Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lancaster

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,111 in Lancaster, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 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
101

Cost of Living Index in Lancaster
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Lancaster Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Lancaster

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,111

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,111 in Lancaster.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Lancaster $2,111

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,206 in Lancaster.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Lancaster $3,206

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,302 in Lancaster.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Lancaster $4,302

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 43% less than in Lancaster, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Lancaster is 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$19.57 £14.51

-45.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$115 £85.4

-61.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$10.47 £7.76

12.61%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$4.23 £3.14

-10.40%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$3.54 £2.63

-63.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$1.34 £0.99

-38.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$6.60 £4.90

-52.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$5.21 £3.86

-5.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.48 £1.10

-4.73%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$1.79 £1.33

22.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$4.22 £3.13

-65.17%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$3.52 £2.61

-28.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$6.44 £4.77

13.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$5.02 £3.72

58.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$12.31 £9.13

4.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$4.65 £3.45

-37.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$3.10 £2.30

-55.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$2.49 £1.84

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$5.01 £3.72

-59.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$2.25 £1.67

-10.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$2.82 £2.09

-32.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.17 £0.87

-2.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.66 £1.23

-25.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$21.68 £16.08

-80.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$9.30 £6.90

5.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$2.32 £1.72

-31.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.64 £1.96

4.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$3.31 £2.46

-84.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$66.8 £49.50

-58.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$6.89 £5.11

-30.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$2.54 £1.88

27.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$25.02 £18.56

-78.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$2.04 £1.51

-25.00%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$38.6K £28.6K

-44.98%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$41.2K £30.5K

-43.49%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$362 £269

-76.97%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$16.89 £12.52

37.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$48.49 £35.96

-43.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$59.7 £44.26

-5.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$6.89 £5.11

309.14%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$8.45 £6.27

-40.83%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$1,274 £945

-83.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$7,667 £5,686

-31.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$77.2 £57.2

-43.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$33.18 £24.60

28.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$82.9 £61.5

-12.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$27.05 £20.06

226.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$1,071 £794

-7.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$812 £602

-52.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$1,314 £975

27.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$1,406 £1,043

-23.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$5,188 £3,847

-24.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$9,417 £6,983

-34.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$3,098 £2,297

-73.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.55

106.31%

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 Lancaster: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Lancaster

$812 38.5% 112% $429

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Lancaster

$294 13.9% 14.4% $37

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Lancaster

$302 14.3% 50.6% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Lancaster

$428 20.3% 219% $294

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Lancaster

$99 4.7% 10.9% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Lancaster

$77 3.6% 15.3% $10

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Lancaster

$100 4.7% 97.4% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $995 in Playa del Carmen and $1,071 in Lancaster. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lancaster pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $115 in Lancaster for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $294 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇧 Lancaster

🕒 Local time

10:49 10:49 AM

15:49 3:49 PM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

46,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.831 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Lancaster 7,800 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Lancaster

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 Lancaster: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is about 43% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 73% 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: $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,071 in Lancaster. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Lancaster. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44 versus $115 in Lancaster. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,111 in Lancaster, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Lancaster. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Lancaster. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.