Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between North Korea and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in North Korea: $836 a month against $1,215 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

🇰🇵 North Korea
$836
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,215
/mo nomad
🙂 Solo nomad: North Korea is 17.8% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 31.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: North Korea is 18.4% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 41.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.75 $2.75
$10.97 MX$201
-74.93%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$22.54 $22.54
$44.85 MX$823
-49.74%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$19.33 $19.33
$11.92 MX$219
62.16%
Cappuccino
$1.09 $1.09
$3.80 MX$69.9
-71.32%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.25 $2.25
$1.31 MX$24.08
71.76%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.28 $1.28
$0.86 MX$15.72
48.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$13.50 $13.50
$3.21 MX$59.0
320.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.46 $3.46
$5.01 MX$92.0
-30.94%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.90 $0.90
$1.46 MX$26.77
-38.36%
White Bread (500g)
$2.52 $2.52
$2.33 MX$42.72
8.15%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.56 $1.56
$1.44 MX$26.48
8.33%
Eggs
$2.89 $2.89
$2.46 MX$45.20
17.48%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$4.91 $4.91
$7.70 MX$141
-36.23%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.86 $3.86
$7.89 MX$145
-51.08%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$5.50 $5.50
$12.80 MX$235
-57.03%
Apples (1kg)
$6.12 $6.12
$2.92 MX$53.6
109.59%
Banana (1kg)
$5.13 $5.13
$1.42 MX$26.11
261.27%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.28 $2.28
$2.57 MX$47.10
-11.28%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.18 $2.18
$2.14 MX$39.24
1.87%
Potato (1kg)
$4.53 $4.53
$1.95 MX$35.75
132.31%
Onion (1kg)
$4.53 $4.53
$1.94 MX$35.55
133.51%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.26 $2.26
$1.15 MX$21.13
96.52%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.46 $0.46
$1.22 MX$22.42
-62.30%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.52 $4.52
$4.38 MX$80.3
3.20%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.94 $7.94
$9.85 MX$181
-19.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.15 $1.15
$1.54 MX$28.23
-25.32%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.18 $2.18
$2.72 MX$49.86
-19.85%
🚌 Getting Around
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.00 $1.00
$0.52 MX$9.64
92.31%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$38.72 $38.72
$27.42 MX$503
41.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.52 $1.52
$4.91 MX$90.2
-69.04%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.25 $2.25
$3.52 MX$64.7
-36.08%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$39.80 $39.80
$5.69 MX$104
599.47%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.71 $0.71
$1.54 MX$28.27
-53.90%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.2K $22.2K
$21.2K MX$389.9K
4.55%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$27.9K $27.9K
$24.5K MX$449.6K
13.90%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$33.64 $33.64
$83.6 MX$1,535
-59.77%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.23 $11.23
$24.03 MX$441
-53.27%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$45.44 $45.44
$29.33 MX$539
54.93%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$59.4 $59.4
$64.9 MX$1,191
-8.39%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$14.41 $14.41
$29.46 MX$541
-51.09%
Cinema Ticket
$7.78 $7.78
$5.09 MX$93.4
52.85%
🧸 Childcare & Education
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$106 $106
$208 MX$3,813
-49.15%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,149 $2,149
$4,045 MX$74.3K
-46.88%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$22.12 $22.12
$44.55 MX$818
-50.35%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.19 $28.19
$42.06 MX$772
-32.98%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$62.9 $62.9
$75.5 MX$1,387
-16.74%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$84.7 $84.7
$91.4 MX$1,678
-7.27%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$97.2 $97.2
$986 MX$18.1K
-90.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$104 $104
$385 MX$7,072
-73.09%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,399 $1,399
$1,713 MX$31.5K
-18.34%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$208 $208
$1,108 MX$20.4K
-81.23%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,684 $1,684
$4,016 MX$73.7K
-58.07%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,392 $1,392
$6,247 MX$114.7K
-77.71%
💵 Salaries & Financials
North Korea
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$232 $232
$758 MX$13.9K
-69.42%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.11
11.45
-37.90%

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

Last update for North Korea: October 6, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
North Korea
$247
Playa del Carmen
$260 5.3% $13
Eating Out
North Korea
$182
Playa del Carmen
$204 12.3% $22
Accommodation & Living
North Korea
$104
Playa del Carmen
$385 272% $282
Monthly Utilities & Internet
North Korea
$90
Playa del Carmen
$137 51.7% $47
Clothing & Footwear
North Korea
$89
Playa del Carmen
$114 28.1% $25
Sport & Entertainment
North Korea
$75
Playa del Carmen
$75 0.1% $0.1
Getting Around
North Korea
$56
Playa del Carmen
$52 6.2% $3.5
Good to know
🇰🇵 North Korea
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
19:52 7:52 PM
05:52 5:52 AM
14 h behind North Korea
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
26,418,204
149,923
💱 Currency
USD USD
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – USD Converter

USD exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.57 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • North Korea Playa del Carmen 12,550 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight
From you
  • North Korea
  • 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

North Korea vs other spots: cost of living compared

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