Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cairns Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Cairns

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 21.4% cheaper than Cairns without rent, and 45.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 46.4% cheaper than Cairns without rent, and 32.6% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$11.67 A$17.88
2.74%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$81.9 A$125
-48.12%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$10.66 A$16.33
-1.78%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$3.92 A$6.01
-8.16%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$2.73 A$4.19
-47.25%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$2.26 A$3.46
-60.62%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$6.58 A$10.09
-53.04%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$7.07 A$10.83
-35.22%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.7 A$2.61
-18.82%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$2.51 A$3.85
-26.29%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$2.71 A$4.15
-42.07%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$3.93 A$6.02
-35.11%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$7.87 A$12.06
9.40%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$9.19 A$14.08
-7.07%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$12.84 A$19.67
-14.49%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$2.99 A$4.58
-9.03%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$2.31 A$3.53
-34.63%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$2.66 A$4.07
-29.32%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$7.39 A$11.32
-70.37%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$2.28 A$3.5
-17.98%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$2.23 A$3.42
-1.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$2.27 A$3.47
-52.86%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$2.88 A$4.42
-62.15%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$29.83 A$45.69
-86.72%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$11.03 A$16.89
-19.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$3.39 A$5.2
-49.26%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$3.52 A$5.39
-25.85%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$3.22 A$4.94
-83.85%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$65.4 A$100
-59.37%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$6.44 A$9.86
-49.69%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$3.13 A$4.8
-23.96%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$33.86 A$51.9
-90.82%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.15 A$1.77
13.91%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$22.7K A$34.8K
33.51%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$19.2K A$29.4K
25.13%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$153 A$234
-44.91%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$37.09 A$56.8
-40.31%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$59 A$90.3
-48.89%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$38.89 A$59.6
33.66%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$15.92 A$24.39
17.59%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$12.98 A$19.88
-60.94%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$1,628 A$2,494
-87.70%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$12.1K A$18.5K
-55.94%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$83 A$127
-56.93%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$66.2 A$101
-39.89%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$98.2 A$150
-19.57%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$135 A$206
-34.40%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$1,193 A$1,828
-19.08%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$1,110 A$1,701
-57.28%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$2,042 A$3,128
-19.05%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$1,858 A$2,847
-35.32%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$6,035 A$9,246
-48.94%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$4,795 A$7,346
57.03%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Cairns
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$2,813 A$4,310
-71.86%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
6.96
64.08%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Cairns: October 27, 2025

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