Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Qena and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Qena: $435 a month against $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

21

Cost of Living Index in Qena
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Qena Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Qena

🇪🇬 Egypt

$435

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Qena and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $435 per month in Qena vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Qena $435
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $698 per month in Qena vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Qena $698
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $961 per month in Qena vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Qena $961
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Qena is about 64% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Qena and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Qena 68% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.62 E£200

$10.67 MX$199

-66.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.42 E£797

$43.80 MX$815

-67.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.41 E£299

$11.79 MX$219

-54.11%

Cappuccino

$1.94 E£107

$3.79 MX$70.5

-48.81%

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

$0.45 E£24.87

$1.30 MX$24.14

-65.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 E£9.22

$0.83 MX$15.51

-79.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.76 E£97.5

$3.15 MX$58.6

-44.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 E£163

$4.93 MX$91.8

-40.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.88 E£48.40

$1.41 MX$26.22

-37.59%

White Bread (500g)

$0.74 E£40.70

$2.20 MX$40.86

-66.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.59 E£32.60

$1.47 MX$27.40

-59.86%

Eggs

$1.82 E£101

$2.50 MX$46.46

-27.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.00 E£166

$7.29 MX$136

-58.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.39 E£298

$7.95 MX$148

-32.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.34 E£516

$12.86 MX$239

-27.37%

Apples (1kg)

$1.39 E£76.9

$2.90 MX$53.9

-52.07%

Banana (1kg)

$0.46 E£25.29

$1.38 MX$25.74

-66.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.39 E£21.37

$2.49 MX$46.35

-84.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.40 E£22.02

$2.03 MX$37.77

-80.30%

Potato (1kg)

$0.32 E£17.81

$2.02 MX$37.68

-84.16%

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 E£19.15

$1.90 MX$35.42

-81.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.25 E£13.75

$1.14 MX$21.30

-78.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.19 E£10.37

$1.24 MX$23.05

-84.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.03 E£112

$4.27 MX$79.5

-52.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.00 E£387

$9.81 MX$183

-28.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 E£63.6

$1.59 MX$29.51

-27.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 E£90.4

$2.75 MX$51.1

-40.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 E£10.28

$0.51 MX$9.58

-62.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.37 E£20.63

$4.76 MX$88.6

-92.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 E£9.31

$3.25 MX$60.5

-94.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.13 E£62.3

$5.39 MX$100

-79.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.39 E£21.59

$1.53 MX$28.44

-74.51%

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

$29.8K E£1.6M

$21.2K MX$394.8K

40.36%

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

$22.3K E£1.2M

$23.3K MX$432.9K

-4.10%

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

$24.29 E£1,343

$83.5 MX$1,554

-70.91%

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

$7.30 E£404

$23.19 MX$431

-68.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.00 E£498

$27.61 MX$514

-67.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$14.93 E£826

$56.4 MX$1,050

-73.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

Cinema Ticket

$3.34 E£185

$5.00 MX$93.1

-33.20%

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

$96.9 E£5,355

$207 MX$3,854

-53.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$584 E£32.3K

$5,231 MX$97.3K

-88.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$19.39 E£1,072

$43.45 MX$809

-55.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.34 E£1,733

$42.54 MX$792

-26.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 E£6,001

$72.8 MX$1,354

49.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$26.25 E£1,452

$88.4 MX$1,645

-70.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$127 E£7,042

$995 MX$18.5K

-87.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$70.9 E£3,919

$382 MX$7,116

-81.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$245 E£13.5K

$1,674 MX$31.2K

-85.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$136 E£7,530

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-87.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$720 E£39.8K

$3,909 MX$72.7K

-81.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$323 E£17.9K

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-94.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.21

11.45

41.57%

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

Last update for Qena: November 2, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Qena

$131 30.1%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 96.6% $127

Eating Out

Qena

$86 19.7%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 134% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Qena

$83 19.2%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 33.2% $28

Accommodation & Living

Qena

$71 16.3%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 440% $312

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Qena

$41 9.3%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 231% $94

Sport & Entertainment

Qena

$22 5%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 207% $45

Getting Around

Qena

$2 * 0.5%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 2474% $48

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $127 in Qena versus $995 in Playa del Carmen. 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 $14 in Qena versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $131 vs $257 – making Qena the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Qena

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

22:42 10:42 PM

15:42 3:42 PM

7 h behind Qena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

235,362

149,923

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.81 USD

100 EGP = 1.62 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 55.29 EGP (100 EGP = 1.81 USD). 1 EUR = 61.83 EGP (100 EGP = 1.62 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.81 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Qena Playa del Carmen 11,700 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Qena
Playa del Carmen

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

Qena vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 176%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $653 per month in Qena and $1,804 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Qena, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $127 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $435 in Qena and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Qena about 64% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $97 per month in Qena and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Qena, where all-in costs run around $435, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,202. In Qena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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