Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karratha and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,473 in Karratha, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

120

Cost of Living Index in Karratha
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Karratha Living Index
59

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

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Karratha

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,473

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,473 per month in Karratha vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Karratha $2,473
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,581 per month in Karratha vs $2,102 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Karratha $3,581
Playa del Carmen $2,102

A family of three spends $4,690 per month in Karratha vs $3,000 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Karratha $4,690
Playa del Carmen $3,000

Karratha costs about 105% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Karratha sits 83% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 A$24.99

$10.86 MX$203

61.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.6 A$117

$44.21 MX$824

86.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.31 A$14.66

$11.76 MX$219

-12.33%

Cappuccino

$3.88 A$5.52

$3.68 MX$68.6

5.43%

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

$2.83 A$4.02

$1.34 MX$25.01

111.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 A$3.11

$0.82 MX$15.38

167.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.54 A$10.72

$3.06 MX$57.1

146.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.58 A$10.77

$4.94 MX$92.1

53.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 A$2.16

$1.47 MX$27.41

3.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.72 A$3.86

$2.22 MX$41.32

22.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 A$3.21

$1.48 MX$27.57

52.70%

Eggs

$4.83 A$6.86

$2.49 MX$46.41

93.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.42 A$13.39

$7.52 MX$140

25.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.43 A$13.39

$7.96 MX$148

18.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.89 A$21.15

$12.57 MX$234

18.46%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 A$5.65

$2.78 MX$51.8

42.81%

Banana (1kg)

$3.11 A$4.42

$1.43 MX$26.61

117.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.29 A$4.68

$2.62 MX$48.81

25.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.75 A$6.75

$2.14 MX$39.85

121.96%

Potato (1kg)

$2.81 A$3.99

$2.02 MX$37.72

39.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 A$3.40

$1.99 MX$37.08

20.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.33 A$3.31

$1.14 MX$21.20

104.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 A$2.09

$1.20 MX$22.38

22.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.46 A$58.9

$4.26 MX$79.4

873.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.65 A$19.39

$10.02 MX$187

36.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.76 A$6.76

$1.54 MX$28.67

209.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.35 A$7.60

$2.66 MX$49.62

101.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.89 A$4.11

$0.53 MX$9.82

445.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.2 A$117

$27.51 MX$513

198.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.81

$4.90 MX$91.4

-31.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.24

$3.43 MX$64.1

-53.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.46 A$56.1

$5.38 MX$100

633.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 A$1.94

$1.45 MX$27.00

-6.21%

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

$27.0K A$38.3K

$21.2K MX$394.5K

27.49%

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

$29.6K A$42.1K

$23.0K MX$429.2K

28.67%

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

$202 A$286

$85.4 MX$1,592

136.14%

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

$27.87 A$39.60

$23.46 MX$438

18.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 A$78.7

$28.43 MX$530

94.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.7 A$80.6

$62.2 MX$1,160

-8.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.66 A$25.10

$28.68 MX$535

-38.42%

Cinema Ticket

$14.78 A$21.00

$5.10 MX$95.2

189.80%

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

$2,176 A$3,091

$201 MX$3,749

982.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.4K A$29.0K

$3,947 MX$73.6K

416.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.6 A$110

$44.39 MX$828

74.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.7 A$77.7

$41.35 MX$771

32.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 A$153

$72.7 MX$1,356

48.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 A$171

$89.6 MX$1,671

34.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,391 A$1,976

$979 MX$18.3K

42.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,176 A$1,671

$373 MX$6,950

215.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,113 A$3,003

$1,681 MX$31.3K

25.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,779 A$2,527

$1,095 MX$20.4K

62.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,861 A$8,328

$3,949 MX$73.6K

48.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,940 A$7,020

$6,137 MX$114.4K

-19.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

11.45

-49.00%

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

Last update for Karratha: October 17, 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

Karratha

$1.2K 47.5%

Playa del Carmen

$373 31% 68.3% $803

Groceries & Markets

Karratha

$368 14.9%

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5% 29.8% $110

Eating Out

Karratha

$291 11.8%

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6% 31.2% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karratha

$285 11.5%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 51.8% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Karratha

$162 6.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 31.2% $51

Getting Around

Karratha

$105 4.3%

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3% 50.8% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Karratha

$86 3.5%

Playa del Carmen

$72 6% 16.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,391 in Karratha 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83 in Karratha versus $44 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $368 vs $258 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Karratha

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

06:48 6:48 AM

17:48 5:48 PM

13 h behind Karratha

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,013

149,923

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.628 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.628 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 18.65 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.89 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Karratha Playa del Carmen 17,530 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Karratha
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,473 in Karratha, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 105% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,710 per month in Karratha 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $979 there versus $1,391 in Karratha.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,473 in Karratha and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 105%.

Public transport costs about 67% less in Playa del Carmen. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Karratha at $2,473. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Karratha 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.

For expats, Playa del Carmen is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 105% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.