Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St Helens and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,993 in St Helens, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

97

Cost of Living Index in St Helens
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St Helens Living Index
59

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

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St Helens

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,993

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,993 per month in St Helens vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

St Helens $1,993
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $3,045 per month in St Helens vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

St Helens $3,045
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $4,098 per month in St Helens vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

St Helens $4,098
Playa del Carmen $3,016

St Helens costs about 65% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

St Helens sits 48% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.90 £20.18

$10.76 MX$199

150.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.6 £59.0

$43.03 MX$795

82.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.48 £7.86

$11.79 MX$218

-11.11%

Cappuccino

$4.08 £3.06

$3.87 MX$71.4

5.43%

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

$2.37 £1.78

$1.37 MX$25.29

72.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 £1.50

$0.84 MX$15.44

136.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.36 £4.02

$3.10 MX$57.3

72.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 £3.41

$5.07 MX$93.6

-10.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 £1.01

$1.44 MX$26.55

-6.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 £1.33

$2.23 MX$41.23

-20.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 £1.46

$1.47 MX$27.17

31.97%

Eggs

$4.01 £3.01

$2.53 MX$46.71

58.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.00 £6.75

$7.30 MX$135

23.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.28 £6.21

$7.86 MX$145

5.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.66 £7.99

$12.79 MX$236

-16.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.25 £2.44

$2.90 MX$53.6

12.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.97

$1.44 MX$26.53

-9.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.27

$2.55 MX$47.07

18.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.45 £2.59

$2.06 MX$38.03

67.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 £0.86

$2.00 MX$36.97

-42.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$2.01 MX$37.07

-8.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.19 MX$22.02

9.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.26 MX$23.23

3.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.59 £14.70

$4.40 MX$81.4

345.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.96 £7.47

$9.59 MX$177

3.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 £2.14

$1.59 MX$29.41

79.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.61 £1.95

$2.81 MX$51.9

-7.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.65 £1.99

$0.57 MX$10.47

364.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$100 £75.1

$27.82 MX$514

259.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.37 £2.53

$4.98 MX$92.1

-32.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 £1.56

$3.50 MX$64.6

-40.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.82 £11.87

$5.40 MX$99.8

192.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.94 £1.46

$1.47 MX$27.08

31.97%

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

$26.4K £19.8K

$21.0K MX$387.8K

25.85%

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

$33.6K £25.2K

$23.9K MX$441.8K

40.71%

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

$365 £274

$84.2 MX$1,556

332.99%

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

$17.20 £12.91

$23.99 MX$443

-28.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.87 £32.91

$29.02 MX$536

51.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.94 £20.21

$63.0 MX$1,164

-57.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.85 £2.89

$29.14 MX$539

-86.79%

Cinema Ticket

$13.42 £10.07

$4.94 MX$91.3

171.66%

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

$805 £604

$204 MX$3,763

295.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,625 £4,971

$3,941 MX$72.8K

68.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.0 £48.78

$43.60 MX$806

49.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.08 £29.32

$43.12 MX$797

-9.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.3 £54.3

$75.8 MX$1,400

-4.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 £81.7

$88.6 MX$1,637

22.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$797 £598

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-20.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$636 £477

$374 MX$6,911

69.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,503 £1,128

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-12.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,257 £943

$1,106 MX$20.4K

13.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,315 £2,487

$3,944 MX$72.9K

-15.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,308 £1,731

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-62.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,863 £1,398

$754 MX$13.9K

147.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.21

11.45

-54.50%

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

Last update for St Helens: 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

St Helens

$636 31.9%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 41.2% $262

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St Helens

$426 21.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 67.8% $288

Eating Out

St Helens

$349 17.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 42% $147

Groceries & Markets

St Helens

$276 13.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 6.4% $18

Clothing & Footwear

St Helens

$128 6.4%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 12% $15

Getting Around

St Helens

$124 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 57.8% $72

Sport & Entertainment

St Helens

$54 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 35.5% $19

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $797 in St Helens 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 147% higher in St Helens, 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 $79.0 in St Helens versus $43.00 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

🇬🇧 St Helens

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

00:47 12:47 AM

18:47 6:47 PM

6 h behind St Helens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

183,200

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 19, 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 19, 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 →

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Between locations

St Helens Playa del Carmen 7,810 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

St Helens
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

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

Yes – St Helens is pricier by about 65%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,989 per month in St Helens 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 $1,993 in St Helens and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 65%.

Public transport costs about 260% 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 St Helens at $1,993. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in St Helens 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, St Helens makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.