Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Skelleftea

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,961 in Skelleftea, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,210
/mo nomad
Skelleftea
🇸🇪 Sweden
$1,961
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,961 in Skelleftea, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,210
  • Skelleftea $1,961

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,962 in Skelleftea, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,113
  • Skelleftea $2,962

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,964 in Skelleftea, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,016
  • Skelleftea $3,964

Playa del Carmen is about 38% cheaper than Skelleftea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while Skelleftea is 45% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.76 MX$199
$15.89 SEK 157
-32.28%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.03 MX$795
$78.2 SEK 774
-45.00%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.79 MX$218
$13.16 SEK 130
-10.41%
Cappuccino
$3.87 MX$71.4
$4.65 SEK 46.04
-16.77%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.37 MX$25.29
$2.56 SEK 25.35
-46.48%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.84 MX$15.44
$2.30 SEK 22.72
-63.48%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.10 MX$57.3
$7.88 SEK 78.0
-60.66%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.07 MX$93.6
$7.69 SEK 76.1
-34.07%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$26.55
$1.59 SEK 15.75
-9.43%
White Bread (500g)
$2.23 MX$41.23
$2.47 SEK 24.40
-9.72%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$4.91 SEK 48.62
-70.06%
Eggs
$2.53 MX$46.71
$5.14 SEK 50.9
-50.78%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.30 MX$135
$10.90 SEK 108
-33.03%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.86 MX$145
$10.78 SEK 107
-27.09%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.79 MX$236
$24.10 SEK 239
-46.93%
Apples (1kg)
$2.90 MX$53.6
$3.17 SEK 31.42
-8.52%
Banana (1kg)
$1.44 MX$26.53
$2.40 SEK 23.77
-40.00%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.55 MX$47.07
$3.07 SEK 30.39
-16.94%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.06 MX$38.03
$3.56 SEK 35.21
-42.13%
Potato (1kg)
$2.00 MX$36.97
$2.24 SEK 22.14
-10.71%
Onion (1kg)
$2.01 MX$37.07
$1.62 SEK 15.99
24.07%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 MX$22.02
$2.28 SEK 22.55
-47.81%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.26 MX$23.23
$1.57 SEK 15.50
-19.75%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.40 MX$81.4
$7.34 SEK 72.7
-40.05%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.59 MX$177
$15.00 SEK 148
-36.07%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.59 MX$29.41
$1.71 SEK 16.88
-7.02%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.81 MX$51.9
$1.59 SEK 15.71
76.73%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.57 MX$10.47
$2.78 SEK 27.50
-79.50%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.82 MX$514
$51.6 SEK 511
-46.10%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.98 MX$92.1
$7.83 SEK 77.5
-36.40%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.50 MX$64.6
$1.73 SEK 17.11
102.31%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.40 MX$99.8
$58.9 SEK 583
-90.83%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.08
$1.72 SEK 16.98
-14.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.0K MX$387.8K
$32.9K SEK 325.8K
-36.24%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.9K MX$441.8K
$32.2K SEK 319.1K
-25.86%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,556
$103 SEK 1,016
-17.96%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.99 MX$443
$33.24 SEK 329
-27.83%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.02 MX$536
$51.7 SEK 512
-43.90%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$63.0 MX$1,164
$37.65 SEK 373
67.28%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$29.14 MX$539
$25.55 SEK 253
14.05%
Cinema Ticket
$4.94 MX$91.3
$14.79 SEK 146
-66.60%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$204 MX$3,763
$140 SEK 1,386
45.39%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,941 MX$72.8K
$5,481 SEK 54.2K
-28.09%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$43.60 MX$806
$94.8 SEK 939
-54.02%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$43.12 MX$797
$39.10 SEK 387
10.28%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$75.8 MX$1,400
$78.9 SEK 780
-3.91%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.6 MX$1,637
$153 SEK 1,513
-42.05%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,008 MX$18.6K
$1,127 SEK 11.2K
-10.51%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$374 MX$6,911
$786 SEK 7,783
-52.44%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,708 MX$31.6K
$1,588 SEK 15.7K
7.56%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,106 MX$20.4K
$1,195 SEK 11.8K
-7.44%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,944 MX$72.9K
$4,005 SEK 39.6K
-1.51%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,169 MX$114.0K
$2,822 SEK 27.9K
118.63%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Skelleftea
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$754 MX$13.9K
$2,556 SEK 25.3K
-70.49%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
3.9
193.59%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Skelleftea: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$374
Skelleftea
$786 110% $412
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Skelleftea
$380 46.9% $121
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$202
Skelleftea
$297 46.7% $94
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Skelleftea
$188 36.7% $50
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$113
Skelleftea
$165 45.6% $52
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$73
Skelleftea
$67 7.7% $5.6
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$53
Skelleftea
$79 50.7% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,127 in Skelleftea. 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 239% higher in Skelleftea, 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 $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $78.0 in Skelleftea. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $380 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇸🇪 Skelleftea
🕒 Local time
08:41 8:41 AM
15:41 3:41 PM
7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
32,775
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.9 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.13 SEK (100 SEK = 8.99 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Skelleftea 8,760 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Skelleftea

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 Skelleftea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Skelleftea cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Skelleftea is pricier by about 62%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,942 in Skelleftea. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
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.
What are total monthly expenses in Playa del Carmen and in Skelleftea?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $1,961 in Skelleftea. That's a gap of about 62%.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 86% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Skelleftea?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Skelleftea at $1,961. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Skelleftea it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Playa del Carmen or Skelleftea more family-friendly?
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.
Which city is safer, Playa del Carmen or Skelleftea?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Skelleftea makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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