Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Varanasi

For one person, living is cheaper in Varanasi: $293 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
14

Cost of Living Index in Varanasi
Learn more

Varanasi Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Varanasi

🇮🇳 India

$293

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $293 in Varanasi, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Varanasi $293

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $483 in Varanasi, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Varanasi $483

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $672 in Varanasi, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Varanasi $672

Playa del Carmen costs about 310% more than Varanasi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Varanasi are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Varanasi 78% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$1.89 ₹179

464.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$8.02 ₹760

446.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$3.21 ₹305

267.29%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$1.65 ₹156

129.70%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$0.41 ₹38.77

217.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$0.11 ₹10.11

654.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$1.62 ₹153

94.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$2.12 ₹201

132.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$0.66 ₹62.7

113.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$0.29 ₹27.26

658.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$0.54 ₹50.7

172.22%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.46

$0.83 ₹78.6

201.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$3.28 ₹310

122.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$2.13 ₹202

273.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$1.43 ₹135

102.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$0.65 ₹61.3

112.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.35

$0.89 ₹84.5

179.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.77

$0.35 ₹32.74

480.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.68

$0.26 ₹24.70

676.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$0.24 ₹22.73

691.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$0.46 ₹43.31

147.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.05

$0.28 ₹26.59

342.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$3.20 ₹303

33.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$5.83 ₹553

68.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$1.61 ₹153

-1.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$1.98 ₹187

38.89%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.24 ₹402

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$0.55 ₹52.5

-7.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$9.71 ₹920

182.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$0.24 ₹22.72

1883.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$0.12 ₹10.98

2608.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$1.04 ₹98.9

418.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.05 ₹100.0

45.71%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$11.3K ₹1.1M

88.24%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$22.2K ₹2.1M

4.75%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$12.68 ₹1,202

558.44%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$3.63 ₹344

538.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$6.84 ₹648

303.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$12.72 ₹1,205

343.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$2.91 ₹275

71.82%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$38.77 ₹3,673

434.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.3K

$1,088 ₹103.1K

380.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$23.62 ₹2,238

83.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$25.11 ₹2,379

69.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$38.81 ₹3,677

87.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$25.32 ₹2,398

249.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$114 ₹10.8K

773.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$46.99 ₹4,452

713.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$200 ₹18.9K

739.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$140 ₹13.3K

672.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$560 ₹53.0K

598.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$340 ₹32.2K

1705.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

$575 ₹54.4K

44.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

8.53

34.23%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Varanasi: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Varanasi

$47 16% 87.7% $335

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Varanasi

$82 28% 68.2% $176

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Varanasi

$59 20.1% 70.6% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Varanasi

$23 7.9% 82.8% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Varanasi

$51 17.3% 54.3% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Varanasi

$19 6.3% 72.1% $48

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Varanasi

$13 4.4% 74.7% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $114 in Varanasi. 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 45% 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $8 in Varanasi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $82 – making Varanasi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇮🇳 Varanasi

🕒 Local time

11:26 11:26 AM

21:56 9:56 PM

10 h 30 min ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

3,100,000

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.8 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.56 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.83 MXN (100 MXN = 4.8 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 94.74 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Varanasi 14,790 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Varanasi

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 Varanasi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 310%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $440 in Varanasi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Varanasi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $114 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $293 in Varanasi. That makes Varanasi about 76% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 65% less in Varanasi. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Varanasi, where all-in costs run around $293, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Varanasi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Varanasi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Varanasi. 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.