Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and M'Sila

For one person, living is cheaper in M'Sila: $459 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in M'Sila
Learn more

M'Sila Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

M'Sila

🇩🇿 Algeria

$459

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in M'Sila

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $459 in M'Sila.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
M'Sila $459

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $753 in M'Sila.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
M'Sila $753

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,046 in M'Sila.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
M'Sila $1,046

Living in Playa del Carmen is roughly 163% more expensive than in M'Sila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Playa del Carmen 11% lower, M'Sila 66% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$1.88 DZD 252

477.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$18.82 DZD 2,520

134.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$3.70 DZD 496

217.84%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$0.35 DZD 47.31

951.43%

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

$1.34 MX$24.79

$0.51 DZD 67.8

162.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$0.20 DZD 26.58

310.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$2.17 DZD 290

41.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$2.17 DZD 291

127.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$0.78 DZD 104

88.46%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$0.13 DZD 16.96

1607.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$1.15 DZD 155

28.70%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$1.19 DZD 160

109.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$2.92 DZD 391

157.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$3.94 DZD 528

102.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$9.30 DZD 1,245

35.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$2.09 DZD 280

33.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$2.68 DZD 359

-46.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$1.07 DZD 143

144.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$0.55 DZD 74.0

289.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$0.50 DZD 67.0

304.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$0.27 DZD 35.63

637.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$0.12 DZD 16.21

850.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.25 DZD 33.34

380.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$2.71 DZD 363

57.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$6.75 DZD 904

48.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$1.27 DZD 171

21.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$1.86 DZD 249

43.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$0.24 DZD 32.27

120.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$6.53 DZD 874

321.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$0.55 DZD 73.4

790.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$0.43 DZD 57.5

697.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$5.69 DZD 762

-5.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$0.33 DZD 44.76

339.39%

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

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$34.9K DZD 4.7M

-39.40%

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

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$34.6K DZD 4.6M

-33.39%

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

$85.4 MX$1,577

$23.25 DZD 3,112

267.14%

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

$23.46 MX$434

$7.50 DZD 1,004

212.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$12.44 DZD 1,665

128.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$22.17 DZD 2,968

180.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$4.36 DZD 584

16.97%

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

$201 MX$3,715

$115 DZD 15.4K

75.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$6,439 DZD 862.1K

-38.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$32.63 DZD 4,368

36.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$33.92 DZD 4,541

21.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$67.7 DZD 9,064

7.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$79.9 DZD 10.7K

12.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$144 DZD 19.2K

581.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$92.2 DZD 12.3K

304.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$270 DZD 36.1K

522.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$192 DZD 25.7K

469.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

$961 DZD 128.7K

310.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

$623 DZD 83.4K

885.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

$243 DZD 32.5K

204.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.3

116.04%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for M'Sila: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

M'Sila

$92 20.1% 75.3% $281

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

M'Sila

$138 30% 46.8% $121

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

M'Sila

$48 10.6% 75.8% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

M'Sila

$43 9.4% 68.5% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

M'Sila

$96 21% 13.7% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

M'Sila

$31 6.7% 57.3% $42

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

M'Sila

$10 2.2% 80.3% $42

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $144 in M'Sila. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Playa del Carmen pays 204% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $19.00 in M'Sila for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $138 per month, with M'Sila cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇩🇿 M'Sila

🕒 Local time

06:40 6:40 AM

12:40 12:40 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

156,647

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 DZD = 7.47 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DZD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 134 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.47 USD). 1 EUR = 151 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.64 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen M'Sila 8,830 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
M'Sila

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 M'Sila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

M'Sila is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 163% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 204% higher in Playa del Carmen, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $144 in M'Sila. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in M'Sila runs roughly 321% less than in Playa del Carmen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $201 in Playa del Carmen versus $115 in M'Sila. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $459 in M'Sila versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in M'Sila but tight or insufficient in Playa del Carmen. The gap between the two cities makes M'Sila the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, M'Sila is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Playa del Carmen, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Playa del Carmen and M'Sila are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find M'Sila gentler on the wallet – expenses run 163% less than in Playa del Carmen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.