Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varna and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,408 in Varna, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Varna
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Varna Living Index
58

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

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Varna

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,408

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,408 per month in Varna vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Varna $1,408
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,217 per month in Varna vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Varna $2,217
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,026 per month in Varna vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Varna $3,026
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Varna costs about 17% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Varna sits 3% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.46 BGN 21.81

$10.92 MX$205

14.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.9 BGN 105

$43.37 MX$814

38.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.16 BGN 17.77

$11.78 MX$221

-13.75%

Cappuccino

$2.87 BGN 5.02

$3.81 MX$71.5

-24.67%

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

$1.89 BGN 3.31

$1.28 MX$24.07

47.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 BGN 2.83

$0.78 MX$14.70

107.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.81 BGN 4.91

$3.17 MX$59.5

-11.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 BGN 6.12

$4.93 MX$92.7

-29.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 BGN 3.36

$1.41 MX$26.40

36.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 BGN 2.17

$2.22 MX$41.62

-44.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.58 BGN 4.52

$1.42 MX$26.61

81.69%

Eggs

$3.53 BGN 6.17

$2.52 MX$47.36

40.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.53 BGN 20.18

$7.26 MX$136

58.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 BGN 16.25

$7.70 MX$144

20.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 BGN 24.46

$12.69 MX$238

10.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 BGN 3.33

$2.78 MX$52.3

-31.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 BGN 3.79

$1.37 MX$25.68

57.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 BGN 3.72

$2.55 MX$47.89

-16.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.00 BGN 5.25

$2.12 MX$39.86

41.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 BGN 2.28

$1.94 MX$36.39

-32.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$1.89 MX$35.41

-44.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 BGN 1.84

$1.15 MX$21.53

-8.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 BGN 1.36

$1.18 MX$22.13

-33.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.03 BGN 7.04

$4.30 MX$80.6

-6.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.90 BGN 15.57

$9.95 MX$187

-10.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 BGN 2.05

$1.58 MX$29.73

-25.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 BGN 3.15

$2.67 MX$50.1

-32.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.13 BGN 1.98

$0.55 MX$10.39

105.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 49.19

$26.62 MX$500

5.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 BGN 2.74

$4.97 MX$93.3

-68.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.88 BGN 1.55

$3.33 MX$62.5

-73.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.19 BGN 21.34

$5.36 MX$101

127.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.05

$1.44 MX$27.11

20.83%

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

$29.6K BGN 51.7K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

43.01%

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

$24.7K BGN 43.3K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

5.45%

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

$176 BGN 308

$84.8 MX$1,592

107.63%

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

$20.41 BGN 35.71

$23.41 MX$439

-12.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.68 BGN 27.43

$28.66 MX$538

-45.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 BGN 90.0

$57.1 MX$1,071

-9.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.47 BGN 34.07

$28.91 MX$543

-32.65%

Cinema Ticket

$9.06 BGN 15.86

$5.14 MX$96.5

76.26%

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

$498 BGN 872

$207 MX$3,878

141.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,292 BGN 11.0K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

60.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.3 BGN 114

$43.35 MX$814

50.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.01 BGN 57.8

$41.44 MX$778

-20.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 BGN 179

$74.2 MX$1,393

37.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.7 BGN 174

$89.3 MX$1,676

11.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$640 BGN 1,120

$980 MX$18.4K

-34.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 BGN 843

$381 MX$7,150

26.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,362 BGN 2,383

$1,708 MX$32.1K

-20.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$916 BGN 1,602

$1,075 MX$20.2K

-14.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,998 BGN 5,246

$3,943 MX$74.0K

-23.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,090 BGN 3,657

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-66.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,286 BGN 2,250

$735 MX$13.8K

75.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.82

11.45

-75.37%

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

Last update for Varna: October 27, 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

Varna

$482 34.2%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 20.9% $101

Groceries & Markets

Varna

$272 19.3%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 6.2% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varna

$212 15.1%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 35.5% $75

Eating Out

Varna

$200 14.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 1.4% $2.7

Clothing & Footwear

Varna

$135 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 17.3% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Varna

$70 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 3.2% $2.2

Getting Around

Varna

$39 2.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 30.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $640 in Varna 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.

Salaries run about 75% higher in Varna. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Varna versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $272 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Varna

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

10:40 10:40 AM

03:40 3:40 AM

7 h behind Varna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

348,058

149,923

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Varna Playa del Carmen 10,310 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Varna
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

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

Yes – Varna is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,113 per month in Varna 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 Varna, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $640 there versus $980 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,408 in Varna and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 14% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 5% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Playa del Carmen costs $1,204 versus $1,408 in Varna. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Playa del Carmen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Varna makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.