Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Skien and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,336 in Skien, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Skien
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Skien Living Index
59

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

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Skien

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,336

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,336 per month in Skien vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Skien $2,336
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $3,267 per month in Skien vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Skien $3,267
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $4,197 per month in Skien vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Skien $4,197
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Skien costs about 93% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Skien sits 73% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.21 NOK 200

$10.76 MX$199

97.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$103 NOK 971

$43.03 MX$795

139.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.47 NOK 146

$11.79 MX$218

31.21%

Cappuccino

$5.11 NOK 48.11

$3.87 MX$71.4

32.04%

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

$4.36 NOK 41.01

$1.37 MX$25.29

218.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 NOK 27.96

$0.84 MX$15.44

253.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.89 NOK 112

$3.10 MX$57.3

283.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.33 NOK 116

$5.07 MX$93.6

143.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 NOK 19.84

$1.44 MX$26.55

46.53%

White Bread (500g)

$3.92 NOK 36.90

$2.23 MX$41.23

75.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.57 NOK 42.98

$1.47 MX$27.17

210.88%

Eggs

$5.66 NOK 53.3

$2.53 MX$46.71

123.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.16 NOK 124

$7.30 MX$135

80.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.17 NOK 143

$7.86 MX$145

93.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.79 NOK 205

$12.79 MX$236

70.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.35 NOK 31.49

$2.90 MX$53.6

15.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.70 NOK 25.42

$1.44 MX$26.53

87.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.49 NOK 32.86

$2.55 MX$47.07

36.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.95 NOK 56.0

$2.06 MX$38.03

188.83%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 NOK 21.04

$2.00 MX$36.97

12.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.78 NOK 26.12

$2.01 MX$37.07

38.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.04 NOK 28.63

$1.19 MX$22.02

155.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 NOK 23.33

$1.26 MX$23.23

96.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.02 NOK 179

$4.40 MX$81.4

332.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.76 NOK 148

$9.59 MX$177

64.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.35 NOK 31.58

$1.59 MX$29.41

110.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 NOK 40.76

$2.81 MX$51.9

54.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.26 NOK 30.64

$0.57 MX$10.47

471.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.91 NOK 451

$27.82 MX$514

72.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.13 NOK 105

$4.98 MX$92.1

123.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NOK 17.02

$3.50 MX$64.6

-48.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 NOK 667

$5.40 MX$99.8

1211.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.27 NOK 21.39

$1.47 MX$27.08

54.42%

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

$47.5K NOK 447.3K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

126.41%

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

$43.4K NOK 408.1K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

81.36%

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

$93.9 NOK 884

$84.2 MX$1,556

11.46%

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

$33.89 NOK 319

$23.99 MX$443

41.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 NOK 504

$29.02 MX$536

84.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.10 NOK 406

$63.0 MX$1,164

-31.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$15.29 NOK 144

$4.94 MX$91.3

209.51%

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

$239 NOK 2,247

$204 MX$3,763

17.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K NOK 148.1K

$3,941 MX$72.8K

299.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 NOK 600

$43.60 MX$806

46.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.4 NOK 568

$43.12 MX$797

39.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.9 NOK 827

$75.8 MX$1,400

16.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$153 NOK 1,442

$88.6 MX$1,637

72.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 NOK 9,811

$1,008 MX$18.6K

3.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$975 NOK 9,183

$374 MX$6,911

160.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,035 NOK 9,746

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-39.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$939 NOK 8,841

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-15.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,395 NOK 32.0K

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-13.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,149 NOK 29.6K

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-48.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,236 NOK 39.9K

$754 MX$13.9K

461.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

11.45

-61.83%

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

Last update for Skien: October 12, 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

Skien

$975 41.8%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 61.7% $601

Groceries & Markets

Skien

$470 20.1%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 45% $211

Eating Out

Skien

$391 16.7%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 48.2% $189

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Skien

$181 7.8%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 24.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Skien

$164 7%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 31.2% $51

Getting Around

Skien

$81 3.5%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 35.2% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Skien

$74 3.2%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 1.1% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,042 in Skien 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 462% higher in Skien, 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 $103 in Skien versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $470 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Skien

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

17:10 5:10 PM

10:10 10:10 AM

7 h behind Skien

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,769

149,923

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 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 NOK in detail →

On the map

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Skien Playa del Carmen 8,410 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Skien
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

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

Yes – Skien is pricier by about 93%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,504 per month in Skien 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 $2,336 in Skien and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 93%.

Public transport costs about 72% 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 Skien at $2,336. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Skien 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, Skien makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.