Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gyeongju and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,236 in Gyeongju, rent and utilities included – about $410 less a year. The total is higher in Gyeongju despite lower rent and utilities.

59

Cost of Living Index in Gyeongju
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Gyeongju Living Index
57

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

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Gyeongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,236

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,236 per month in Gyeongju vs $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gyeongju $1,236
Playa del Carmen $1,202

A couple spends around $2,053 per month in Gyeongju vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gyeongju $2,053
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $2,871 per month in Gyeongju vs $2,962 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Gyeongju $2,871
Playa del Carmen $2,962

Gyeongju costs about 3% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Gyeongju and Playa del Carmen are more affordable than the global median – Gyeongju 9% lower, Playa del Carmen 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.38 ₩9,898

$10.67 MX$199

-30.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.59 ₩63.8K

$43.80 MX$815

8.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.45 ₩8,652

$11.79 MX$219

-45.29%

Cappuccino

$2.99 ₩4,005

$3.79 MX$70.5

-21.11%

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

$1.13 ₩1,518

$1.30 MX$24.14

-13.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ₩482

$0.83 MX$15.51

-56.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₩3,507

$3.15 MX$58.6

-16.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.21 ₩5,640

$4.93 MX$91.8

-14.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.33 ₩3,117

$1.41 MX$26.22

65.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ₩3,394

$2.20 MX$40.86

15.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 ₩4,122

$1.47 MX$27.40

108.84%

Eggs

$2.57 ₩3,450

$2.50 MX$46.46

2.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.82 ₩14.5K

$7.29 MX$136

48.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 ₩13.9K

$7.95 MX$148

30.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.74 ₩25.1K

$12.86 MX$239

45.72%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 ₩5,930

$2.90 MX$53.9

52.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.67 ₩3,577

$1.38 MX$25.74

93.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.73 ₩5,003

$2.49 MX$46.35

49.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 ₩4,896

$2.03 MX$37.77

79.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.54 ₩3,406

$2.02 MX$37.68

25.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 ₩3,043

$1.90 MX$35.42

19.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 ₩2,921

$1.14 MX$21.30

91.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₩1,761

$1.24 MX$23.05

5.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.40 ₩4,556

$4.27 MX$79.5

-20.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.95 ₩20.0K

$9.81 MX$183

52.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 ₩1,463

$1.59 MX$29.51

-31.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 ₩2,901

$2.75 MX$51.1

-21.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 ₩1,379

$0.51 MX$9.58

101.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 ₩4,014

$4.76 MX$88.6

-37.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₩828

$3.25 MX$60.5

-80.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.01 ₩20.1K

$5.39 MX$100

178.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₩1,417

$1.53 MX$28.44

-30.72%

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

$38.5K ₩51.6M

$21.2K MX$394.8K

81.60%

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

$33.9K ₩45.5M

$23.3K MX$432.9K

45.77%

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

$79.4 ₩106.5K

$83.5 MX$1,554

-4.86%

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

$36.57 ₩49.0K

$23.19 MX$431

57.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.28 ₩36.6K

$27.61 MX$514

-1.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.4 ₩72.9K

$56.4 MX$1,050

-3.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.33 ₩20.5K

$28.19 MX$525

-45.62%

Cinema Ticket

$11.20 ₩15.0K

$5.00 MX$93.1

124.00%

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

$639 ₩856.6K

$207 MX$3,854

208.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K ₩29.5M

$5,231 MX$97.3K

320.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.27 ₩59.4K

$43.45 MX$809

1.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.44 ₩30.1K

$42.54 MX$792

-47.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.0 ₩126.0K

$72.8 MX$1,354

29.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 ₩166.6K

$88.4 MX$1,645

40.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$430 ₩576.0K

$995 MX$18.5K

-56.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 ₩504.7K

$382 MX$7,116

-1.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,151 ₩1.5M

$1,674 MX$31.2K

-31.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$858 ₩1.2M

$1,081 MX$20.1K

-20.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,043 ₩8.1M

$3,909 MX$72.7K

54.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,003 ₩8.0M

$6,138 MX$114.2K

-2.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,851 ₩2.5M

$832 MX$15.5K

122.38%

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 Gyeongju: November 2, 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

Gyeongju

$376 30.5%

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8% 1.6% $5.9

Groceries & Markets

Gyeongju

$359 29.1%

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4% 28.3% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gyeongju

$143 11.6%

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2% 6.3% $9

Eating Out

Gyeongju

$142 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7% 41.3% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Gyeongju

$128 10.4%

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3% 13.3% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Gyeongju

$77 6.2%

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5% 13.5% $10

Getting Around

Gyeongju

$10 * 0.8%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 395% $40

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $430 in Gyeongju 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 Gyeongju are about 2.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Gyeongju versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $359 vs $257 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Gyeongju

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

00:26 12:26 AM

14 h behind Gyeongju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

258,156

149,923

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.63 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1,341 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,509 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.63 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Gyeongju Playa del Carmen 12,660 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Gyeongju
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

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

Yes – Gyeongju is pricier by about 3%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,854 per month in Gyeongju and $1,804 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 Gyeongju, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $430 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,236 in Gyeongju and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 3% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $639 per month in Gyeongju and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,236 in Gyeongju and $1,202 in Playa del Carmen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,236 in Gyeongju. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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