Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Szentendre

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,455 in Szentendre, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Szentendre outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

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Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Szentendre
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Szentendre Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Szentendre

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,455

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,455 in Szentendre, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Szentendre $1,455

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,091 in Szentendre, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Szentendre $2,091

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,726 in Szentendre, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Szentendre $2,726

Playa del Carmen is about 17% cheaper than Szentendre, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while Szentendre is 8% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$12.75 Ft 4,118

-15.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$55.7 Ft 18.0K

-22.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$9.05 Ft 2,923

30.28%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$2.67 Ft 862

44.94%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$1.90 Ft 613

-27.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$1.15 Ft 370

-26.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$3.32 Ft 1,074

-6.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$2.87 Ft 927

76.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$1.14 Ft 370

26.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$1.44 Ft 464

54.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$2.33 Ft 754

-36.91%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$3.36 Ft 1,086

-24.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$11.26 Ft 3,636

-35.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$6.07 Ft 1,963

29.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$13.74 Ft 4,438

-6.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$1.91 Ft 616

51.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$2.11 Ft 682

-31.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$2.02 Ft 654

26.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$3.80 Ft 1,229

-45.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$1.01 Ft 325

98.02%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$0.98 Ft 318

105.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$1.55 Ft 502

-23.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$0.53 Ft 170

137.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$7.84 Ft 2,532

-43.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$5.97 Ft 1,928

60.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$1.27 Ft 410

25.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$1.63 Ft 527

72.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$1.19 Ft 385

-52.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$28.79 Ft 9,302

-3.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$3.03 Ft 979

64.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$1.39 Ft 449

151.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$18.38 Ft 5,938

-70.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$1.91 Ft 619

-23.04%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$28.9K Ft 9.3M

-27.40%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$33.7K Ft 10.9M

-29.11%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$153 Ft 49.5K

-45.06%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$30.94 Ft 9,995

-22.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$23.11 Ft 7,465

25.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$45.59 Ft 14.7K

38.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$19.51 Ft 6,302

49.36%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$7.78 Ft 2,513

-36.50%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$493 Ft 159.3K

-58.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$16.3K Ft 5.3M

-75.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$89.6 Ft 28.9K

-51.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$27.81 Ft 8,986

55.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$99.0 Ft 32.0K

-23.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$105 Ft 33.9K

-15.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$613 Ft 198.1K

64.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$560 Ft 181.0K

-33.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$770 Ft 248.7K

121.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$690 Ft 223.0K

60.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$3,102 Ft 1.0M

27.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$3,848 Ft 1.2M

60.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$1,545 Ft 499.1K

-51.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

6.45

77.52%

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 Szentendre: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Szentendre

$560 38.5% 49.8% $186

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Szentendre

$242 16.7% 6.2% $16

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Szentendre

$196 13.5% 3.3% $6.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Szentendre

$207 14.3% 51.1% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Szentendre

$145 9.9% 28% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Szentendre

$61 4.2% 16.1% $12

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Szentendre

$44 3% 17.2% $9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $613 in Szentendre. 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 105% higher in Szentendre, 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 $56.0 in Szentendre. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Playa del Carmen vs $242 in Szentendre – so Szentendre wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇭🇺 Szentendre

🕒 Local time

06:36 6:36 AM

13:36 1:36 PM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

28,444

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Szentendre 9,460 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Szentendre

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 Szentendre: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Szentendre is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,182 in Szentendre. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $1,455 in Szentendre. That's a gap of about 20%.

Public transport costs about 3% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Szentendre at $1,455. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Szentendre it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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.

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 Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Szentendre makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.