Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ramsey

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,410 in Ramsey, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. The total is higher in Ramsey despite lower rent and utilities.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Ramsey, Isle of Man
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Ramsey
🇮🇲 Isle of Man
$1,410
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,410 in Ramsey, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Ramsey $1,410

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,283 in Ramsey, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,082
  • Ramsey $2,283

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,156 in Ramsey, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,959
  • Ramsey $3,156

Playa del Carmen is about 15% cheaper than Ramsey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Ramsey is 4% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.92 MX$205
$27.84 IMP 20.80
-60.78%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.37 MX$815
$121 IMP 90.2
-64.06%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.78 MX$221
$12.16 IMP 9.09
-3.13%
Cappuccino
$3.81 MX$71.6
$4.99 IMP 3.73
-23.65%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 MX$24.10
$2.65 IMP 1.98
-51.70%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.78 MX$14.71
$2.11 IMP 1.58
-63.03%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.17 MX$59.5
$6.75 IMP 5.05
-53.04%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.93 MX$92.7
$6.17 IMP 4.61
-20.10%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.41 MX$26.43
$1.95 IMP 1.46
-27.69%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$41.66
$2.45 IMP 1.83
-9.39%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 MX$26.64
$1.34 IMP 1.00
5.97%
Eggs
$2.52 MX$47.41
$5.36 IMP 4.01
-52.99%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.26 MX$137
$7.93 IMP 5.92
-8.45%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.70 MX$145
$8.46 IMP 6.32
-8.98%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.69 MX$239
$12.65 IMP 9.45
0.32%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$52.3
$3.00 IMP 2.24
-7.33%
Banana (1kg)
$1.37 MX$25.71
$1.86 IMP 1.39
-26.34%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.94
$3.93 IMP 2.93
-35.11%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.12 MX$39.90
$3.65 IMP 2.72
-41.92%
Potato (1kg)
$1.94 MX$36.43
$3.07 IMP 2.29
-36.81%
Onion (1kg)
$1.89 MX$35.44
$3.07 IMP 2.29
-38.44%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 MX$21.55
$2.06 IMP 1.54
-44.17%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.18 MX$22.16
$2.75 IMP 2.05
-57.09%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.30 MX$80.7
$22.26 IMP 16.63
-80.68%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.95 MX$187
$12.01 IMP 8.97
-17.15%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.58 MX$29.76
$4.39 IMP 3.28
-64.01%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.67 MX$50.2
$4.23 IMP 3.16
-36.88%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.55 MX$10.40
$2.61 IMP 1.95
-78.93%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.62 MX$500
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 MX$93.4
$5.16 IMP 3.86
-3.68%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.33 MX$62.6
$1.45 IMP 1.08
129.66%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.36 MX$101
$79.1 IMP 59.1
-93.23%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$27.14
$1.93 IMP 1.44
-25.39%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.7K MX$388.4K
$43.3K IMP 32.4K
-52.29%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.5K MX$441.0K
$44.2K IMP 33.0K
-46.88%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.8 MX$1,594
$346 IMP 258
-75.48%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.41 MX$440
$61.3 IMP 45.76
-61.79%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.66 MX$539
$72.1 IMP 53.9
-60.26%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.1 MX$1,072
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.91 MX$543
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.14 MX$96.6
$15.76 IMP 11.77
-67.39%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$207 MX$3,882
$1,752 IMP 1,308
-88.21%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,927 MX$73.8K
$52.4K IMP 39.1K
-92.50%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.35 MX$815
$98.9 IMP 73.9
-56.18%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.44 MX$779
$44.72 IMP 33.41
-7.33%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$74.2 MX$1,394
$110 IMP 82.5
-32.83%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.3 MX$1,677
$71.2 IMP 53.2
25.28%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$980 MX$18.4K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 MX$7,157
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$32.1K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 MX$20.2K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,943 MX$74.1K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,158 MX$115.7K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Ramsey
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$735 MX$13.8K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
4.76
140.55%

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 Ramsey: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$381
Ramsey
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$255
Ramsey
$346 35.8% $91
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Ramsey
$384 89.9% $182
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Ramsey
$479 250% $342
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Ramsey
$146 31.1% $35
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$67
Ramsey
$32 * 53.2% $36
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$50
Ramsey
$23 * 54.7% $28

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 $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $121 in Ramsey. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $346 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇮🇲 Ramsey
🕒 Local time
04:06 4:06 AM
09:06 9:06 AM
5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
7,800
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

IMP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.97 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Isle of Man Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 IMP (1 IMP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 IMP (1 IMP = 1.2 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Ramsey 7,690 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Ramsey

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 Ramsey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Ramsey?
Yes – Ramsey is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,115 in Ramsey. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
What are total monthly expenses in Playa del Carmen and in Ramsey?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,410 in Ramsey. That makes Playa del Carmen about 15% cheaper.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,752 in Ramsey. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is it better to live in Playa del Carmen or in Ramsey?
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 $1,410 in Ramsey. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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