Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Latrobe Valley and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,543 in Latrobe Valley, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Latrobe Valley
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Latrobe Valley Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
Learn more

Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Latrobe Valley

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,543

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,543 in Latrobe Valley versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Latrobe Valley $2,543
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,558 in Latrobe Valley versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Latrobe Valley $3,558
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,573 in Latrobe Valley versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Latrobe Valley $4,573
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Latrobe Valley is roughly 111% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Latrobe Valley is 87% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.11 A$23.01

$10.92 MX$203

47.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.9 A$131

$43.37 MX$805

111.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.48 A$14.97

$11.78 MX$219

-11.04%

Cappuccino

$3.58 A$5.11

$3.81 MX$70.7

-6.04%

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

$2.68 A$3.83

$1.28 MX$23.81

109.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 A$2.76

$0.78 MX$14.54

147.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 A$9.46

$3.17 MX$58.8

109.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.29 A$10.41

$4.93 MX$91.7

47.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 A$2.16

$1.41 MX$26.12

7.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.63 A$3.76

$2.22 MX$41.17

18.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.95 A$2.79

$1.42 MX$26.32

37.32%

Eggs

$5.07 A$7.24

$2.52 MX$46.85

101.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.14 A$13.06

$7.26 MX$135

25.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.45 A$12.07

$7.70 MX$143

9.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.47 A$23.52

$12.69 MX$236

29.79%

Apples (1kg)

$4.25 A$6.07

$2.78 MX$51.7

52.88%

Banana (1kg)

$3.49 A$4.98

$1.37 MX$25.41

154.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.38 A$4.82

$2.55 MX$47.37

32.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.06 A$5.80

$2.12 MX$39.43

91.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 A$3.75

$1.94 MX$36.00

35.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.48 A$3.54

$1.89 MX$35.02

31.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.53 A$3.61

$1.15 MX$21.29

120.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 A$2.42

$1.18 MX$21.89

44.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$46.65 A$66.6

$4.30 MX$79.8

984.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.67 A$18.10

$9.95 MX$185

27.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.39 A$6.26

$1.58 MX$29.41

177.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.27 A$7.53

$2.67 MX$49.60

97.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.83 A$4.04

$0.55 MX$10.28

414.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.0 A$113

$26.62 MX$494

196.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 A$5.49

$4.97 MX$92.3

-22.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 A$2.48

$3.33 MX$61.9

-48.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.72 A$53.9

$5.36 MX$99.5

603.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 A$1.77

$1.44 MX$26.82

-13.89%

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

$33.1K A$47.2K

$20.7K MX$383.8K

59.96%

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

$29.2K A$41.7K

$23.5K MX$435.8K

24.43%

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

$179 A$256

$84.8 MX$1,575

111.22%

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

$29.92 A$42.73

$23.41 MX$435

27.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.2 A$74.5

$28.66 MX$532

82.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.1 A$82.9

$57.1 MX$1,059

1.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.18 A$25.97

$28.91 MX$537

-37.12%

Cinema Ticket

$15.88 A$22.67

$5.14 MX$95.4

208.95%

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

$2,028 A$2,897

$207 MX$3,836

882.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.4K A$27.8K

$3,927 MX$72.9K

394.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.6 A$112

$43.35 MX$805

81.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.2 A$83.2

$41.44 MX$770

40.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 A$147

$74.2 MX$1,378

39.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 A$181

$89.3 MX$1,657

42.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,315 A$1,877

$980 MX$18.2K

34.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,289 A$1,841

$381 MX$7,072

238.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,319 A$3,312

$1,708 MX$31.7K

35.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,671 A$2,387

$1,075 MX$20.0K

55.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,990 A$7,126

$3,943 MX$73.2K

26.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,950 A$7,069

$6,158 MX$114.4K

-19.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$735 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

11.45

-48.47%

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

Last update for Latrobe Valley: October 26, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Latrobe Valley

$1.3K 50.7%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 70.5% $908

Groceries & Markets

Latrobe Valley

$366 14.4%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 30.4% $111

Eating Out

Latrobe Valley

$269 10.6%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 24.9% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Latrobe Valley

$261 10.3%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 47.6% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Latrobe Valley

$165 6.5%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 32.3% $53

Getting Around

Latrobe Valley

$103 4.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 51% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Latrobe Valley

$90 3.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 25% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,315 in Latrobe Valley and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $92 in Latrobe Valley vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $366 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Latrobe Valley

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

20:04 8:04 PM

04:04 4:04 AM

16 h behind Latrobe Valley

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,492

149,923

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.7 USD

1 AUD = 0.625 EUR

100 MXN = 5.38 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 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 November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.7 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.625 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 18.57 MXN (100 MXN = 5.38 USD). 1 EUR = 20.79 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Latrobe Valley Playa del Carmen 14,570 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Latrobe Valley
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,543 in Latrobe Valley and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,815 in Latrobe Valley and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,315 in Latrobe Valley versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Playa del Carmen runs roughly 66% less than in Latrobe Valley. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $2,028 in Latrobe Valley versus $207 in Playa del Carmen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,543 in Latrobe Valley, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Latrobe Valley. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Latrobe Valley. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.