Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Gimcheon

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,210 a month against $1,319 in Gimcheon, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. The total is higher in Gimcheon despite lower rent and utilities.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Gimcheon
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Gimcheon Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,210

/mo nomad

Gimcheon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,319

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Gimcheon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,210 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,319 in Gimcheon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,210
Gimcheon $1,319

A couple spends around $2,113 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,779 in Gimcheon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,113
Gimcheon $1,779

A family of three spends $3,016 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,239 in Gimcheon, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $3,016
Gimcheon $2,239

Playa del Carmen is about 8% cheaper than Gimcheon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Playa del Carmen and Gimcheon are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 10% lower, Gimcheon 2% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.76 MX$199

$6.09 ₩8,091

76.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.03 MX$795

$34.04 ₩45.3K

26.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$218

$6.71 ₩8,928

75.71%

Cappuccino

$3.87 MX$71.4

$3.70 ₩4,921

4.59%

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

$1.37 MX$25.29

$1.61 ₩2,136

-14.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.44

$0.63 ₩842

33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 MX$57.3

$3.52 ₩4,683

-11.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 MX$93.6

$4.47 ₩5,939

13.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MX$26.55

$2.24 ₩2,975

-35.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 MX$41.23

$3.21 ₩4,264

-30.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$2.26 ₩3,010

-34.96%

Eggs

$2.53 MX$46.71

$3.31 ₩4,401

-23.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.30 MX$135

$15.79 ₩21.0K

-53.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.86 MX$145

$7.71 ₩10.3K

1.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.79 MX$236

$11.34 ₩15.1K

12.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$53.6

$7.77 ₩10.3K

-62.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 MX$26.53

$3.24 ₩4,302

-55.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.55 MX$47.07

$7.36 ₩9,792

-65.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 MX$38.03

$6.78 ₩9,020

-69.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.97

$3.56 ₩4,735

-43.82%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.07

$2.41 ₩3,203

-16.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 MX$22.02

$2.04 ₩2,712

-41.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MX$23.23

$1.48 ₩1,971

-14.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 MX$81.4

$3.44 ₩4,572

27.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 MX$177

$18.48 ₩24.6K

-48.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.41

$2.31 ₩3,071

-31.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 MX$51.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 MX$10.47

$1.03 ₩1,367

-44.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.82 MX$514

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MX$92.1

$2.93 ₩3,895

69.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.50 MX$64.6

$0.66 ₩877

430.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 MX$99.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.08

$1.15 ₩1,525

27.83%

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

$21.0K MX$387.8K

$29.5K ₩39.2M

-28.88%

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

$23.9K MX$441.8K

$35.9K ₩47.8M

-33.48%

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

$84.2 MX$1,556

$213 ₩283.8K

-60.54%

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

$23.99 MX$443

$44.15 ₩58.7K

-45.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.02 MX$536

$20.62 ₩27.4K

40.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.0 MX$1,164

$70.7 ₩93.9K

-10.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.14 MX$539

Cinema Ticket

$4.94 MX$91.3

$11.36 ₩15.1K

-56.51%

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

$204 MX$3,763

$303 ₩403.1K

-32.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,941 MX$72.8K

$17.7K ₩23.5M

-77.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.60 MX$806

$66.7 ₩88.7K

-34.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.12 MX$797

$64.2 ₩85.3K

-32.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.8 MX$1,400

$74.1 ₩98.5K

2.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 MX$1,637

$98.6 ₩131.1K

-10.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,008 MX$18.6K

$296 ₩393.1K

241.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$374 MX$6,911

$244 ₩324.3K

53.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 MX$31.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,106 MX$20.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,944 MX$72.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,169 MX$114.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$754 MX$13.9K

$1,930 ₩2.6M

-60.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.1

179.27%

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

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 10, 2026

Last update for Gimcheon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$374 30.9%

Gimcheon

$244 18.5% 34.8% $130

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.4%

Gimcheon

$408 * 30.9% 58% $150

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.7%

Gimcheon

$149 11.3% 26.5% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.3%

Gimcheon

$278 21.1% 103% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$113 9.3%

Gimcheon

$137 10.4% 20.9% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$73 6%

Gimcheon

$93 7.1% 28.1% $21

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$53 4.3%

Gimcheon

$10 * 0.8% 80.3% $42

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,008 in Playa del Carmen versus $296 in Gimcheon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 156% higher in Gimcheon, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $34.00 in Gimcheon. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Playa del Carmen vs $408 in Gimcheon – so Playa del Carmen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇰🇷 Gimcheon

🕒 Local time

20:38 8:38 PM

10:38 10:38 AM

14 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

143,056

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Gimcheon 12,700 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Gimcheon

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 Gimcheon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Gimcheon is pricier by about 9%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,979 in Gimcheon. 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,210 in Playa del Carmen and $1,319 in Gimcheon. That's a gap of about 9%.

Kindergarten costs $204 per month in Playa del Carmen and $303 in Gimcheon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,210, than in Gimcheon at $1,319. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Gimcheon 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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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