Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Rabat

For one person, living is cheaper in Rabat: $921 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Rabat
Learn more

Rabat Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Rabat

🇲🇦 Morocco

$921

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $921 in Rabat, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Rabat $921

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,498 in Rabat, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Rabat $1,498

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,074 in Rabat, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Rabat $2,074

Playa del Carmen costs about 31% more than Rabat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Rabat are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Rabat 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$204

$3.99 MAD 39.29

173.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$41.46 MAD 408

4.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$220

$6.96 MAD 68.6

69.25%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.94 MAD 19.07

96.39%

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

$1.28 MX$23.90

$0.53 MAD 5.26

141.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.59

$0.37 MAD 3.61

110.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$5.19 MAD 51.1

-38.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.0

$3.14 MAD 30.93

57.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.90 MAD 8.86

56.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.33

$0.60 MAD 5.95

270.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.42

$1.92 MAD 18.88

-26.04%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.03

$1.86 MAD 18.27

35.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$11.16 MAD 110

-34.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.71 MAD 66.1

14.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$237

$12.08 MAD 119

5.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$1.55 MAD 15.29

79.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.50

$1.43 MAD 14.10

-4.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.55

$0.81 MAD 7.97

214.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.58

$0.82 MAD 8.12

158.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.13

$0.72 MAD 7.07

169.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.16

$0.75 MAD 7.37

152.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.37

$0.37 MAD 3.62

210.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.98

$0.63 MAD 6.23

87.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.1

$4.06 MAD 40.01

5.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$7.33 MAD 72.2

35.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.52

$2.56 MAD 25.24

-38.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.79

$2.68 MAD 26.41

-0.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.55 MAD 5.42

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

$25.62 MAD 252

3.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$0.73 MAD 7.18

580.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.77 MAD 7.61

332.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$4.13 MAD 40.70

29.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.92

$1.52 MAD 14.99

-5.26%

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

$20.7K MX$385.2K

$30.2K MAD 297.0K

-31.47%

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

$23.5K MX$437.4K

$32.1K MAD 316.0K

-26.88%

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

$84.8 MX$1,581

$35.47 MAD 349

139.05%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$10.21 MAD 101

129.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$33.51 MAD 330

-14.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$27.87 MAD 274

104.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

$24.11 MAD 237

19.91%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.8

$5.94 MAD 58.5

-13.47%

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

$207 MX$3,851

$180 MAD 1,776

14.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$9,261 MAD 91.2K

-57.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$46.83 MAD 461

-7.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$40.60 MAD 400

2.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,383

$91.6 MAD 902

-18.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,664

$66.0 MAD 650

35.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.3K

$572 MAD 5,629

71.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,099

$345 MAD 3,401

10.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$987 MAD 9,719

73.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$687 MAD 6,769

56.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,126 MAD 20.9K

85.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.8K

$1,214 MAD 12.0K

407.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$721 MAD 7,105

1.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.55

151.65%

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 Rabat: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Rabat

$345 37.5% 9.3% $35

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Rabat

$203 22% 20.5% $52

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Rabat

$112 12.1% 44.7% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Rabat

$79 8.6% 42.1% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Rabat

$110 12% 1.3% $1.5

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Rabat

$40 4.3% 41% $28

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Rabat

$32 3.5% 35.8% $18

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $572 in Rabat. 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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $41 in Rabat. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $203 – making Rabat the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇦 Rabat

🕒 Local time

20:03 8:03 PM

01:03 1:03 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

573,895 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 MAD = 10.15 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 9.85 MAD (1 MAD = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Rabat 7,870 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Rabat

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 Rabat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 31%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,382 in Rabat. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rabat, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $572 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $921 in Rabat. That makes Rabat about 23% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 4% less in Rabat. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $921 in Rabat. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

For expats, Rabat is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 23% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.