Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Steinkjer and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $2,773 in Steinkjer, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Steinkjer
🇳🇴 Norway
$2,773
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,210
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,773 per month in Steinkjer vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Steinkjer $2,773
  • Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $3,905 per month in Steinkjer vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Steinkjer $3,905
  • Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $5,037 per month in Steinkjer vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Steinkjer $5,037
  • Playa del Carmen $3,016

Steinkjer costs about 129% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Steinkjer sits 105% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$20.51 NOK 193
$10.76 MX$199
90.61%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$58.2 NOK 548
$43.03 MX$795
35.23%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.52 NOK 127
$11.79 MX$218
14.67%
Cappuccino
$4.62 NOK 43.52
$3.87 MX$71.4
19.38%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.75 NOK 54.2
$1.37 MX$25.29
319.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.25 NOK 39.99
$0.84 MX$15.44
405.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$10.33 NOK 97.3
$3.10 MX$57.3
233.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.20 NOK 58.3
$5.07 MX$93.6
22.29%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.46 NOK 23.13
$1.44 MX$26.55
70.83%
White Bread (500g)
$3.46 NOK 32.61
$2.23 MX$41.23
55.16%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.60 NOK 33.88
$1.47 MX$27.17
144.90%
Eggs
$4.95 NOK 46.62
$2.53 MX$46.71
95.65%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.85 NOK 121
$7.30 MX$135
76.03%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$16.08 NOK 151
$7.86 MX$145
104.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$28.53 NOK 269
$12.79 MX$236
123.06%
Apples (1kg)
$3.91 NOK 36.76
$2.90 MX$53.6
34.83%
Banana (1kg)
$2.93 NOK 27.59
$1.44 MX$26.53
103.47%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.90 NOK 36.70
$2.55 MX$47.07
52.94%
Tomato (1kg)
$5.71 NOK 53.8
$2.06 MX$38.03
177.18%
Potato (1kg)
$2.89 NOK 27.18
$2.00 MX$36.97
44.50%
Onion (1kg)
$3.07 NOK 28.89
$2.01 MX$37.07
52.74%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.78 NOK 26.17
$1.19 MX$22.02
133.61%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.23 NOK 20.96
$1.26 MX$23.23
76.98%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$17.67 NOK 166
$4.40 MX$81.4
301.59%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.14 NOK 171
$9.59 MX$177
89.16%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.50 NOK 32.92
$1.59 MX$29.41
120.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.65 NOK 43.77
$2.81 MX$51.9
65.48%
🚌 Getting Around
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$4.21 NOK 39.65
$0.57 MX$10.47
638.60%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$85.6 NOK 805
$27.82 MX$514
207.51%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$9.24 NOK 87.0
$4.98 MX$92.1
85.54%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.61 NOK 15.17
$3.50 MX$64.6
-54.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$58.4 NOK 550
$5.40 MX$99.8
982.22%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.47 NOK 23.27
$1.47 MX$27.08
68.03%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$45.4K NOK 427.7K
$21.0K MX$387.8K
116.50%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$45.4K NOK 427.8K
$23.9K MX$441.8K
90.08%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$266 NOK 2,505
$84.2 MX$1,556
216.01%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$35.46 NOK 334
$23.99 MX$443
47.81%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$81.8 NOK 770
$29.02 MX$536
182.01%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$54.1 NOK 510
$63.0 MX$1,164
-14.04%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$41.52 NOK 391
$29.14 MX$539
42.48%
Cinema Ticket
$15.71 NOK 148
$4.94 MX$91.3
218.02%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$293 NOK 2,763
$204 MX$3,763
44.13%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,447 NOK 41.9K
$3,941 MX$72.8K
12.83%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$105 NOK 989
$43.60 MX$806
141.06%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$51.2 NOK 482
$43.12 MX$797
18.62%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$118 NOK 1,109
$75.8 MX$1,400
55.51%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$154 NOK 1,453
$88.6 MX$1,637
74.23%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,200 NOK 11.3K
$1,008 MX$18.6K
18.99%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,133 NOK 10.7K
$374 MX$6,911
202.89%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,078 NOK 19.6K
$1,708 MX$31.6K
21.64%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,580 NOK 14.9K
$1,106 MX$20.4K
42.84%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,718 NOK 63.2K
$3,944 MX$72.9K
70.31%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,607 NOK 34.0K
$6,169 MX$114.0K
-41.54%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Steinkjer
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$754 MX$13.9K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.32
11.45
-53.54%

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

Last update for Steinkjer: October 10, 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
Steinkjer
$1.1K
Playa del Carmen
$374 67% $759
Groceries & Markets
Steinkjer
$495
Playa del Carmen
$258 47.8% $237
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Steinkjer
$383
Playa del Carmen
$137 64.2% $246
Eating Out
Steinkjer
$364
Playa del Carmen
$202 44.5% $162
Clothing & Footwear
Steinkjer
$193
Playa del Carmen
$113 41.4% $80
Getting Around
Steinkjer
$120
Playa del Carmen
$53 56.1% $67
Sport & Entertainment
Steinkjer
$86
Playa del Carmen
$73 14.8% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,200 in Steinkjer 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Steinkjer versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $495 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇳🇴 Steinkjer
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
17:51 5:51 PM
10:51 10:51 AM
7 h behind Steinkjer
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
24,066
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Steinkjer Playa del Carmen 8,360 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Steinkjer
  • 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
Steinkjer vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Steinkjer?
Yes – Steinkjer is pricier by about 129%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,160 per month in Steinkjer and $1,816 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
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.
What are total monthly expenses in Steinkjer and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,773 in Steinkjer and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 129%.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 208% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Steinkjer or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Steinkjer at $2,773. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Steinkjer it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Steinkjer or Playa del Carmen more family-friendly?
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.
Which city is safer, Steinkjer or Playa del Carmen?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Steinkjer makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Steinkjer vs other spots: cost of living compared

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