Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Nuwara Eliya Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Nuwara Eliya

😐 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 62.3% more expensive than Nuwara Eliya without rent, and 137.5% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 38.5% more expensive than Nuwara Eliya without rent, and 153.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.85 MX$211
$3.97 LKR 1,234
198.49%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.16 MX$750
$24.90 LKR 7,737
69.32%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.75 MX$191
$8.58 LKR 2,667
25.29%
Cappuccino
$3.47 MX$61.8
$2.65 LKR 822
30.94%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.45 MX$25.85
$0.69 LKR 214
110.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 MX$16.06
$0.38 LKR 117
136.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.05 MX$54.3
$2.36 LKR 733
29.24%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 MX$78.6
$3.28 LKR 1,019
34.76%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 MX$24.36
$1.77 LKR 549
-22.60%
White Bread (500g)
$1.87 MX$33.31
$0.51 LKR 160
266.67%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 MX$27.46
$0.82 LKR 255
87.80%
Eggs
$2.50 MX$44.53
$2.15 LKR 668
16.28%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$153
$14.01 LKR 4,353
-38.54%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.63 MX$154
$4.65 LKR 1,446
85.59%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.02 MX$196
$8.18 LKR 2,540
34.72%
Apples (1kg)
$2.75 MX$48.91
$7.53 LKR 2,339
-63.48%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$25.41
$1.10 LKR 343
30.00%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.87 MX$33.32
$5.95 LKR 1,849
-68.57%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.17 MX$38.56
$1.25 LKR 388
73.60%
Potato (1kg)
$1.88 MX$33.50
$1.10 LKR 343
70.91%
Onion (1kg)
$2.25 MX$39.96
$1.41 LKR 438
59.57%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$18.99
$1.16 LKR 360
-7.76%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.07 MX$19.10
$0.59 LKR 184
81.36%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.15 MX$73.9
$9.97 LKR 3,097
-58.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.34 MX$184
$12.94 LKR 4,021
-20.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.68 MX$29.87
$2.02 LKR 628
-16.83%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.48 MX$44.19
$2.93 LKR 911
-15.36%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$9.87
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.53 MX$472
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.22 MX$57.2
$0.38 LKR 119
747.37%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.48 MX$44.15
$0.35 LKR 109
608.57%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$55.3
$0.61 LKR 191
409.84%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.26 MX$22.34
$1.20 LKR 373
5.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K MX$545.4K
$26.7K LKR 8.3M
14.79%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.0K MX$427.6K
$34.8K LKR 10.8M
-30.86%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$82.5 MX$1,467
$61.1 LKR 19.0K
35.04%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.29 MX$396
$4.26 LKR 1,324
423.24%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.02 MX$534
$15.06 LKR 4,681
99.34%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.4 MX$915
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.29 MX$325
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$4.98 MX$88.7
$3.42 LKR 1,063
45.61%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,558
$36.70 LKR 11.4K
445.01%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,304 MX$94.4K
$439 LKR 136.3K
1109.10%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.71 MX$635
$28.04 LKR 8,714
27.35%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.56 MX$704
$19.30 LKR 5,997
104.97%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$80.6 MX$1,433
$70.8 LKR 22.0K
13.79%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.3 MX$1,571
$38.07 LKR 11.8K
131.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$969 MX$17.2K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$482 MX$8,579
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,595 MX$28.4K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,184 MX$21.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,050 MX$72.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,522 MX$116.0K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Nuwara Eliya
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$756 MX$13.5K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
16.45
-30.58%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: March 3, 2026

Last update for Nuwara Eliya: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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