Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Sulaymaniyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sulaymaniyah: $773 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Sulaymaniyah
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Sulaymaniyah Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Sulaymaniyah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$773

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,215 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $773 in Sulaymaniyah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,215
Sulaymaniyah $773

A couple spends around $2,144 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,194 in Sulaymaniyah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,144
Sulaymaniyah $1,194

A family of three spends $3,072 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,615 in Sulaymaniyah, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,072
Sulaymaniyah $1,615

Playa del Carmen costs about 57% more than Sulaymaniyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Playa del Carmen and Sulaymaniyah are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 9% lower, Sulaymaniyah 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.97 MX$201

$5.07 IQD 7,660

116.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.85 MX$823

$22.93 IQD 34.6K

95.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 MX$219

$7.04 IQD 10.6K

69.32%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$69.9

$2.88 IQD 4,344

31.94%

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

$1.31 MX$24.08

$0.50 IQD 759

162.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.86 MX$15.72

$0.25 IQD 378

244.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 MX$59.0

$3.93 IQD 5,943

-18.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 MX$92.0

$2.27 IQD 3,427

120.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$26.77

$1.28 IQD 1,935

14.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 MX$42.72

$1.01 IQD 1,519

130.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.48

$1.86 IQD 2,812

-22.58%

Eggs

$2.46 MX$45.20

$1.77 IQD 2,672

38.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 MX$141

$4.96 IQD 7,490

55.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.89 MX$145

$4.22 IQD 6,382

86.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 MX$235

$15.30 IQD 23.1K

-16.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$1.28 IQD 1,935

128.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 MX$26.11

$1.28 IQD 1,937

10.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 MX$47.10

$1.15 IQD 1,737

123.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.24

$0.68 IQD 1,025

214.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 MX$35.75

$0.56 IQD 847

248.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$0.73 IQD 1,096

165.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 MX$21.13

$0.73 IQD 1,101

57.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.42

$0.50 IQD 752

144.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 MX$80.3

$2.28 IQD 3,444

92.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 MX$181

$11.23 IQD 17.0K

-12.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.23

$1.95 IQD 2,949

-21.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MX$49.86

$1.42 IQD 2,141

91.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MX$9.64

$0.60 IQD 902

-13.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

$22.68 IQD 34.3K

20.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 MX$90.2

$2.22 IQD 3,361

121.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.52 MX$64.7

$2.34 IQD 3,531

50.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

$5.50 IQD 8,306

3.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 MX$28.27

$0.69 IQD 1,045

123.19%

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

$21.2K MX$389.9K

$20.9K IQD 31.5M

1.75%

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

$24.5K MX$449.6K

$18.9K IQD 28.6M

29.28%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

$100 IQD 151.7K

-16.70%

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

$24.03 MX$441

$11.49 IQD 17.4K

109.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.33 MX$539

$28.04 IQD 42.4K

4.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 MX$1,191

$39.70 IQD 60.0K

63.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

$20.09 IQD 30.4K

46.64%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 MX$93.4

$7.58 IQD 11.5K

-32.85%

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

$208 MX$3,813

$173 IQD 261.0K

20.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

$2,946 IQD 4.5M

37.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.55 MX$818

$18.91 IQD 28.6K

135.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 MX$772

$25.19 IQD 38.1K

66.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 MX$1,387

$43.24 IQD 65.3K

74.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.4 MX$1,678

$38.64 IQD 58.4K

136.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$986 MX$18.1K

$215 IQD 324.7K

359.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 MX$7,072

$175 IQD 264.2K

120.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

$492 IQD 743.9K

248.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,108 MX$20.4K

$363 IQD 548.8K

205.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

$786 IQD 1.2M

410.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

$630 IQD 952.4K

891.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$758 MX$13.9K

$584 IQD 882.1K

29.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.77

98.44%

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 Sulaymaniyah: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4%

Sulaymaniyah

$175 22.5% 54.6% $210

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$188 24.2% 27.6% $72

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6%

Sulaymaniyah

$123 15.9% 39.5% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$140 18% 2.1% $2.9

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3%

Sulaymaniyah

$57 7.3% 50.3% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1%

Sulaymaniyah

$55 7.1% 26.9% $20

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2%

Sulaymaniyah

$39 5% 25.1% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $986 in Playa del Carmen versus $215 in Sulaymaniyah. 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 30% 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 $45.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $23.00 in Sulaymaniyah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $188 – making Sulaymaniyah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇶 Sulaymaniyah

🕒 Local time

00:58 12:58 AM

08:58 8:58 AM

8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

823,199

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,695 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Sulaymaniyah 12,010 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Sulaymaniyah

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 Sulaymaniyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 57%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,823 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,160 in Sulaymaniyah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sulaymaniyah, 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 $773 in Sulaymaniyah. That's a gap of about 57%.

Public transport costs about 21% less in Sulaymaniyah. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Sulaymaniyah, where all-in costs run around $773, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In Sulaymaniyah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sulaymaniyah – 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 Sulaymaniyah. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.