Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Daegu and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,569 in Daegu, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Daegu
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Daegu Living Index
59

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

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Daegu

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,569

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,569 per month in Daegu vs $1,210 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Daegu $1,569
Playa del Carmen $1,210

A couple spends around $2,402 per month in Daegu vs $2,113 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Daegu $2,402
Playa del Carmen $2,113

A family of three spends $3,235 per month in Daegu vs $3,016 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Daegu $3,235
Playa del Carmen $3,016

Daegu costs about 30% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Daegu sits 16% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 10% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.29 ₩12.3K

$10.76 MX$199

-13.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.12 ₩49.4K

$43.03 MX$795

-13.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.67 ₩7,536

$11.79 MX$218

-51.91%

Cappuccino

$3.97 ₩5,284

$3.87 MX$71.4

2.58%

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

$1.56 ₩2,075

$1.37 MX$25.29

13.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₩1,202

$0.84 MX$15.44

7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.82 ₩5,082

$3.10 MX$57.3

23.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.42 ₩7,204

$5.07 MX$93.6

6.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.38 ₩3,161

$1.44 MX$26.55

65.28%

White Bread (500g)

$4.49 ₩5,976

$2.23 MX$41.23

101.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 ₩3,541

$1.47 MX$27.17

80.95%

Eggs

$2.72 ₩3,619

$2.53 MX$46.71

7.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ₩13.7K

$7.30 MX$135

41.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.44 ₩9,888

$7.86 MX$145

-5.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.76 ₩27.6K

$12.79 MX$236

62.31%

Apples (1kg)

$6.59 ₩8,762

$2.90 MX$53.6

127.24%

Banana (1kg)

$2.69 ₩3,577

$1.44 MX$26.53

86.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.72 ₩7,599

$2.55 MX$47.07

124.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.96 ₩7,921

$2.06 MX$38.03

189.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.65 ₩3,518

$2.00 MX$36.97

32.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 ₩2,735

$2.01 MX$37.07

2.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.35 ₩5,789

$1.19 MX$22.02

265.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 ₩1,825

$1.26 MX$23.23

8.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.88 ₩3,832

$4.40 MX$81.4

-34.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.91 ₩19.8K

$9.59 MX$177

55.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.14 ₩2,848

$1.59 MX$29.41

34.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 ₩3,317

$2.81 MX$51.9

-11.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.11 ₩1,473

$0.57 MX$10.47

94.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.4 ₩101.5K

$27.82 MX$514

174.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.14 ₩4,172

$4.98 MX$92.1

-36.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 ₩811

$3.50 MX$64.6

-82.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.02 ₩10.7K

$5.40 MX$99.8

48.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₩1,775

$1.47 MX$27.08

-9.52%

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

$28.5K ₩37.9M

$21.0K MX$387.8K

35.84%

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

$41.5K ₩55.1M

$23.9K MX$441.8K

73.40%

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

$280 ₩371.6K

$84.2 MX$1,556

231.91%

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

$50.5 ₩67.1K

$23.99 MX$443

110.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.09 ₩62.6K

$29.02 MX$536

62.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.0 ₩67.8K

$63.0 MX$1,164

-19.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.89 ₩15.8K

$29.14 MX$539

-59.20%

Cinema Ticket

$11.26 ₩15.0K

$4.94 MX$91.3

127.94%

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

$531 ₩706.4K

$204 MX$3,763

160.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.9K ₩37.1M

$3,941 MX$72.8K

607.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.3 ₩74.8K

$43.60 MX$806

29.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.3 ₩66.9K

$43.12 MX$797

16.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ₩127.7K

$75.8 MX$1,400

26.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$164 ₩218.5K

$88.6 MX$1,637

85.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$408 ₩542.1K

$1,008 MX$18.6K

-59.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$273 ₩363.6K

$374 MX$6,911

-26.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,044 ₩1.4M

$1,708 MX$31.6K

-38.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$607 ₩806.7K

$1,106 MX$20.4K

-45.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,125 ₩9.5M

$3,944 MX$72.9K

80.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,559 ₩7.4M

$6,169 MX$114.0K

-9.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,478 ₩3.3M

$754 MX$13.9K

228.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.07

11.45

-55.72%

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

Last update for Daegu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Daegu

$414 26.4%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4% 37.5% $155

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Daegu

$377 24%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3% 63.6% $240

Accommodation & Living

Daegu

$273 17.4%

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9% 36.8% $101

Eating Out

Daegu

$179 11.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7% 13.1% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Daegu

$165 10.5%

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3% 31.6% $52

Getting Around

Daegu

$87 5.5%

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3% 39.6% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Daegu

$73 4.7%

Playa del Carmen

$73 6% 0.8% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $408 in Daegu versus $1,008 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 229% higher in Daegu, 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 $37.00 in Daegu versus $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. Groceries tell a different story – $414 in Daegu vs $258 in Playa del Carmen – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Daegu

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

16:40 4:40 PM

02:40 2:40 AM

14 h behind Daegu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,528,933

149,923

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Daegu Playa del Carmen 12,700 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Daegu
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,569 in Daegu, $1,210 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 30% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,353 per month in Daegu and $1,816 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37.00 in Daegu and $43.00 in Playa del Carmen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,569 in Daegu and $1,210 in Playa del Carmen. That's a gap of about 30%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Daegu at $1,569. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Daegu it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,210 in Playa del Carmen to $1,569 in Daegu. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Daegu makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.