Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lezhe

For one person, living is cheaper in Lezhe: $991 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lezhe
Learn more

Lezhe Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Lezhe

🇦🇱 Albania

$991

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $991 in Lezhe, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Lezhe $991

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,569 in Lezhe, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Lezhe $1,569

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,148 in Lezhe, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Lezhe $2,148

Playa del Carmen costs about 22% more than Lezhe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Lezhe are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Lezhe 27% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$5.51 ALL 449

98.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$36.39 ALL 2,964

19.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$3.75 ALL 305

214.13%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.03 ALL 83.6

269.90%

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

$1.28 MX$23.89

$1.50 ALL 122

-14.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.58

$0.64 ALL 52.1

21.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.47 ALL 120

115.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.9

$2.42 ALL 197

103.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.20

$1.96 ALL 160

-28.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.30

$0.98 ALL 79.5

126.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.40

$2.12 ALL 173

-33.02%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.00

$2.74 ALL 223

-8.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$10.16 ALL 827

-28.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$8.41 ALL 685

-8.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$14.09 ALL 1,147

-9.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.95 ALL 159

42.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.49

$2.33 ALL 190

-41.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.52

$1.65 ALL 134

54.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.55

$1.63 ALL 133

30.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.11

$1.06 ALL 86.0

83.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.13

$1.26 ALL 102

50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.36

$1.19 ALL 97.0

-3.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.96

$0.83 ALL 67.7

42.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.0

$4.33 ALL 353

-0.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$8.07 ALL 657

23.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.50

$1.76 ALL 143

-10.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.76

$1.85 ALL 151

44.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.47 ALL 37.94

17.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$21.92 ALL 1,785

21.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$3.79 ALL 309

31.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$3.95 ALL 322

-15.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$18.23 ALL 1,485

-70.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.90

$2.29 ALL 187

-37.12%

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

$20.7K MX$385.0K

$33.4K ALL 2.7M

-38.10%

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

$23.5K MX$437.2K

$25.0K ALL 2.0M

-6.12%

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

$84.8 MX$1,580

$62.2 ALL 5,065

36.34%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$16.72 ALL 1,362

40.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$17.44 ALL 1,421

64.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$57.5 ALL 4,685

-0.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.7

$8.87 ALL 723

-42.05%

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

$207 MX$3,848

$186 ALL 15.2K

10.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$49.07 ALL 3,997

-11.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$55.5 ALL 4,520

-25.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,382

$98.6 ALL 8,028

-24.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,663

$147 ALL 11.9K

-39.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$415 ALL 33.8K

135.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,095

$275 ALL 22.4K

38.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$761 ALL 62.0K

124.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$493 ALL 40.2K

117.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,221 ALL 180.9K

77.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.7K

$1,298 ALL 105.7K

374.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$623 ALL 50.7K

17.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

129.00%

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 Lezhe: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Lezhe

$275 27.7% 27.9% $106

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Lezhe

$251 25.4% 1.4% $3.6

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Lezhe

$88 8.9% 56.3% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Lezhe

$96 9.7% 29.6% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Lezhe

$157 15.9% 40.9% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Lezhe

$75 7.6% 11.8% $8

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Lezhe

$47 4.8% 6.1% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $415 in Lezhe. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 18% higher in Playa del Carmen, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $36 in Lezhe. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $251 – making Lezhe the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇱 Lezhe

🕒 Local time

06:57 6:57 AM

12:57 12:57 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

65,633

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 81.44 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 90.88 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Lezhe 9,790 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Lezhe

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 Lezhe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, $991 in Lezhe – Lezhe comes out roughly 18% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,486 in Lezhe. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lezhe, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $415 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $36 in Lezhe. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 18% less in Lezhe. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Lezhe, where all-in costs run around $991, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Lezhe it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Lezhe – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Lezhe. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.