Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wageningen and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,632 in Wageningen, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Wageningen
Learn more

Wageningen Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

Jump to prices

Wageningen

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,632

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,632 per month in Wageningen vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Wageningen $2,632
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $4,036 per month in Wageningen vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Wageningen $4,036
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $5,441 per month in Wageningen vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Wageningen $5,441
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Wageningen costs about 119% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Wageningen sits 94% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.83 €19.42

$10.86 MX$201

101.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.2 €79.3

$44.21 MX$817

101.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.41 €11.92

$11.76 MX$217

14.03%

Cappuccino

$4.22 €3.75

$3.68 MX$68.0

14.67%

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

$3.87 €3.44

$1.34 MX$24.79

188.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 €2.35

$0.82 MX$15.24

223.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.68 €5.05

$3.06 MX$56.6

85.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.10 €4.53

$4.94 MX$91.2

3.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.47 MX$27.17

-11.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.22 MX$40.95

-11.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.77 €2.47

$1.48 MX$27.32

87.16%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.35

$2.49 MX$45.99

96.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.83 €11.41

$7.52 MX$139

70.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.59 €12.98

$7.96 MX$147

83.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.01 €15.13

$12.57 MX$232

35.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.66 €2.36

$2.78 MX$51.3

-4.32%

Banana (1kg)

$2.48 €2.20

$1.43 MX$26.37

73.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 €1.67

$2.62 MX$48.37

-28.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.52 €4.02

$2.14 MX$39.49

111.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 €1.60

$2.02 MX$37.38

-10.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.99 MX$36.74

10.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.14 MX$21.01

9.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$1.20 MX$22.18

-18.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.18 €12.61

$4.26 MX$78.7

232.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.02 €6.24

$10.02 MX$185

-29.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.54 MX$28.41

-14.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.33

$2.66 MX$49.17

-1.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.39 €3.01

$0.53 MX$9.73

539.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.93 €3.50

$4.90 MX$90.6

-19.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 €1.79

$3.43 MX$63.5

-41.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.31 €19.84

$5.38 MX$99.4

314.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.40 €2.13

$1.45 MX$26.76

65.52%

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

$42.0K €37.4K

$21.2K MX$391.0K

98.64%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$23.0K MX$425.3K

70.26%

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

$308 €274

$85.4 MX$1,577

261.23%

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

$24.59 €21.87

$23.46 MX$434

4.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.83 €41.65

$28.43 MX$525

64.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.22 €33.99

$62.2 MX$1,149

-38.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.18 €19.73

$28.68 MX$530

-22.66%

Cinema Ticket

$15.54 €13.82

$5.10 MX$94.3

204.71%

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

$1,997 €1,776

$201 MX$3,715

893.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,866 €6,997

$3,947 MX$72.9K

99.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.0 €85.4

$44.39 MX$820

116.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.25 €38.47

$41.35 MX$764

4.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.2

$72.7 MX$1,344

45.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 €92.3

$89.6 MX$1,656

15.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 €1,050

$979 MX$18.1K

20.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,332 €1,185

$373 MX$6,887

257.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,698 €2,400

$1,681 MX$31.1K

60.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,553 €2,271

$1,095 MX$20.2K

133.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,357 €3,876

$3,949 MX$73.0K

10.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,637 €4,124

$6,137 MX$113.4K

-24.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,350 €2,980

$738 MX$13.6K

354.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

-65.07%

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

Last update for Wageningen: October 19, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Wageningen

$1.3K 50.6%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 72% $959

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wageningen

$380 14.4%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 63.9% $243

Groceries & Markets

Wageningen

$336 12.8%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 23.2% $78

Eating Out

Wageningen

$330 12.5%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 39.4% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Wageningen

$157 6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 28.9% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Wageningen

$69 2.6%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 4.5% $3.1

Getting Around

Wageningen

$28 * 1.1%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 87.5% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,181 in Wageningen versus $979 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 354% higher in Wageningen, 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 $89.0 in Wageningen versus $44.00 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $336 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Wageningen

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

07:26 7:26 AM

7 h behind Wageningen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

39,664

149,923

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Wageningen Playa del Carmen 8,400 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Wageningen
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

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

Yes – Wageningen is pricier by about 119%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,948 per month in Wageningen 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,632 in Wageningen and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 119%.

Kindergarten costs $1,997 per month in Wageningen and $201 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 Wageningen at $2,632. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wageningen 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.

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.

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