Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Strumica

For one person, living is cheaper in Strumica: $866 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Strumica
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Strumica Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Strumica

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$866

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $866 in Strumica, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Strumica $866

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,222 in Strumica, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Strumica $1,222

A family of three spends $2,959 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,579 in Strumica, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,959
Strumica $1,579

Playa del Carmen costs about 39% more than Strumica, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Strumica are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 12% lower, Strumica 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.92 MX$203

$3.57 MKD 197

205.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.37 MX$808

$22.29 MKD 1,226

94.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.78 MX$219

$3.73 MKD 205

215.82%

Cappuccino

$3.81 MX$71.0

$1.53 MKD 84.0

149.02%

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

$1.28 MX$23.89

$1.40 MKD 77.0

-8.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MX$14.58

$1.15 MKD 63.0

-32.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 MX$59.0

$1.85 MKD 102

71.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.9

$1.98 MKD 109

148.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.20

$1.29 MKD 70.9

9.30%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$41.30

$0.74 MKD 40.45

200.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.40

$1.70 MKD 93.8

-16.47%

Eggs

$2.52 MX$47.00

$2.12 MKD 117

18.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.26 MX$135

$7.99 MKD 440

-9.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.70 MX$143

$6.19 MKD 341

24.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 MX$236

$9.90 MKD 544

28.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.9

$0.61 MKD 33.70

355.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 MX$25.49

$1.38 MKD 76.0

-0.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.52

$1.20 MKD 66.3

112.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.55

$1.97 MKD 108

7.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$36.11

$0.83 MKD 45.55

133.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$35.13

$0.77 MKD 42.48

145.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.36

$0.64 MKD 35.22

79.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 MX$21.96

$0.59 MKD 32.28

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 MX$80.0

$2.72 MKD 149

58.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.95 MX$185

$5.37 MKD 296

85.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 MX$29.50

$0.95 MKD 52.4

66.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 MX$49.76

$1.20 MKD 65.9

122.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MX$10.31

$0.70 MKD 38.57

-21.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 MX$92.6

$1.07 MKD 59.1

364.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 MX$62.1

$0.62 MKD 33.86

437.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 MX$99.8

$7.73 MKD 425

-30.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.90

$1.57 MKD 86.6

-8.28%

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

$20.7K MX$385.0K

$33.6K MKD 1.9M

-38.57%

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

$23.5K MX$437.2K

$26.4K MKD 1.5M

-11.01%

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

$84.8 MX$1,580

$150 MKD 8,243

-43.41%

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

$23.41 MX$436

$12.85 MKD 707

82.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.66 MX$534

$18.35 MKD 1,010

56.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.1 MX$1,063

$20.22 MKD 1,113

182.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 MX$95.7

$7.10 MKD 391

-27.61%

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

$207 MX$3,848

$365 MKD 20.1K

-43.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,927 MX$73.2K

$5,764 MKD 317.1K

-31.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 MX$808

$85.7 MKD 4,717

-49.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.44 MX$772

$36.58 MKD 2,012

13.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 MX$1,382

$104 MKD 5,709

-28.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 MX$1,663

$91.8 MKD 5,049

-2.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 MX$18.2K

$308 MKD 17.0K

217.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,095

$241 MKD 13.3K

58.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.8K

$493 MKD 27.1K

246.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 MX$20.0K

$298 MKD 16.4K

261.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,943 MX$73.5K

$1,484 MKD 81.7K

165.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,158 MX$114.7K

$979 MKD 53.9K

528.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

$640 MKD 35.2K

14.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

186.25%

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 Strumica: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6%

Strumica

$241 27.8% 36.7% $140

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2%

Strumica

$178 20.5% 30.2% $77

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8%

Strumica

$81 9.4% 59.7% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Strumica

$181 20.9% 32.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Strumica

$143 16.5% 28% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6%

Strumica

$34 4% 48.9% $33

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Strumica

$7 * 0.8% 86.2% $43

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 $308 in Strumica. 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 15% higher in Playa del Carmen, 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 in Playa del Carmen versus $22 in Strumica. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $255 vs $178 – making Strumica the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇲🇰 Strumica

🕒 Local time

02:11 2:11 AM

08:11 8:11 AM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

36,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, 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 = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.02 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.25 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Strumica 10,030 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Strumica

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 Strumica: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,298 in Strumica. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Strumica, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $308 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $866 in Strumica. That makes Strumica about 28% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $365 in Strumica. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,204 in Playa del Carmen and $866 in Strumica. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $866 in Strumica to $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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