Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Qena

For one person, living is cheaper in Qena: $435 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Qena
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Qena Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Qena

🇪🇬 Egypt

$435

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $435 in Qena, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Qena $435

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $698 in Qena, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Qena $698

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $961 in Qena, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Qena $961

Playa del Carmen costs about 176% more than Qena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Qena are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Qena 68% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$3.62 E£200

194.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$14.42 E£797

203.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$5.41 E£299

117.93%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.94 E£107

95.36%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.45 E£24.87

188.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.17 E£9.22

388.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.76 E£97.5

78.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.94 E£163

67.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.88 E£48.40

60.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.74 E£40.70

197.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.59 E£32.60

149.15%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$1.82 E£101

37.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$3.00 E£166

143.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$5.39 E£298

47.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$9.34 E£516

37.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.39 E£76.9

108.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.46 E£25.29

200.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$0.39 E£21.37

538.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$0.40 E£22.02

407.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.32 E£17.81

531.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.35 E£19.15

442.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.25 E£13.75

356.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.19 E£10.37

552.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$2.03 E£112

110.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$7.00 E£387

40.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.15 E£63.6

38.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.63 E£90.4

68.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.19 E£10.28

168.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.37 E£20.63

1186.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.17 E£9.31

1811.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$1.13 E£62.3

376.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$0.39 E£21.59

292.31%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$29.8K E£1.6M

-28.76%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$22.3K E£1.2M

4.27%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$24.29 E£1,343

243.72%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$7.30 E£404

217.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$9.00 E£498

206.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$14.93 E£826

277.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$3.34 E£185

49.70%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$96.9 E£5,355

113.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$584 E£32.3K

795.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$19.39 E£1,072

124.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$31.34 E£1,733

35.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$109 E£6,001

-32.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$26.25 E£1,452

236.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$127 E£7,042

681.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$70.9 E£3,919

439.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$245 E£13.5K

584.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$136 E£7,530

693.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$720 E£39.8K

442.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$323 E£17.9K

1797.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

16.21

-29.36%

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 Qena: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Qena

$71 16.3% 81.5% $312

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Qena

$131 30.1% 49.1% $127

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Qena

$86 19.7% 57.2% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Qena

$41 9.3% 69.8% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Qena

$83 19.2% 24.9% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Qena

$22 5% 67.5% $45

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Qena

$2 * 0.5% 96.1% $48

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $127 in Qena. 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $14 in Qena. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $131 – making Qena the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇪🇬 Qena

🕒 Local time

17:16 5:16 PM

00:16 12:16 AM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

235,362

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 EGP = 1.81 USD

100 EGP = 1.62 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 55.29 EGP (100 EGP = 1.81 USD). 1 EUR = 61.83 EGP (100 EGP = 1.62 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Qena 11,700 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Qena

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 Qena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 176%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $653 in Qena. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Qena, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $127 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $435 in Qena. That makes Qena about 64% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $97 in Qena. 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 Qena, where all-in costs run around $435, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Qena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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