Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ulsteinvik

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,608 in Ulsteinvik, rent and utilities included – about $16,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Ulsteinvik
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Ulsteinvik Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Ulsteinvik

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,608 in Ulsteinvik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Ulsteinvik $2,608

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,954 in Ulsteinvik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Ulsteinvik $3,954

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $5,301 in Ulsteinvik, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Ulsteinvik $5,301

Playa del Carmen is about 54% cheaper than Ulsteinvik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 10% below the global median, while Ulsteinvik is 93% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$20.24 NOK 191

-46.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$106 NOK 996

-59.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$13.39 NOK 126

-11.95%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$4.68 NOK 44.06

-17.31%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$4.17 NOK 39.26

-67.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$2.84 NOK 26.77

-70.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$13.40 NOK 126

-76.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$9.98 NOK 93.9

-49.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$2.50 NOK 23.54

-42.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$3.59 NOK 33.75

-37.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$3.81 NOK 35.86

-61.42%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$4.92 NOK 46.35

-48.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$13.40 NOK 126

-45.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$15.42 NOK 145

-49.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$31.06 NOK 292

-58.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$3.29 NOK 30.93

-11.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$2.70 NOK 25.44

-46.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$3.44 NOK 32.39

-25.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$4.77 NOK 44.87

-56.81%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$2.52 NOK 23.72

-20.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$2.93 NOK 27.55

-31.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.90 NOK 27.27

-58.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$2.55 NOK 23.97

-50.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$17.56 NOK 165

-74.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$16.52 NOK 156

-41.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$3.81 NOK 35.82

-58.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

$3.90 NOK 36.72

-27.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$4.86 NOK 45.79

-88.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

$85.7 NOK 806

-67.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$13.46 NOK 127

-63.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$1.73 NOK 16.25

102.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

$69.0 NOK 649

-92.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$2.13 NOK 20.01

-30.99%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$41.7K NOK 393.0K

-49.73%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$42.9K NOK 404.3K

-44.34%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$266 NOK 2,505

-68.35%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$29.25 NOK 275

-17.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$53.4 NOK 503

-45.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$48.70 NOK 458

29.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

$34.49 NOK 325

-15.51%

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$17.01 NOK 160

-70.96%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$214 NOK 2,017

-4.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$14.6K NOK 137.2K

-72.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$98.4 NOK 927

-55.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$49.95 NOK 470

-13.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$121 NOK 1,136

-37.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$135 NOK 1,271

-34.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$1,096 NOK 10.3K

-8.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$1,002 NOK 9,434

-62.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

$1,785 NOK 16.8K

-4.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

$1,659 NOK 15.6K

-33.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

$7,015 NOK 66.0K

-43.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

$4,138 NOK 39.0K

49.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.94

131.78%

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 Ulsteinvik: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Ulsteinvik

$1K 38.4% 168% $628

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Ulsteinvik

$492 18.9% 90.4% $234

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Ulsteinvik

$373 14.3% 84.5% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Ulsteinvik

$349 13.4% 154% $212

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Ulsteinvik

$182 7% 60.9% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Ulsteinvik

$83 3.2% 13.5% $9.8

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Ulsteinvik

$127 4.9% 142% $75

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,096 in Ulsteinvik. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $106 in Ulsteinvik. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $492 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇳🇴 Ulsteinvik

🕒 Local time

10:42 10:42 AM

17:42 5:42 PM

7 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

5,600

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, 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).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ulsteinvik 8,130 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ulsteinvik

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 Ulsteinvik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Ulsteinvik is pricier by about 115%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,912 in Ulsteinvik. 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 $2,608 in Ulsteinvik. That's a gap of about 115%.

Public transport costs about 208% 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 Ulsteinvik at $2,608. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ulsteinvik 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, Ulsteinvik makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.