Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Scarborough and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,130 in Scarborough, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Scarborough
Learn more

Scarborough Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Scarborough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,130

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,130 per month in Scarborough vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Scarborough $2,130
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,096 per month in Scarborough vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Scarborough $3,096
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $4,062 per month in Scarborough vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Scarborough $4,062
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Scarborough costs about 77% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Scarborough sits 57% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.36 £11.53

$10.86 MX$201

41.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.1 £53.4

$44.21 MX$817

60.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.12 £9.09

$11.76 MX$217

3.06%

Cappuccino

$3.51 £2.63

$3.68 MX$68.0

-4.62%

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

$2.05 £1.53

$1.34 MX$24.79

52.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 £0.77

$0.82 MX$15.24

24.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.58 £3.44

$3.06 MX$56.6

49.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.29 £3.22

$4.94 MX$91.2

-13.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.47 MX$27.17

-12.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 £1.03

$2.22 MX$40.95

-38.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.08 £0.81

$1.48 MX$27.32

-27.03%

Eggs

$3.60 £2.70

$2.49 MX$45.99

44.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.92 £5.94

$7.52 MX$139

5.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.18 £5.39

$7.96 MX$147

-9.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.94 £10.46

$12.57 MX$232

10.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 £2.35

$2.78 MX$51.3

12.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.43 MX$26.37

39.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 £1.99

$2.62 MX$48.37

1.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.09 £1.57

$2.14 MX$39.49

-2.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.30

$2.02 MX$37.38

-13.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.99 MX$36.74

-18.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.87

$1.14 MX$21.01

0.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 £1.43

$1.20 MX$22.18

59.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.58 £16.94

$4.26 MX$78.7

430.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 £7.19

$10.02 MX$185

-4.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.65 £2.74

$1.54 MX$28.41

137.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.60 £2.70

$2.66 MX$49.17

35.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.30 £2.48

$0.53 MX$9.73

522.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.0 £64.5

$27.51 MX$508

212.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.73 £4.30

$4.90 MX$90.6

16.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.97 £3.73

$3.43 MX$63.5

44.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.58 £25.19

$5.38 MX$99.4

524.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 £1.48

$1.45 MX$26.76

36.55%

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

$36.0K £27.0K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

70.01%

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

$39.9K £29.9K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

73.40%

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

$356 £267

$85.4 MX$1,577

317.13%

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

$25.99 £19.50

$23.46 MX$434

10.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 £24.56

$28.43 MX$525

15.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.1 £49.59

$62.2 MX$1,149

6.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.67 £9.50

$28.68 MX$530

-55.82%

Cinema Ticket

$10.66 £7.99

$5.10 MX$94.3

109.02%

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

$1,804 £1,353

$201 MX$3,715

797.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K £11.1K

$3,947 MX$72.9K

273.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.3 £49.73

$44.39 MX$820

49.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.54 £26.66

$41.35 MX$764

-14.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.3

$72.7 MX$1,344

48.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 £85.2

$89.6 MX$1,656

26.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$867 £651

$979 MX$18.1K

-11.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$831 £624

$373 MX$6,887

122.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,524 £1,143

$1,681 MX$31.1K

-9.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,365 £1,024

$1,095 MX$20.2K

24.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$910 £683

$738 MX$13.6K

23.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.53

11.45

-51.70%

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

Last update for Scarborough: October 18, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Scarborough

$831 39%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 55.2% $458

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Scarborough

$415 19.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 66.9% $278

Groceries & Markets

Scarborough

$276 13%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 6.4% $18

Eating Out

Scarborough

$245 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 18.3% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Scarborough

$146 6.8%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 23.4% $34

Getting Around

Scarborough

$130 6.1%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 60.2% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Scarborough

$87 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 17.2% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $867 in Scarborough versus $979 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 23% higher in Scarborough, 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 $71.0 in Scarborough versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $276 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Scarborough

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

00:29 12:29 AM

18:29 6:29 PM

6 h behind Scarborough

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

61,749

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Scarborough Playa del Carmen 7,950 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Scarborough
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

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

Yes – Scarborough is pricier by about 77%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,195 per month in Scarborough 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,130 in Scarborough and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 77%.

Public transport costs about 213% 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 Scarborough at $2,130. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Scarborough 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, Scarborough makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.