Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lambeth

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,615 in Lambeth, rent and utilities included – about $17,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Lambeth, United Kingdom
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,202
/mo nomad
Lambeth
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,615
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,615 in Lambeth.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,202
  • Lambeth $2,615

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,673 in Lambeth.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Lambeth $3,673

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,732 in Lambeth.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,962
  • Lambeth $4,732

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 54% less than in Lambeth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Lambeth is 93% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.67 MX$199
$24.54 £18.21
-56.52%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.80 MX$815
$80.8 £60.0
-45.81%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.79 MX$219
$13.17 £9.77
-10.48%
Cappuccino
$3.79 MX$70.5
$4.99 £3.70
-24.05%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.30 MX$24.14
$2.67 £1.98
-51.31%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.83 MX$15.51
$2.48 £1.84
-66.53%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.15 MX$58.6
$6.68 £4.96
-52.84%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$91.8
$5.87 £4.36
-16.01%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.22
$1.75 £1.30
-19.43%
White Bread (500g)
$2.20 MX$40.86
$1.92 £1.43
14.58%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.47 MX$27.40
$2.16 £1.61
-31.94%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$46.46
$4.36 £3.24
-42.66%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.29 MX$136
$8.96 £6.65
-18.64%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.95 MX$148
$10.40 £7.72
-23.56%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.86 MX$239
$20.29 £15.06
-36.62%
Apples (1kg)
$2.90 MX$53.9
$4.31 £3.20
-32.71%
Banana (1kg)
$1.38 MX$25.74
$1.48 £1.10
-6.76%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.49 MX$46.35
$1.95 £1.45
27.69%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.03 MX$37.77
$3.43 £2.55
-40.82%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.68
$1.57 £1.16
28.66%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 MX$35.42
$1.88 £1.40
1.06%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.30
$1.57 £1.17
-27.39%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.24 MX$23.05
$1.43 £1.06
-13.29%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.27 MX$79.5
$23.60 £17.51
-81.91%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.81 MX$183
$11.61 £8.62
-15.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.59 MX$29.51
$3.13 £2.33
-49.20%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.75 MX$51.1
$3.09 £2.29
-11.00%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.51 MX$9.58
$3.69 £2.74
-86.18%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.39 MX$510
$106 £78.5
-74.10%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.76 MX$88.6
$4.74 £3.52
0.42%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.25 MX$60.5
$2.02 £1.50
60.89%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.39 MX$100
$37.78 £28.03
-85.73%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.53 MX$28.44
$2.03 £1.51
-24.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$394.8K
$39.1K £29.0K
-45.70%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.3K MX$432.9K
$40.3K £29.9K
-42.31%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.5 MX$1,554
$390 £289
-78.60%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.19 MX$431
$23.82 £17.67
-2.64%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.61 MX$514
$50.4 £37.39
-45.21%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$56.4 MX$1,050
$40.16 £29.80
40.51%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.19 MX$525
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.00 MX$93.1
$18.31 £13.58
-72.69%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,854
$1,882 £1,397
-89.00%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,231 MX$97.3K
$24.7K £18.3K
-78.83%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.45 MX$809
$67.8 £50.3
-35.92%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$42.54 MX$792
$46.11 £34.21
-7.74%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.8 MX$1,354
$74.9 £55.6
-2.84%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,645
$80.9 £60.0
9.27%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$995 MX$18.5K
$1,127 £836
-11.70%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$382 MX$7,116
$1,120 £831
-65.87%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,674 MX$31.2K
$2,220 £1,647
-24.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,081 MX$20.1K
$1,627 £1,207
-33.59%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,909 MX$72.7K
$5,168 £3,835
-24.37%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,138 MX$114.2K
$3,925 £2,912
56.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Lambeth
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$832 MX$15.5K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
5.54
106.68%

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 Lambeth: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$382
Lambeth
$1.1K 193% $738
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$257
Lambeth
$335 30.1% $78
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Lambeth
$361 80.5% $161
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$134
Lambeth
$464 246% $330
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$111
Lambeth
$121 9.1% $10
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$66
Lambeth
$77 15.5% $10
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Lambeth
$135 168% $85

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $1,127 in Lambeth. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $81 in Lambeth for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $335 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇬🇧 Lambeth
🕒 Local time
04:35 4:35 AM
09:35 9:35 AM
5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
6,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Lambeth 8,020 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Lambeth

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 Lambeth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Lambeth?
Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You’d need roughly $1,804 in Playa del Carmen and $3,922 in Lambeth 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.
What is the rent difference between Playa del Carmen and Lambeth?
Rent for a central apartment: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,127 in Lambeth. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Playa del Carmen and in Lambeth?
All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $2,615 in Lambeth – Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 74% less than in Lambeth. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Lambeth?
At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,615 in Lambeth, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Lambeth. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Playa del Carmen or Lambeth more family-friendly?
For families, Playa del Carmen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lambeth, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Lambeth. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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