Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Monticello, AR

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,381 in Monticello, AR, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Monticello, AR
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Monticello, AR Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monticello, AR

🇺🇸 United States

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Monticello, AR

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,381 in Monticello, AR, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Monticello, AR $2,381

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,611 in Monticello, AR, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Monticello, AR $3,611

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,841 in Monticello, AR, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Monticello, AR $4,841

Playa del Carmen is about 49% cheaper than Monticello, AR, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Monticello, AR is 75% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$18.32 $18.32

-40.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$76.2 $76.2

-43.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$12.03 $12.03

-2.08%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$5.71 $5.71

-33.27%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$2.47 $2.47

-48.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$2.06 $2.06

-62.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$6.99 $6.99

-54.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$7.82 $7.82

-36.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.90 $0.90

56.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.15 $1.15

93.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$2.00 $2.00

-29.00%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.84 $3.84

-34.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$8.81 $8.81

-17.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.63 $6.63

16.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$8.72 $8.72

45.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$3.45 $3.45

-19.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.31 $1.31

4.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.82 $2.82

-9.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$2.10 $2.10

0.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$3.12 $3.12

-37.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$2.31 $2.31

-18.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.93 $1.93

-40.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$2.12 $2.12

-44.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$9.28 $9.28

-53.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$13.11 $13.11

-24.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$1.76 $1.76

-10.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$1.58 $1.58

68.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$2.28 $2.28

-75.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$53.8 $53.8

-50.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.95 $1.95

154.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$1.38 $1.38

141.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$20.10 $20.10

-73.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.01 $1.01

42.57%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$28.4K $28.4K

-27.17%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$27.6K $27.6K

-14.99%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$189 $189

-55.20%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$39.87 $39.87

-41.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$45.51 $45.51

-37.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$39.23 $39.23

45.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$10.99 $10.99

-53.23%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$1,184 $1,184

-82.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$25.2K $25.2K

-84.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$23.94 $23.94

81.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$32.95 $32.95

25.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$69.0 $69.0

7.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$153 $153

-41.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$1,560 $1,560

-37.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$1,266 $1,266

-69.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$2,548 $2,548

-32.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$2,362 $2,362

-54.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,594 $2,594

52.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$2,401 $2,401

156.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.6

73.48%

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 Monticello, AR: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Monticello, AR

$1.3K 53.2% 232% $885

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Monticello, AR

$262 11% 2.7% $6.9

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Monticello, AR

$320 13.4% 58.1% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Monticello, AR

$275 11.5% 101% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Monticello, AR

$126 5.3% 12.5% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Monticello, AR

$61 2.6% 9.1% $6.1

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Monticello, AR

$72 3% 42.4% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,560 in Monticello, AR. 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $76 in Monticello, AR. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $262 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 Monticello, AR

🕒 Local time

17:28 5:28 PM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

11,414

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Monticello, AR 1,520 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Monticello, AR

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 Monticello, AR: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Monticello, AR is pricier by about 98%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,571 in Monticello, AR. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $1,560 in Monticello, AR.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen and $76 in Monticello, AR. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $2,381 in Monticello, AR. That makes Playa del Carmen about 49% cheaper.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Monticello, AR at $2,381. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Monticello, AR it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Playa del Carmen is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 49% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.