Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Starkville, MS

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,787 in Starkville, MS, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Starkville, MS
Learn more

Starkville, MS Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Starkville, MS

🇺🇸 United States

$1,787

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Starkville, MS

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,787 in Starkville, MS, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Starkville, MS $1,787

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,731 in Starkville, MS, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Starkville, MS $2,731

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,676 in Starkville, MS, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Starkville, MS $3,676

Playa del Carmen is about 33% cheaper than Starkville, MS, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 12% below the global median, while Starkville, MS is 31% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$14.92 $14.92

-26.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$60.2 $60.2

-27.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$8.35 $8.35

41.08%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$4.19 $4.19

-9.07%

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

$1.28 MX$23.89

$2.37 $2.37

-45.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.58

$1.84 $1.84

-57.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$4.09 $4.09

-22.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.9

$6.98 $6.98

-29.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.20

$0.87 $0.87

62.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.30

$3.19 $3.19

-30.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.40

$2.62 $2.62

-45.80%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.00

$4.22 $4.22

-40.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$9.77 $9.77

-25.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$11.62 $11.62

-33.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$15.00 $15.00

-15.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$3.86 $3.86

-27.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.49

$1.39 $1.39

-1.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.52

$3.30 $3.30

-22.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.55

$3.04 $3.04

-30.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.11

$2.15 $2.15

-9.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.13

$2.26 $2.26

-16.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.36

$2.19 $2.19

-47.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.96

$1.93 $1.93

-38.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.0

$8.43 $8.43

-48.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$9.86 $9.86

0.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.50

$1.73 $1.73

-8.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.76

$3.15 $3.15

-15.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$4.18 $4.18

18.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$1.87 $1.87

78.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$32.65 $32.65

-83.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.90

$0.86 $0.86

67.44%

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

$20.7K MX$385.0K

$30.0K $30.0K

-31.06%

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

$23.5K MX$437.2K

$25.5K $25.5K

-7.82%

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

$84.8 MX$1,580

$168 $168

-49.64%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$29.80 $29.80

-21.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$53.7 $53.7

-46.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$17.46 $17.46

226.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.7

$8.04 $8.04

-36.07%

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

$207 MX$3,848

$1,567 $1,567

-86.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$8,234 $8,234

-52.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$74.9 $74.9

-42.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$53.5 $53.5

-22.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,382

$87.6 $87.6

-15.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,663

$171 $171

-47.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$946 $946

3.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,095

$735 $735

-48.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$1,536 $1,536

11.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$1,344 $1,344

-20.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$2,185 $2,185

80.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.7K

$2,184 $2,184

181.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$4,153 $4,153

-82.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.65

72.18%

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 Starkville, MS: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Starkville, MS

$735 41.1% 92.9% $354

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Starkville, MS

$334 18.7% 31.1% $79

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Starkville, MS

$246 13.8% 21.5% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Starkville, MS

$252 14.1% 84% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Starkville, MS

$174 9.7% 55.7% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Starkville, MS

$34 1.9% 50.2% $34

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Starkville, MS

$14 * 0.8% 73.2% $37

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $980 in Playa del Carmen versus $946 in Starkville, MS. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Starkville, MS are about 5.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Playa del Carmen versus $60 in Starkville, MS. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $334 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇺🇸 Starkville, MS

🕒 Local time

04:48 4:48 AM

Same time as Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

22,638

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Starkville, MS 1,440 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Starkville, MS

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 Starkville, MS: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Starkville, MS is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,681 in Starkville, MS. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $980 in Playa del Carmen and $946 in Starkville, MS. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $1,787 in Starkville, MS. That makes Playa del Carmen about 33% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,567 in Starkville, MS. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Starkville, MS at $1,787. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Starkville, MS it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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 $1,787 in Starkville, MS. 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, Starkville, MS makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.