Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cheongju and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,409 in Cheongju, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Cheongju
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Cheongju Living Index
58

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

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Cheongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,409

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,409 in Cheongju versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Cheongju $1,409
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,329 in Cheongju versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Cheongju $2,329
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Cheongju versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Cheongju $3,249
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Cheongju is roughly 17% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cheongju is 4% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.47 ₩9,913

$10.92 MX$204

-31.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.95 ₩64.9K

$43.37 MX$810

12.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 ₩7,805

$11.78 MX$220

-50.08%

Cappuccino

$3.66 ₩4,851

$3.81 MX$71.2

-3.94%

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

$1.84 ₩2,446

$1.28 MX$23.96

43.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 ₩1,852

$0.78 MX$14.63

79.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.65 ₩4,848

$3.17 MX$59.2

15.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 ₩5,747

$4.93 MX$92.2

-12.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 ₩2,990

$1.41 MX$26.28

59.57%

White Bread (500g)

$3.25 ₩4,319

$2.22 MX$41.43

46.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.05 ₩4,054

$1.42 MX$26.48

114.79%

Eggs

$2.73 ₩3,629

$2.52 MX$47.14

8.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.16 ₩14.8K

$7.26 MX$136

53.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.65 ₩14.1K

$7.70 MX$144

38.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.55 ₩32.6K

$12.69 MX$237

93.46%

Apples (1kg)

$11.40 ₩15.1K

$2.78 MX$52.0

310.07%

Banana (1kg)

$3.59 ₩4,762

$1.37 MX$25.56

162.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.30 ₩11.0K

$2.55 MX$47.66

225.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.85 ₩7,762

$2.12 MX$39.67

175.94%

Potato (1kg)

$5.84 ₩7,749

$1.94 MX$36.22

201.03%

Onion (1kg)

$3.43 ₩4,548

$1.89 MX$35.24

81.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 ₩3,808

$1.15 MX$21.42

149.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 ₩1,758

$1.18 MX$22.03

12.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.45 ₩4,572

$4.30 MX$80.3

-19.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.71 ₩24.8K

$9.95 MX$186

88.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 ₩3,263

$1.58 MX$29.59

55.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 ₩4,518

$2.67 MX$49.91

27.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.15 ₩1,519

$0.55 MX$10.34

109.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.62 MX$497

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.50 ₩4,646

$4.97 MX$92.9

-29.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 ₩1,009

$3.33 MX$62.2

-77.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.67 ₩22.1K

$5.36 MX$100

211.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ₩1,802

$1.44 MX$26.98

-5.56%

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

$39.0K ₩51.8M

$20.7K MX$386.2K

88.89%

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

$33.7K ₩44.8M

$23.5K MX$438.5K

43.77%

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

$205 ₩271.7K

$84.8 MX$1,584

141.53%

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

$24.30 ₩32.2K

$23.41 MX$437

3.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.72 ₩36.8K

$28.66 MX$535

-3.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.6 ₩71.1K

$57.1 MX$1,066

-6.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.97 ₩18.5K

$28.91 MX$540

-51.68%

Cinema Ticket

$11.81 ₩15.7K

$5.14 MX$96.0

129.77%

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

$651 ₩863.1K

$207 MX$3,860

214.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.8K ₩29.0M

$3,927 MX$73.4K

455.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.84 ₩48.9K

$43.35 MX$810

-15.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.4 ₩86.7K

$41.44 MX$774

57.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.9 ₩124.5K

$74.2 MX$1,386

26.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 ₩150.3K

$89.3 MX$1,668

26.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$342 ₩454.3K

$980 MX$18.3K

-65.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 ₩365.3K

$381 MX$7,116

-27.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 ₩1.6M

$1,708 MX$31.9K

-29.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$760 ₩1.0M

$1,075 MX$20.1K

-29.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,228 ₩9.6M

$3,943 MX$73.7K

83.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,619 ₩7.5M

$6,158 MX$115.1K

-8.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,613 ₩3.5M

$735 MX$13.7K

255.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

11.45

-63.14%

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

Last update for Cheongju: 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.

Groceries & Markets

Cheongju

$488 34.6%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 47.8% $233

Accommodation & Living

Cheongju

$275 19.5%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 38.3% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cheongju

$257 18.2%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 46.7% $120

Eating Out

Cheongju

$161 11.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 25.6% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Cheongju

$139 9.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 19.7% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Cheongju

$77 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 12.8% $9.9

Getting Around

Cheongju

$12 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 325% $39

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $342 in Cheongju and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cheongju pays about 3.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $49 in Cheongju vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $488 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Cheongju

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

01:07 1:07 AM

11:07 11:07 AM

14 h behind Cheongju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

835,669

149,923

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.54 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.77 EUR

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,327 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.54 USD). 1 EUR = 1,477 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.77 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.69 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.8 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cheongju Playa del Carmen 12,690 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Cheongju
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

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

Playa del Carmen wins on cost – living expenses run 15% lower than in Cheongju. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Playa del Carmen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Cheongju is about 3.6 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $342 in Cheongju versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $651 in Cheongju versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $49 in Cheongju. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Playa del Carmen wins on affordability, Cheongju on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.