Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Preston

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,114 in Preston, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 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
101

Cost of Living Index in Preston
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Preston Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Preston

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,114

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,114 in Preston, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Preston $2,114

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,021 in Preston, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Preston $3,021

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,928 in Preston, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Preston $3,928

Playa del Carmen is about 43% cheaper than Preston, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Preston is 55% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$15.89 £11.96

-31.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$74.3 £55.9

-41.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$9.20 £6.93

28.04%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$4.24 £3.19

-10.14%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$2.31 £1.74

-44.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$1.83 £1.38

-57.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$5.39 £4.06

-41.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$5.20 £3.91

-5.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$1.49 £1.12

-5.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$1.43 £1.08

55.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.60 £1.21

-11.25%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$3.59 £2.70

-29.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$5.30 £3.99

36.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$9.53 £7.17

-19.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$12.68 £9.54

0.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$2.59 £1.95

7.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.72 £1.29

-20.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$2.57 £1.93

-0.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$3.96 £2.98

-46.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$2.06 £1.55

-5.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$2.25 £1.70

-16.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$1.17 £0.88

-1.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$1.65 £1.24

-28.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$21.56 £16.23

-80.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$9.14 £6.88

8.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$3.18 £2.39

-50.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$3.25 £2.45

-17.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$3.92 £2.95

-85.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$98.5 £74.1

-72.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$2.60 £1.96

91.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$2.10 £1.58

58.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.99 £1.49

-27.64%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$37.9K £28.5K

-45.47%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$41.1K £31.0K

-42.96%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$439 £330

-80.69%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$14.86 £11.19

57.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$43.51 £32.75

-34.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$41.40 £31.16

37.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$16.80 £12.64

72.08%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$17.83 £13.42

-71.17%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$1,512 £1,138

-86.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$8,738 £6,576

-55.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$75.7 £57.0

-42.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$26.16 £19.69

58.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$65.4 £49.21

13.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$66.4 £49.97

34.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$969 £729

1.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$767 £578

-50.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,608 £1,210

6.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$1,211 £911

-11.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$3,634 £2,735

8.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$2,379 £1,790

158.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$2,994 £2,253

-75.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.93

132.25%

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 Preston: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Preston

$767 36.3% 102% $387

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Preston

$281 13.3% 10.2% $26

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Preston

$260 12.3% 28.2% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Preston

$497 23.5% 264% $361

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Preston

$105 5% 5.9% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Preston

$77 3.6% 14.5% $9.8

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Preston

$127 6% 152% $77

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $969 in Preston. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Preston are about 4.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $74 in Preston. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $281 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇧 Preston

🕒 Local time

18:02 6:02 PM

23:02 11:02 PM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

114,300

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.753 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Preston 7,810 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Preston

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 Preston: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Preston is pricier by about 76%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,172 in Preston. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $980 in Playa del Carmen and $969 in Preston. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $2,114 in Preston. That makes Playa del Carmen about 43% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 73% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Preston at $2,114. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Preston 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 $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $2,114 in Preston. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Preston makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.