Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Ballina, Australia

Name: Ballina
Address: Ballina, AU

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $2,525 in Ballina, rent and utilities included – about $15,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Ballina
Learn more

Ballina Living Index

Jump to prices

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Ballina

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,525

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Ballina

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Ballina actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,525 in Ballina, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Ballina $2,525

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,645 in Ballina, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Ballina $3,645

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $4,766 in Ballina, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Ballina $4,766

Playa del Carmen is about 52% cheaper than Ballina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Ballina is 87% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$199

$17.32 A$24.69

-38.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$815

$83.4 A$119

-47.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$219

$10.54 A$15.02

11.86%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$70.5

$4.05 A$5.78

-6.42%

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

$1.30 MX$24.14

$2.87 A$4.09

-54.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.51

$2.28 A$3.26

-63.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$58.6

$7.68 A$10.95

-58.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$91.8

$7.50 A$10.69

-34.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.22

$2.68 A$3.82

-47.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$40.86

$3.43 A$4.89

-35.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.40

$2.21 A$3.15

-33.48%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.47

$5.58 A$7.96

-55.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$136

$6.16 A$8.78

18.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$148

$9.52 A$13.58

-16.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$239

$14.50 A$20.67

-11.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.9

$3.60 A$5.13

-19.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$25.74

$3.05 A$4.35

-54.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.36

$3.27 A$4.66

-23.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$37.78

$3.47 A$4.94

-41.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.69

$2.73 A$3.89

-26.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.42

$2.50 A$3.56

-24.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.30

$3.46 A$4.93

-67.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.06

$1.55 A$2.21

-20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.5

$42.40 A$60.5

-89.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$183

$14.17 A$20.20

-30.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.51

$4.60 A$6.55

-65.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.1

$5.11 A$7.29

-46.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.58

$2.68 A$3.82

-80.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$510

$82.9 A$118

-66.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$88.6

$3.41 A$4.87

39.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$60.5

$1.60 A$2.28

103.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$100

$39.99 A$57.0

-86.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.44

$1.32 A$1.88

15.91%

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

$21.2K MX$394.8K

$29.3K A$41.8K

-27.60%

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

$23.3K MX$432.9K

$26.3K A$37.5K

-11.48%

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

$83.5 MX$1,554

$212 A$302

-60.65%

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

$23.19 MX$431

$27.41 A$39.08

-15.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$514

$58.0 A$82.7

-52.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,050

$55.5 A$79.1

1.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$525

$18.00 A$25.65

56.61%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$93.1

$14.11 A$20.12

-64.56%

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

$207 MX$3,854

$2,118 A$3,020

-90.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$97.4K

$20.6K A$29.3K

-74.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$809

$77.1 A$110

-43.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$792

$53.8 A$76.7

-20.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,354

$108 A$154

-32.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,645

$122 A$175

-27.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.5K

$1,395 A$1,989

-28.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,116

$1,207 A$1,721

-68.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.2K

$2,275 A$3,243

-26.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.1K

$1,824 A$2,600

-40.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$72.7K

$5,839 A$8,324

-33.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$114.2K

$5,029 A$7,169

22.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.9

94.07%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: November 2, 2026

Last update for Ballina: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Ballina

$1.2K 47.8% 216% $825

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Ballina

$376 14.9% 45.9% $118

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Ballina

$293 11.6% 46.2% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Ballina

$298 11.8% 122% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Ballina

$163 6.4% 46.2% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Ballina

$84 3.3% 25.9% $17

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Ballina

$105 4.2% 108% $55

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,395 in Ballina. 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 $44 in Playa del Carmen versus $83 in Ballina. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $376 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇦🇺 Ballina

🕒 Local time

12:14 12:14 PM

04:14 4:14 AM

16 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

8,911

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

1 AUD = 0.701 USD

1 AUD = 0.626 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.626 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Ballina 13,890 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Ballina

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

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

Yes – Ballina is pricier by about 110%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,804 per month in Playa del Carmen and $3,787 in Ballina. 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 $995 there versus $1,395 in Ballina.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $2,118 in Ballina. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 46% more in Ballina, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,202, than in Ballina at $2,525. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ballina 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 overall it costs about 52% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.