Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Swords and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,598 in Swords, rent and utilities included – about $16,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Swords
Learn more

Swords Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Swords

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,598

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,598 per month in Swords vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Swords $2,598
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,804 per month in Swords vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Swords $3,804
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $5,010 per month in Swords vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Swords $5,010
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Swords costs about 116% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Swords sits 91% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.16 €19.86

$10.92 MX$203

102.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.6 €88.4

$43.37 MX$808

127.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 €11.83

$11.78 MX$219

12.05%

Cappuccino

$4.93 €4.42

$3.81 MX$71.0

29.40%

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

$2.98 €2.67

$1.28 MX$23.89

132.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 €1.94

$0.78 MX$14.58

176.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.03 €7.20

$3.17 MX$59.0

153.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.74 €6.04

$4.93 MX$91.9

36.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 €1.42

$1.41 MX$26.20

12.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.35 €2.10

$2.22 MX$41.30

5.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 €1.82

$1.42 MX$26.40

42.96%

Eggs

$4.24 €3.80

$2.52 MX$47.00

68.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.89 €8.87

$7.26 MX$135

36.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.86 €9.73

$7.70 MX$143

41.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.29 €11.91

$12.69 MX$236

4.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 €2.47

$2.78 MX$51.9

-1.08%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$1.37 MX$25.49

65.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.79 €2.50

$2.55 MX$47.52

9.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 €3.74

$2.12 MX$39.55

96.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.94 MX$36.11

-3.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.89 MX$35.13

-22.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.15 MX$21.36

13.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.70

$1.18 MX$21.96

61.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.52 €18.39

$4.30 MX$80.0

377.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.39 €12.00

$9.95 MX$185

34.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.35 €3.00

$1.58 MX$29.50

112.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 €3.09

$2.67 MX$49.76

29.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 €2.02

$0.55 MX$10.31

310.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$496

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 €4.48

$4.97 MX$92.6

0.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 €1.31

$3.33 MX$62.1

-55.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.35 €33.46

$5.36 MX$99.8

596.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 €1.94

$1.44 MX$26.90

50.00%

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

$38.6K €34.6K

$20.7K MX$385.0K

86.69%

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

$38.0K €34.0K

$23.5K MX$437.2K

61.92%

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

$246 €221

$84.8 MX$1,580

190.49%

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

$18.68 €16.74

$23.41 MX$436

-20.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.2 €45.85

$28.66 MX$534

78.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.58 €36.36

$57.1 MX$1,063

-28.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.91 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$13.43 €12.03

$5.14 MX$95.7

161.28%

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

$1,010 €905

$207 MX$3,848

388.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,183 €4,644

$3,927 MX$73.2K

31.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 €89.8

$43.35 MX$808

131.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.06 €43.06

$41.44 MX$772

15.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.9

$74.2 MX$1,382

45.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$89.3 MX$1,663

26.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,556 €1,394

$980 MX$18.2K

58.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 €1,202

$381 MX$7,095

252.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,584 €2,316

$1,708 MX$31.8K

51.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,165 €1,940

$1,075 MX$20.0K

101.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,721 €4,231

$3,943 MX$73.5K

19.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,447 €3,089

$6,158 MX$114.7K

-44.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.68

11.45

-67.86%

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

Last update for Swords: 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

Swords

$1.3K 51.7%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 71.6% $961

Eating Out

Swords

$350 13.5%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 42.2% $148

Groceries & Markets

Swords

$335 12.9%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 23.8% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Swords

$316 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 56.7% $179

Clothing & Footwear

Swords

$166 6.4%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 32.7% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Swords

$67 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 0.2% $0.1

Getting Around

Swords

$21 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 136% $29

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,556 in Swords 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $99 in Swords versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $335 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Swords

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

04:42 4:42 AM

23:42 11:42 PM

5 h behind Swords

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,776

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Swords Playa del Carmen 7,580 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Swords
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

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

Yes – Swords is pricier by about 116%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,897 per month in Swords 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 $1,556 in Swords.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,598 in Swords and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 54% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $1,010 per month in Swords and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Swords at $2,598. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Swords 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.