Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Trondheim and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,999 in Trondheim, rent and utilities included – about $21,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Trondheim, Norway
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Trondheim
🇳🇴 Norway
$2,999
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,202
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,999 per month in Trondheim vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Trondheim $2,999
  • Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $4,365 per month in Trondheim vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Trondheim $4,365
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $5,732 per month in Trondheim vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Trondheim $5,732
  • Playa del Carmen $2,962

Trondheim costs about 149% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Trondheim sits 122% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$21.71 NOK 202
$10.67 MX$200
103.47%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$109 NOK 1,015
$43.80 MX$823
149.11%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$16.30 NOK 152
$11.79 MX$221
38.25%
Cappuccino
$5.78 NOK 53.7
$3.79 MX$71.1
52.51%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.84 NOK 54.3
$1.30 MX$24.36
349.23%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.12 NOK 38.28
$0.83 MX$15.65
396.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$12.92 NOK 120
$3.15 MX$59.1
310.16%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$13.07 NOK 122
$4.93 MX$92.7
165.11%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.51 NOK 23.38
$1.41 MX$26.46
78.01%
White Bread (500g)
$3.60 NOK 33.44
$2.20 MX$41.23
63.64%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.74 NOK 34.77
$1.47 MX$27.66
154.42%
Eggs
$5.04 NOK 46.87
$2.50 MX$46.89
101.60%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$13.19 NOK 123
$7.29 MX$137
80.93%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$17.03 NOK 158
$7.95 MX$149
114.21%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$32.02 NOK 298
$12.86 MX$242
148.99%
Apples (1kg)
$3.86 NOK 35.87
$2.90 MX$54.4
33.10%
Banana (1kg)
$2.96 NOK 27.49
$1.38 MX$25.98
114.49%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.88 NOK 36.04
$2.49 MX$46.78
55.82%
Tomato (1kg)
$5.86 NOK 54.5
$2.03 MX$38.12
188.67%
Potato (1kg)
$3.01 NOK 28.03
$2.02 MX$38.03
49.01%
Onion (1kg)
$3.07 NOK 28.59
$1.90 MX$35.74
61.58%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.85 NOK 26.53
$1.14 MX$21.49
150.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.28 NOK 21.23
$1.24 MX$23.27
83.87%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$18.14 NOK 169
$4.27 MX$80.2
324.82%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.62 NOK 173
$9.81 MX$184
89.81%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.59 NOK 33.36
$1.59 MX$29.78
125.79%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.59 NOK 42.66
$2.75 MX$51.6
66.91%
🚌 Getting Around
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$4.84 NOK 45.05
$0.51 MX$9.67
849.02%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$103 NOK 954
$27.39 MX$514
274.26%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$9.42 NOK 87.6
$4.76 MX$89.4
97.90%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.64 NOK 15.26
$3.25 MX$61.0
-49.54%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$61.1 NOK 568
$5.39 MX$101
1033.77%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.56 NOK 23.82
$1.53 MX$28.70
67.32%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$46.8K NOK 435.2K
$21.2K MX$398.4K
120.56%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$46.2K NOK 429.8K
$23.3K MX$436.9K
98.63%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$276 NOK 2,568
$83.5 MX$1,568
230.73%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$37.21 NOK 346
$23.19 MX$435
60.46%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$83.0 NOK 772
$27.61 MX$519
200.76%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$45.99 NOK 428
$56.4 MX$1,060
-18.50%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$41.33 NOK 384
$28.19 MX$529
46.61%
Cinema Ticket
$19.22 NOK 179
$5.00 MX$93.9
284.40%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$309 NOK 2,876
$207 MX$3,889
49.32%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,243 NOK 39.5K
$5,231 MX$98.2K
-18.90%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$110 NOK 1,023
$43.45 MX$816
153.12%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$52.2 NOK 486
$42.54 MX$799
22.71%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$122 NOK 1,131
$72.8 MX$1,367
67.17%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$159 NOK 1,477
$88.4 MX$1,660
79.70%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,657 NOK 15.4K
$995 MX$18.7K
66.62%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,240 NOK 11.5K
$382 MX$7,181
224.14%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,326 NOK 21.6K
$1,674 MX$31.4K
38.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,789 NOK 16.6K
$1,081 MX$20.3K
65.53%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,811 NOK 63.4K
$3,909 MX$73.4K
74.26%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,250 NOK 48.8K
$6,138 MX$115.3K
-14.47%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Trondheim
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,625 NOK 43.0K
$832 MX$15.6K
455.73%
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 Trondheim: November 3, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Trondheim
$1.2K
Playa del Carmen
$382 69.2% $857
Groceries & Markets
Trondheim
$517
Playa del Carmen
$257 50.2% $260
Eating Out
Trondheim
$422
Playa del Carmen
$200 52.6% $222
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Trondheim
$396
Playa del Carmen
$134 66.1% $262
Clothing & Footwear
Trondheim
$199
Playa del Carmen
$111 44.2% $88
Getting Around
Trondheim
$140
Playa del Carmen
$50 63.8% $89
Sport & Entertainment
Trondheim
$84
Playa del Carmen
$66 21.3% $18

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,657 in Trondheim versus $995 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 in Trondheim are about 5.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $109 in Trondheim versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $517 vs $257 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇳🇴 Trondheim
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
08:31 8:31 AM
02:31 2:31 AM
6 h behind Trondheim
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
215,121
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.3 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.45 NOK (100 NOK = 9.57 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.78 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 21.09 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Trondheim Playa del Carmen 8,330 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Trondheim
  • 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
Trondheim vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Trondheim?
Yes – Trondheim is pricier by about 149%, 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 $4,498 per month in Trondheim and $1,804 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $995 there versus $1,657 in Trondheim.
What are total monthly expenses in Trondheim and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,999 in Trondheim and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 60% cheaper.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 73% 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 Trondheim or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,202, than in Trondheim at $2,999. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Trondheim it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Trondheim 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 the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Trondheim makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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