Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Madinat Hamad

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Madinat Hamad: $1,202 and $1,192 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Madinat Hamad
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Madinat Hamad Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Madinat Hamad

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$1,192

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Madinat Hamad

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,192 in Madinat Hamad, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Madinat Hamad $1,192

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,909 in Madinat Hamad, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Madinat Hamad $1,909

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,627 in Madinat Hamad, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Madinat Hamad $2,627

Playa del Carmen and Madinat Hamad have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Madinat Hamad are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Madinat Hamad 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$198

$2.60 BHD 0.98

310.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$813

$52.6 BHD 19.82

-16.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.62 BHD 2.87

54.72%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.3

$2.62 BHD 0.99

44.66%

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

$1.30 MX$24.09

$0.89 BHD 0.33

46.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.48

$0.32 BHD 0.12

159.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.4

$6.44 BHD 2.43

-51.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.6

$9.77 BHD 3.68

-49.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.16

$1.44 BHD 0.54

-2.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.77

$1.03 BHD 0.39

113.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.35

$2.39 BHD 0.90

-38.49%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.37

$2.02 BHD 0.76

23.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$135

$8.86 BHD 3.34

-17.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$6.41 BHD 2.42

24.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$8.36 BHD 3.15

53.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.8

$2.18 BHD 0.82

33.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.69

$1.62 BHD 0.61

-14.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.26

$1.90 BHD 0.72

31.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.70

$1.35 BHD 0.51

50.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.61

$1.02 BHD 0.38

98.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.35

$1.03 BHD 0.39

84.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.25

$1.50 BHD 0.56

-24.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.01

$0.50 BHD 0.19

148.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.3

$5.17 BHD 1.95

-17.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$182

$18.64 BHD 7.03

-47.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.45

$3.66 BHD 1.38

-56.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.0

$2.71 BHD 1.02

1.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.56

$0.64 BHD 0.24

-20.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$509

$34.51 BHD 13.01

-20.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.4

$5.15 BHD 1.94

-7.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.3

$2.59 BHD 0.98

25.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$16.06 BHD 6.06

-66.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.38

$0.39 BHD 0.15

292.31%

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

$21.2K MX$393.9K

$25.7K BHD 9,693

-17.47%

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

$23.3K MX$432.0K

$19.9K BHD 7,510

16.80%

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

$83.5 MX$1,550

$155 BHD 58.3

-46.04%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$23.42 BHD 8.83

-0.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$513

$18.89 BHD 7.12

46.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,048

$118 BHD 44.36

-52.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$524

$53.9 BHD 20.34

-47.74%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$92.9

$5.21 BHD 1.96

-4.03%

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

$207 MX$3,846

$619 BHD 233

-66.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.1K

$11.1K BHD 4,194

-52.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$807

$51.5 BHD 19.41

-15.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$790

$57.5 BHD 21.67

-25.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,351

$87.0 BHD 32.80

-16.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,641

$90.4 BHD 34.10

-2.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$397 BHD 150

150.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,102

$312 BHD 118

22.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.1K

$797 BHD 300

110.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$670 BHD 253

61.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$669 BHD 252

24.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.21

84.38%

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 Madinat Hamad: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Madinat Hamad

$312 26.2% 18.4% $70

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Madinat Hamad

$239 20.1% 7.1% $18

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Madinat Hamad

$132 11.1% 34.2% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Madinat Hamad

$197 16.5% 46.7% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Madinat Hamad

$129 10.8% 15.9% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Madinat Hamad

$128 10.7% 92.7% $62

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Madinat Hamad

$55 4.6% 9.4% $4.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $397 in Madinat Hamad. 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 24% higher in Playa del Carmen. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $53 in Madinat Hamad. Groceries tell a different story – $257 in Playa del Carmen vs $239 in Madinat Hamad – so Madinat Hamad wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇧🇭 Madinat Hamad

🕒 Local time

09:03 9:03 AM

17:03 5:03 PM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

133,350

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BHD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Bahraini Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.377 BHD (1 BHD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 0.422 BHD (1 BHD = 2.37 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Madinat Hamad 13,090 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Madinat Hamad

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 Madinat Hamad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,788 in Madinat Hamad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Madinat Hamad, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen and $53 in Madinat Hamad. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 21% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,192 in Madinat Hamad, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Madinat Hamad costs $1,192 versus $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Madinat Hamad. 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.