Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riehen and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $3,372 in Riehen, rent and utilities included – about $25,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

164

Cost of Living Index in Riehen
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Riehen Living Index
59

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

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Riehen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,372

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,372 per month in Riehen vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Riehen $3,372
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $5,084 per month in Riehen vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Riehen $5,084
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $6,797 per month in Riehen vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Riehen $6,797
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Riehen costs about 179% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Riehen sits 150% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.55 CHF 24.34

$10.76 MX$199

174.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$120 CHF 98.5

$43.03 MX$795

177.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.72 CHF 12.94

$11.79 MX$218

33.33%

Cappuccino

$6.21 CHF 5.11

$3.87 MX$71.4

60.47%

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

$4.98 CHF 4.10

$1.37 MX$25.29

263.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.26 CHF 4.33

$0.84 MX$15.44

526.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.15 CHF 5.89

$3.10 MX$57.3

130.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.57 CHF 5.41

$5.07 MX$93.6

29.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.13 CHF 1.75

$1.44 MX$26.55

47.92%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CHF 2.59

$2.23 MX$41.23

40.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.51 CHF 2.89

$1.47 MX$27.17

138.78%

Eggs

$7.13 CHF 5.87

$2.53 MX$46.71

181.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.83 CHF 20.45

$7.30 MX$135

240.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$24.86 CHF 20.48

$7.86 MX$145

216.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$37.07 CHF 30.53

$12.79 MX$236

189.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.52 CHF 2.90

$2.90 MX$53.6

21.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 CHF 1.33

$1.44 MX$26.53

11.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.51 CHF 2.07

$2.55 MX$47.07

-1.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.36 CHF 3.59

$2.06 MX$38.03

111.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 CHF 1.46

$2.00 MX$36.97

-11.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.09 CHF 1.72

$2.01 MX$37.07

3.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 CHF 1.80

$1.19 MX$22.02

84.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 CHF 1.02

$1.26 MX$23.23

-2.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.91 CHF 8.99

$4.40 MX$81.4

147.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.39 CHF 8.56

$9.59 MX$177

8.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.48 CHF 2.87

$1.59 MX$29.41

118.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 CHF 1.91

$2.81 MX$51.9

-17.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.45 CHF 3.67

$0.57 MX$10.47

680.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.6 CHF 81.2

$27.82 MX$514

254.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.84 CHF 8.11

$4.98 MX$92.1

97.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.02 CHF 3.31

$3.50 MX$64.6

14.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$73.6 CHF 60.6

$5.40 MX$99.8

1262.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.47 MX$27.08

48.30%

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

$41.5K CHF 34.1K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

97.57%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.3K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

64.19%

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

$339 CHF 280

$84.2 MX$1,556

303.11%

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

$41.49 CHF 34.17

$23.99 MX$443

72.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.6 CHF 46.59

$29.02 MX$536

94.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$88.7 CHF 73.1

$63.0 MX$1,164

40.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.01 CHF 37.07

$29.14 MX$539

54.46%

Cinema Ticket

$21.40 CHF 17.63

$4.94 MX$91.3

333.20%

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

$1,786 CHF 1,471

$204 MX$3,763

777.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.6K CHF 30.2K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

829.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 CHF 84.0

$43.60 MX$806

133.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.0 CHF 46.94

$43.12 MX$797

32.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$165 CHF 136

$75.8 MX$1,400

118.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$183 CHF 151

$88.6 MX$1,637

106.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,680 CHF 1,384

$1,008 MX$18.6K

66.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 CHF 1,186

$374 MX$6,911

284.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,422 CHF 2,819

$1,708 MX$31.6K

100.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,418 CHF 1,992

$1,106 MX$20.4K

118.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$15.7K CHF 12.9K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

297.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.0K CHF 9,867

$6,169 MX$114.0K

94.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$8,642 CHF 7,118

$754 MX$13.9K

1045.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.31

11.45

-79.83%

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

Last update for Riehen: October 11, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Riehen

$1.4K 42.7%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 74% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Riehen

$540 16%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 52.2% $282

Eating Out

Riehen

$448 13.3%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 54.8% $246

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riehen

$438 13%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 68.6% $300

Clothing & Footwear

Riehen

$228 6.8%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 50.5% $115

Getting Around

Riehen

$146 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 64.1% $94

Sport & Entertainment

Riehen

$132 3.9%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 44.6% $59

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,680 in Riehen versus $1,008 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 1046% higher in Riehen, 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 $120 in Riehen versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $540 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Riehen

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

09:21 9:21 AM

02:21 2:21 AM

7 h behind Riehen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,970

149,923

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

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).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Riehen Playa del Carmen 8,670 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Riehen
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

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

Yes – Riehen is pricier by about 179%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,057 per month in Riehen and $1,816 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 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 $3,372 in Riehen and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 179%.

Public transport costs about 254% 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 Riehen at $3,372. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Riehen 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, Riehen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.