Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Panadura

For one person, living is cheaper in Panadura: $512 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 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
24

Cost of Living Index in Panadura
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Panadura Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Panadura

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$512

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $512 in Panadura, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Panadura $512

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $831 in Panadura, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Panadura $831

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,150 in Panadura, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Panadura $1,150

Playa del Carmen costs about 135% more than Panadura, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Panadura are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Panadura 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.86 LKR 1,285

176.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$24.93 LKR 8,292

75.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$7.50 LKR 2,496

57.20%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$2.53 LKR 841

49.80%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.69 LKR 229

88.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.27 LKR 89.9

207.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$2.23 LKR 742

41.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.97 LKR 988

65.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.64 LKR 546

-14.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.57 LKR 190

285.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.77 LKR 256

90.91%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.69 LKR 561

47.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$15.46 LKR 5,141

-52.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$5.07 LKR 1,686

56.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$7.49 LKR 2,493

71.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$6.47 LKR 2,153

-55.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.83 LKR 277

66.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$4.26 LKR 1,415

-41.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$1.34 LKR 445

51.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$1.08 LKR 360

87.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.83 LKR 277

128.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$1.21 LKR 404

-5.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.46 LKR 152

169.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$10.40 LKR 3,458

-58.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$13.46 LKR 4,477

-27.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.97 LKR 655

-19.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$2.81 LKR 936

-2.14%

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

$0.37 LKR 124

1186.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.31 LKR 103

948.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$0.92 LKR 305

485.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.31 LKR 436

16.79%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$43.4K LKR 14.4M

-51.08%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$45.3K LKR 15.1M

-48.69%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$56.9 LKR 18.9K

46.76%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$4.19 LKR 1,393

453.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$20.90 LKR 6,951

32.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$4.55 LKR 1,512

9.89%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$40.02 LKR 13.3K

417.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$17.6K LKR 5.8M

-70.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$17.74 LKR 5,899

144.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$17.50 LKR 5,820

143.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$77.4 LKR 25.8K

-6.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$41.97 LKR 14.0K

110.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

12.5

-8.40%

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 Panadura: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Panadura

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Panadura

$245 47.8% 4.9% $13

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Panadura

$105 20.4% 47.7% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Panadura

$82 16% 39% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Panadura

$70 13.6% 37.4% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Panadura

$9.1 * 1.8% 86.3% $57

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Panadura

$1.9 * 0.4% 96.2% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $25 in Panadura. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $245 – making Panadura the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇱🇰 Panadura

🕒 Local time

04:36 4:36 AM

15:06 3:06 PM

10 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

33,735

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 374 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Panadura 16,660 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Panadura

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 Panadura: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 135%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $768 in Panadura. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $512 in Panadura. That makes Panadura about 57% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $40 in Panadura. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Panadura, where all-in costs run around $512, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Panadura it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $512 in Panadura to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.