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Kolonnawa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Kolonnawa costs $512 versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.