Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sakakah

For one person, living costs are similar in Playa del Carmen and in Sakakah: $1,202 and $1,223 a month, rent and utilities included.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Sakakah
Learn more

Sakakah Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Sakakah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,223 in Sakakah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Sakakah $1,223

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,793 in Sakakah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Sakakah $1,793

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,364 in Sakakah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Sakakah $2,364

Playa del Carmen and Sakakah have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sakakah are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Sakakah 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$200

$5.81 SAR 21.79

83.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$823

$36.64 SAR 138

19.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$221

$7.81 SAR 29.29

50.96%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.17 SAR 8.13

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 SAR 5.80

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.1

$3.65 SAR 13.69

3.84%

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

$1.30 MX$24.36

$0.64 SAR 2.40

103.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.65

$0.34 SAR 1.28

144.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.7

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.46

$1.67 SAR 6.26

-15.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.23

$1.35 SAR 5.08

62.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.66

$2.36 SAR 8.85

-37.71%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.89

$2.38 SAR 8.94

5.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$7.68 SAR 28.82

-5.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$149

$6.77 SAR 25.42

17.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$12.59 SAR 47.25

2.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.4

$2.22 SAR 8.33

30.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.98

$1.72 SAR 6.46

-19.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.78

$1.59 SAR 5.97

56.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.12

$1.56 SAR 5.85

30.13%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.03

$1.23 SAR 4.63

64.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.74

$1.32 SAR 4.95

43.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.49

$1.19 SAR 4.45

-4.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.27

$0.53 SAR 1.98

133.96%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.76 SAR 10.37

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 SAR 6.65

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 SAR 7.23

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.2

$5.84 SAR 21.92

-26.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$184

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.78

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.6

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.67

$0.98 SAR 3.69

-47.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$514

$36.58 SAR 137

-25.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.4

$2.81 SAR 10.55

69.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.0

$1.73 SAR 6.50

87.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$14.80 SAR 55.6

-63.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.70

$0.59 SAR 2.23

159.32%

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

$21.2K MX$398.4K

$25.1K SAR 94.4K

-15.62%

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

$23.3K MX$436.9K

$24.2K SAR 90.9K

-3.92%

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

$83.5 MX$1,568

$119 SAR 445

-29.63%

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

$23.19 MX$435

$37.42 SAR 140

-38.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$519

$73.6 SAR 276

-62.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,060

$79.1 SAR 297

-28.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$529

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.9

$11.94 SAR 44.80

-58.12%

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

$207 MX$3,889

$380 SAR 1,426

-45.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.2K

$11.0K SAR 41.2K

-52.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$816

$38.10 SAR 143

14.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$799

$59.7 SAR 224

-28.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,367

$101 SAR 379

-27.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,660

$80.6 SAR 303

9.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$563 SAR 2,114

76.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,181

$398 SAR 1,494

-3.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.4K

$872 SAR 3,274

91.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$604 SAR 2,267

78.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.4K

$1,840 SAR 6,905

112.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.3K

$1,239 SAR 4,651

395.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.6K

$912 SAR 3,422

-8.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.54

106.68%

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 Sakakah: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Sakakah

$398 32.6% 4.1% $16

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Sakakah

$197 16.1% 23.5% $61

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Sakakah

$118 9.6% 41.3% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Sakakah

$230 18.8% 71% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Sakakah

$126 10.3% 13.1% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Sakakah

$103 8.4% 55% $37

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Sakakah

$52 4.3% 3% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $563 in Sakakah. 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 10% higher in Sakakah. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $37 in Sakakah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $197 – making Sakakah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇸🇦 Sakakah

🕒 Local time

13:22 1:22 PM

21:22 9:22 PM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

242,813

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sakakah 12,050 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sakakah

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 Sakakah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,834 in Sakakah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sakakah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $563 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Interestingly, groceries are about 24% cheaper in Sakakah – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $380 in Sakakah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,223 in Sakakah, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,223 in Sakakah. 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, Sakakah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.