Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Muswellbrook and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,294 in Muswellbrook, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Muswellbrook
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Muswellbrook Living Index
58

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

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Muswellbrook

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,294

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,294 per month in Muswellbrook vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Muswellbrook $2,294
Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $3,598 per month in Muswellbrook vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Muswellbrook $3,598
Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $4,902 per month in Muswellbrook vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

Muswellbrook $4,902
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Muswellbrook costs about 90% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Muswellbrook sits 69% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.21 A$24.45

$10.92 MX$204

57.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.1 A$121

$43.37 MX$808

96.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.58 A$15.04

$11.78 MX$220

-10.19%

Cappuccino

$3.42 A$4.86

$3.81 MX$71.0

-10.24%

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

$2.72 A$3.87

$1.28 MX$23.90

112.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.17

$0.78 MX$14.59

185.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.99 A$9.93

$3.17 MX$59.0

120.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.04 A$10.01

$4.93 MX$92.0

42.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 A$1.70

$1.41 MX$26.22

-14.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.90 A$4.13

$2.22 MX$41.33

30.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 A$3.10

$1.42 MX$26.42

54.23%

Eggs

$4.04 A$5.74

$2.52 MX$47.03

60.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.36 A$14.73

$7.26 MX$135

42.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.57 A$13.60

$7.70 MX$143

24.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.41 A$23.31

$12.69 MX$237

29.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 A$4.17

$2.78 MX$51.9

5.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.58 A$3.67

$1.37 MX$25.50

88.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.78 A$3.95

$2.55 MX$47.55

9.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.50 A$6.39

$2.12 MX$39.58

112.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.39 A$3.39

$1.94 MX$36.13

23.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.49 A$3.53

$1.89 MX$35.16

31.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.77 A$3.94

$1.15 MX$21.37

140.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 A$2.44

$1.18 MX$21.98

45.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.91 A$59.6

$4.30 MX$80.1

874.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.03 A$19.94

$9.95 MX$185

41.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.43 A$6.30

$1.58 MX$29.52

180.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.68 A$6.65

$2.67 MX$49.79

75.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.74 A$3.89

$0.55 MX$10.31

398.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.9 A$133

$26.62 MX$496

252.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 A$5.42

$4.97 MX$92.6

-23.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 A$2.04

$3.33 MX$62.1

-56.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.81 A$59.4

$5.36 MX$99.8

680.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 A$1.90

$1.44 MX$26.92

-6.94%

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

$29.5K A$42.0K

$20.7K MX$385.2K

42.94%

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

$24.5K A$34.7K

$23.5K MX$437.4K

4.22%

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

$138 A$197

$84.8 MX$1,581

63.22%

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

$31.16 A$44.28

$23.41 MX$436

33.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.96 A$71.0

$28.66 MX$534

74.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.7 A$79.1

$57.1 MX$1,063

-2.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.21 A$21.61

$28.91 MX$539

-47.39%

Cinema Ticket

$13.12 A$18.65

$5.14 MX$95.8

155.25%

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

$2,205 A$3,133

$207 MX$3,851

967.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K A$32.8K

$3,927 MX$73.2K

487.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.1 A$101

$43.35 MX$808

63.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.9 A$89.4

$41.44 MX$772

51.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$145 A$207

$74.2 MX$1,383

96.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 A$153

$89.3 MX$1,664

20.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 A$1,707

$980 MX$18.3K

22.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 A$1,508

$381 MX$7,099

178.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,222 A$3,157

$1,708 MX$31.8K

30.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,048 A$2,910

$1,075 MX$20.0K

90.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,189 A$8,794

$3,943 MX$73.5K

56.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,686 A$6,659

$6,158 MX$114.8K

-23.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,419 A$9,121

$735 MX$13.7K

773.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.23

11.45

-54.32%

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

Last update for Muswellbrook: 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

Muswellbrook

$1.1K 46.3%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 64.1% $681

Groceries & Markets

Muswellbrook

$361 15.8%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 29.5% $107

Eating Out

Muswellbrook

$279 12.2%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 27.6% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Muswellbrook

$220 9.6%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 37.7% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Muswellbrook

$174 7.6%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 35.9% $63

Getting Around

Muswellbrook

$116 5.1%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 56.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Muswellbrook

$82 3.6%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 17.8% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,201 in Muswellbrook versus $980 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 Muswellbrook are about 8.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85 in Muswellbrook versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $361 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Muswellbrook

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

03:57 3:57 AM

11:57 11:57 AM

16 h behind Muswellbrook

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,000

149,923

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

100 MXN = 5.36 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18.64 MXN (100 MXN = 5.36 USD). 1 EUR = 20.75 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Muswellbrook Playa del Carmen 14,210 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Muswellbrook
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,294 in Muswellbrook, $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – roughly 90% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,440 per month in Muswellbrook 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 $980 there versus $1,201 in Muswellbrook.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,294 in Muswellbrook and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That’s a gap of about 90%.

Public transport costs about 72% 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 Muswellbrook at $2,294. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Muswellbrook 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.

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