Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ratnapura and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Ratnapura: $471 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Ratnapura
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Ratnapura Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Ratnapura

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$471

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,215

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ratnapura 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 Ratnapura and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $471 per month in Ratnapura vs $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ratnapura $471
Playa del Carmen $1,215

A couple spends around $766 per month in Ratnapura vs $2,144 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ratnapura $766
Playa del Carmen $2,144

A family of three spends $1,062 per month in Ratnapura vs $3,072 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Ratnapura $1,062
Playa del Carmen $3,072

Ratnapura is about 61% cheaper than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ratnapura and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Ratnapura 65% lower, Playa del Carmen 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.99 LKR 659

$10.97 MX$201

-81.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$9.15 LKR 3,028

$44.85 MX$823

-79.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.89 LKR 1,949

$11.92 MX$219

-50.59%

Cappuccino

$2.17 LKR 718

$3.80 MX$69.9

-42.89%

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

$0.74 LKR 245

$1.31 MX$24.08

-43.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 LKR 155

$0.86 MX$15.72

-45.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.93 LKR 639

$3.21 MX$59.0

-39.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 LKR 908

$5.01 MX$92.0

-45.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 LKR 586

$1.46 MX$26.77

21.23%

White Bread (500g)

$0.75 LKR 247

$2.33 MX$42.72

-67.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.63 LKR 208

$1.44 MX$26.48

-56.25%

Eggs

$1.11 LKR 368

$2.46 MX$45.20

-54.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.11 LKR 5,000

$7.70 MX$141

96.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.30 LKR 2,086

$7.89 MX$145

-20.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.80 LKR 5,228

$12.80 MX$235

23.44%

Apples (1kg)

$4.18 LKR 1,382

$2.92 MX$53.6

43.15%

Banana (1kg)

$0.72 LKR 237

$1.42 MX$26.11

-49.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.22 LKR 1,397

$2.57 MX$47.10

64.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.99 LKR 329

$2.14 MX$39.24

-53.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.05 LKR 348

$1.95 MX$35.75

-46.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 LKR 451

$1.94 MX$35.55

-29.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 LKR 154

$1.15 MX$21.13

-59.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 LKR 145

$1.22 MX$22.42

-63.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.91 LKR 4,270

$4.38 MX$80.3

194.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.87 LKR 4,259

$9.85 MX$181

30.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 LKR 691

$1.54 MX$28.23

35.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 LKR 931

$2.72 MX$49.86

3.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 LKR 124

$0.52 MX$9.64

-28.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.42 MX$503

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.38 LKR 125

$4.91 MX$90.2

-92.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 LKR 145

$3.52 MX$64.7

-87.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.69 MX$104

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.97 LKR 322

$1.54 MX$28.27

-37.01%

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

$19.5K LKR 6.4M

$21.2K MX$389.9K

-8.23%

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

$19.6K LKR 6.5M

$24.5K MX$449.6K

-19.91%

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

$83.6 MX$1,535

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

$2.08 LKR 688

$24.03 MX$441

-91.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.36 LKR 2,434

$29.33 MX$539

-74.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$9.19 LKR 3,041

$64.9 MX$1,191

-85.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 MX$541

Cinema Ticket

$2.46 LKR 815

$5.09 MX$93.4

-51.67%

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

$208 MX$3,813

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,045 MX$74.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$10.68 LKR 3,535

$44.55 MX$818

-76.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$7.54 LKR 2,495

$42.06 MX$772

-82.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.6 LKR 28.3K

$75.5 MX$1,387

13.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$25.29 LKR 8,365

$91.4 MX$1,678

-72.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$76.6 LKR 25.4K

$986 MX$18.1K

-92.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$54.9 LKR 18.1K

$385 MX$7,072

-85.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 MX$31.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$83.2 LKR 27.5K

$1,108 MX$20.4K

-92.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,016 MX$73.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,247 MX$114.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$167 LKR 55.3K

$758 MX$13.9K

-77.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

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

Last update for Ratnapura: October 5, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ratnapura

$258 54%

Playa del Carmen

$260 21.2% 0.8% $2

Eating Out

Ratnapura

$80 16.7%

Playa del Carmen

$204 16.6% 156% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Ratnapura

$58 12.1%

Playa del Carmen

$114 9.3% 96.3% $56

Accommodation & Living

Ratnapura

$55 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$385 31.4% 602% $330

Sport & Entertainment

Ratnapura

$14 3%

Playa del Carmen

$75 6.1% 431% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ratnapura

$9.4 * 2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.2% 1351% $128

Getting Around

Ratnapura

$4.1 * 0.9%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.2% 1182% $48

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $76.6 in Ratnapura versus $986 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.

Salaries run about 353% 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 $9.00 in Ratnapura versus $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $260 – making Ratnapura the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇰 Ratnapura

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

18:09 6:09 PM

07:39 7:39 AM

10 h 30 min behind Ratnapura

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

52,100

149,923

💱 Currency

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to LKR – Sri Lankan Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇰 Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs)

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 371 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

USD to LKR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ratnapura Playa del Carmen 16,680 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Ratnapura
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

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

Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 158%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $706 per month in Ratnapura and $1,823 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 Ratnapura, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 1% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $9.00 in Ratnapura and $45.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ratnapura, where all-in costs run around $471, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,215. In Ratnapura it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ratnapura – 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 Ratnapura. 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.