Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Njardvik

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $3,133 in Njardvik, rent and utilities included – about $23,200 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
151

Cost of Living Index in Njardvik
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Njardvik Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Njardvik

🇮🇸 Iceland

$3,133

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,133 in Njardvik.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Njardvik $3,133

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,082 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,864 in Njardvik.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Njardvik $4,864

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,962 in Playa del Carmen versus $6,596 in Njardvik.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Njardvik $6,596

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 62% less than in Njardvik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Njardvik is 132% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$24.20 ISK 2,940

-55.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$98.4 ISK 12.0K

-55.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$16.27 ISK 1,977

-27.54%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$6.46 ISK 784

-41.33%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$1.61 ISK 195

-19.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$2.41 ISK 292

-65.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$10.53 ISK 1,280

-70.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$12.43 ISK 1,510

-60.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$2.12 ISK 258

-33.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$4.24 ISK 515

-48.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$3.64 ISK 443

-59.62%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$7.20 ISK 875

-65.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$21.85 ISK 2,655

-66.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$24.79 ISK 3,012

-67.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$41.37 ISK 5,027

-68.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.40 ISK 413

-14.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$2.85 ISK 347

-51.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$3.13 ISK 381

-20.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$6.54 ISK 795

-68.96%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$3.95 ISK 480

-48.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$1.68 ISK 205

13.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$3.75 ISK 456

-69.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.84 ISK 224

-32.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$13.70 ISK 1,665

-68.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$23.83 ISK 2,896

-58.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$3.61 ISK 439

-55.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$3.35 ISK 407

-17.91%

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

$6.57 ISK 799

-27.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$2.87 ISK 349

13.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$81.0 ISK 9,846

-93.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$2.05 ISK 249

-25.37%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$67.8K ISK 8.2M

-68.70%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$56.3K ISK 6.8M

-58.66%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$96.1 ISK 11.7K

-13.11%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$32.14 ISK 3,905

-27.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$85.4 ISK 10.4K

-67.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$80.6 ISK 9,793

-29.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$19.99 ISK 2,429

-74.99%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$1,198 ISK 145.5K

-82.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$26.0K ISK 3.2M

-79.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$122 ISK 14.8K

-64.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$66.7 ISK 8,106

-36.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$183 ISK 22.2K

-60.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$247 ISK 30.0K

-64.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$1,462 ISK 177.6K

-73.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$2,674 ISK 324.9K

-59.60%

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

$4,080 ISK 495.7K

-79.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.81

29.97%

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 Njardvik: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Njardvik

$1.5K 46.7% 282% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Njardvik

$625 19.9% 143% $367

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Njardvik

$413 13.2% 106% $213

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Njardvik

$214 6.8% 59.1% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Njardvik

$278 8.9% 150% $167

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Njardvik

$121 3.9% 81.5% $54

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Njardvik

$21 * 0.7% 58.5% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

Njardvik pays about 4.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $44 in Playa del Carmen vs $98 in Njardvik for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $625 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇸 Njardvik

🕒 Local time

18:42 6:42 PM

23:42 11:42 PM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

6,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1,000 ISK = 8.23 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.31 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ISK, 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 = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 122 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 137 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.31 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Njardvik 6,720 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Njardvik

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 Njardvik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen is about 62% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 80% lower in Playa del Carmen. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 143% higher in Njardvik. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen versus $3,133 in Njardvik – Playa del Carmen is about 62% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,202 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,133 in Njardvik, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Njardvik. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Njardvik on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.