Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Reykjavik

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,215 a month against $4,037 in Reykjavik, rent and utilities included – about $33,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
193

Cost of Living Index in Reykjavik
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Reykjavik Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Reykjavik

🇮🇸 Iceland

$4,037

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,037 in Reykjavik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Reykjavik $4,037

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,666 in Reykjavik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Reykjavik $5,666

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $7,295 in Reykjavik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Reykjavik $7,295

Playa del Carmen is about 70% cheaper than Reykjavik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 9% below the global median, while Reykjavik is 201% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$200

$30.59 ISK 3,727

-64.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$816

$136 ISK 16.5K

-66.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$217

$27.08 ISK 3,300

-55.98%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.2

$6.72 ISK 818

-43.45%

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

$1.31 MX$23.86

$3.27 ISK 399

-59.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.58

$3.16 ISK 386

-72.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$58.4

$13.91 ISK 1,695

-76.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$91.2

$12.06 ISK 1,469

-58.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.53

$2.04 ISK 248

-28.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.33

$4.32 ISK 526

-46.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.24

$3.67 ISK 447

-60.76%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$44.78

$7.02 ISK 855

-64.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$140

$22.01 ISK 2,682

-65.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$144

$24.70 ISK 3,009

-68.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$233

$42.66 ISK 5,198

-70.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.1

$3.37 ISK 411

-13.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$25.87

$2.85 ISK 347

-50.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$46.66

$3.17 ISK 387

-18.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$38.88

$6.39 ISK 779

-66.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.42

$4.01 ISK 489

-51.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.22

$1.64 ISK 200

18.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$20.94

$3.80 ISK 462

-69.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.21

$1.74 ISK 212

-29.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$79.6

$13.80 ISK 1,681

-68.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$179

$23.38 ISK 2,849

-57.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$27.97

$3.53 ISK 430

-56.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.40

$3.45 ISK 420

-21.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.55

$5.77 ISK 703

-90.99%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$499

$95.1 ISK 11.6K

-71.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$89.4

$6.63 ISK 808

-25.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.1

$2.79 ISK 340

26.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$103

$81.4 ISK 9,915

-93.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.01

$2.11 ISK 257

-27.01%

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

$21.2K MX$386.3K

$50.8K ISK 6.2M

-58.20%

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

$24.5K MX$445.4K

$52.7K ISK 6.4M

-53.57%

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

$83.6 MX$1,521

$88.7 ISK 10.8K

-5.71%

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

$24.03 MX$437

$31.53 ISK 3,842

-23.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$534

$84.6 ISK 10.3K

-65.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,180

$100 ISK 12.2K

-35.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$536

$48.20 ISK 5,873

-38.88%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$92.5

$19.87 ISK 2,422

-74.38%

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

$208 MX$3,778

$1,277 ISK 155.7K

-83.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$73.6K

$31.0K ISK 3.8M

-86.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$810

$161 ISK 19.6K

-72.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$765

$64.9 ISK 7,908

-35.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,374

$183 ISK 22.3K

-58.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,662

$254 ISK 30.9K

-64.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$17.9K

$2,499 ISK 304.6K

-60.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,007

$2,000 ISK 243.7K

-80.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.2K

$3,452 ISK 420.6K

-50.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.2K

$2,742 ISK 334.2K

-59.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.0K

$8,001 ISK 974.9K

-49.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$113.6K

$6,249 ISK 761.5K

-0.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.8K

$4,691 ISK 571.6K

-83.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.81

29.97%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Last update for Reykjavik: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Reykjavik

$2K 50.9% 419% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Reykjavik

$625 15.9% 140% $365

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Reykjavik

$526 13.4% 158% $322

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Reykjavik

$205 5.2% 49.5% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Reykjavik

$298 7.6% 161% $184

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Reykjavik

$140 3.6% 86.7% $65

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Reykjavik

$139 3.5% 167% $87

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,499 in Reykjavik. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 519% higher in Reykjavik, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $136 in Reykjavik. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $625 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇸 Reykjavik

🕒 Local time

01:48 1:48 AM

06:48 6:48 AM

5 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

136,894 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

1,000 ISK = 8.21 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.32 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ISK, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 122 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.21 USD). 1 EUR = 137 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.32 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Reykjavik 6,750 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Reykjavik

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 Reykjavik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Reykjavik is pricier by about 232%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $6,055 in Reykjavik. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Playa del Carmen, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,215 in Playa del Carmen and $4,037 in Reykjavik. That's a gap of about 232%.

Public transport costs about 247% 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 $1,215, than in Reykjavik at $4,037. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Reykjavik it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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