Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Leon, Nicaragua

Name: Leon
Address: Leon, NI

For one person, living is cheaper in Leon: $816 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 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
39

Cost of Living Index in Leon
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Leon Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Leon

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$816

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $816 in Leon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Leon $816

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,416 in Leon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Leon $1,416

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,015 in Leon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Leon $2,015

Playa del Carmen costs about 47% more than Leon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Playa del Carmen and Leon are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Leon 40% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$9.94 NIO 364

7.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$34.88 NIO 1,278

25.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.53 NIO 276

56.57%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.66 NIO 97.4

42.48%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.89 NIO 32.73

46.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.68 NIO 24.72

22.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.53 NIO 56.1

105.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.21 NIO 80.9

123.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.21 NIO 44.31

16.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$2.33 NIO 85.2

-5.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$1.89 NIO 69.1

-22.22%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$2.31 NIO 84.8

8.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$11.63 NIO 426

-37.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$6.21 NIO 227

28.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.97 NIO 292

61.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.96 NIO 145

-26.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.61 NIO 22.35

126.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$1.82 NIO 66.8

36.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$2.52 NIO 92.4

-19.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$3.84 NIO 141

-47.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$2.20 NIO 80.6

-13.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.09 NIO 39.75

4.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.06 NIO 38.69

16.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.69 NIO 98.3

58.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$14.42 NIO 528

-31.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.44 NIO 52.7

10.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.28 NIO 83.5

20.61%

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

$1.66 NIO 61.0

186.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.65 NIO 60.6

96.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$6.86 NIO 251

-21.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.35 NIO 49.47

13.33%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$23.2K NIO 849.3K

-8.52%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$26.8K NIO 981.3K

-13.18%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$149 NIO 5,457

-43.97%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$19.60 NIO 718

18.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$31.87 NIO 1,167

-13.37%

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

$8.86 NIO 325

-43.57%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$235 NIO 8,616

-11.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$5,939 NIO 217.5K

-11.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$60.7 NIO 2,222

-28.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$64.9 NIO 2,376

-34.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$121 NIO 4,431

-39.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$146 NIO 5,360

-39.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$394 NIO 14.4K

152.47%

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

$276 NIO 10.1K

292.04%

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

11.92

-3.94%

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 Leon: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Leon

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Leon

$259 31.7% 0.6% $1.5

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Leon

$152 18.7% 23.9% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Leon

$200 24.6% 49.3% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Leon

$177 21.7% 59% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Leon

$18 * 2.2% 73.3% $49

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Leon

$9.9 * 1.2% 80.3% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $394 in Leon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $35 in Leon. Groceries tell a different story – $257 in Playa del Carmen vs $259 in Leon – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇮 Leon

🕒 Local time

14:17 2:17 PM

13:17 1:17 PM

1 h behind Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

207,533

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NIO, 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).

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.06 NIO (100 NIO = 2.44 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Leon 910 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Leon

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 Leon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 47%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,224 in Leon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Leon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $394 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen and $35 in Leon. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $235 in Leon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Leon, where all-in costs run around $816, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Leon 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. Leon costs $816 versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.