Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rockville, MD and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $3,247 in Rockville, MD, rent and utilities included – about $24,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

157

Cost of Living Index in Rockville, MD
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Rockville, MD Living Index
58

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

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Rockville, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$3,247

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,247 per month in Rockville, MD vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Rockville, MD $3,247
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $4,701 per month in Rockville, MD vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Rockville, MD $4,701
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $6,154 per month in Rockville, MD vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Rockville, MD $6,154
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Rockville, MD costs about 170% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Rockville, MD sits 139% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.62 $22.62

$10.92 MX$204

107.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.7 $74.7

$43.37 MX$808

72.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 $10.19

$11.78 MX$220

-13.50%

Cappuccino

$5.31 $5.31

$3.81 MX$71.0

39.37%

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

$2.42 $2.42

$1.28 MX$23.90

89.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$0.78 MX$14.59

126.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 $6.63

$3.17 MX$59.0

109.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.47 $7.47

$4.93 MX$92.0

51.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.41 MX$26.22

-19.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.22 MX$41.33

34.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 $2.66

$1.42 MX$26.42

87.32%

Eggs

$3.81 $3.81

$2.52 MX$47.03

51.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.75 $9.75

$7.26 MX$135

34.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.32 $9.32

$7.70 MX$143

21.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.29 $18.29

$12.69 MX$237

44.13%

Apples (1kg)

$4.74 $4.74

$2.78 MX$51.9

70.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.37 MX$25.50

-7.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.55 MX$47.55

71.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.87 $3.87

$2.12 MX$39.58

82.55%

Potato (1kg)

$2.60 $2.60

$1.94 MX$36.13

34.02%

Onion (1kg)

$2.46 $2.46

$1.89 MX$35.16

30.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.59 $2.59

$1.15 MX$21.37

125.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 $1.80

$1.18 MX$21.98

52.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.00 $14.00

$4.30 MX$80.1

225.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.48 $14.48

$9.95 MX$185

45.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.41 $2.41

$1.58 MX$29.52

52.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 $3.76

$2.67 MX$49.79

40.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 $3.16

$0.55 MX$10.31

474.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$110 $110

$26.62 MX$496

313.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.05 $5.05

$4.97 MX$92.6

1.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.11 $1.11

$3.33 MX$62.1

-66.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.29 $23.29

$5.36 MX$99.8

334.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 $1.07

$1.44 MX$26.92

-25.69%

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

$34.3K $34.3K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

65.84%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

12.13%

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

$297 $297

$84.8 MX$1,581

250.80%

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

$50.7 $50.7

$23.41 MX$436

116.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.6 $60.6

$28.66 MX$534

111.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.82 $42.82

$57.1 MX$1,063

-24.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.46 $12.46

$28.91 MX$539

-56.90%

Cinema Ticket

$16.64 $16.64

$5.14 MX$95.8

223.74%

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

$1,934 $1,934

$207 MX$3,851

836.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.7K $27.7K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

604.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.01 $46.01

$43.35 MX$808

6.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.71 $39.71

$41.44 MX$772

-4.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.5 $88.5

$74.2 MX$1,383

19.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 $133

$89.3 MX$1,664

48.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,213 $2,213

$980 MX$18.3K

125.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,791 $1,791

$381 MX$7,099

370.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,763 $3,763

$1,708 MX$31.8K

120.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,061 $3,061

$1,075 MX$20.0K

184.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,172 $4,172

$3,943 MX$73.5K

5.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,976 $2,976

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-51.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,378 $6,378

$735 MX$13.7K

768.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.46

11.45

-43.58%

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

Last update for Rockville, MD: October 26, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rockville, MD

$1.8K 55.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 78.7% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rockville, MD

$409 12.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 66.5% $272

Groceries & Markets

Rockville, MD

$359 11.1%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 29% $104

Eating Out

Rockville, MD

$340 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 40.5% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Rockville, MD

$138 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 19.1% $26

Getting Around

Rockville, MD

$133 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 62.2% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Rockville, MD

$76 2.3%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 11.5% $8.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,213 in Rockville, MD versus $980 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 in Rockville, MD are about 8.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75 in Rockville, MD versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $359 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Rockville, MD

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:05 3:05 PM

14:05 2:05 PM

1 h behind Rockville, MD

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,139

149,923

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Rockville, MD Playa del Carmen 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Rockville, MD
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

Rockville, MD vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Rockville, MD is pricier by about 170%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,870 per month in Rockville, MD and $1,806 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $980 there versus $2,213 in Rockville, MD.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,247 in Rockville, MD and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 170%.

Public transport costs about 76% 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 $1,204, than in Rockville, MD at $3,247. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rockville, MD 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.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Rockville, MD makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.