Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lake Macquarie Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Lake Macquarie

🙂 Solo nomad: Playa del Carmen is 9.7% cheaper than Lake Macquarie without rent, and 37.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Playa del Carmen is 40% cheaper than Lake Macquarie without rent, and 32% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.99 MX$227
$12.91 A$19.78
-7.13%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$42.47 MX$803
$77.1 A$118
-44.91%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.47 MX$198
$9.66 A$14.79
8.39%
Cappuccino
$3.6 MX$68.2
$3.34 A$5.12
7.78%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.44 MX$27.16
$2.38 A$3.65
-39.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.89 MX$16.79
$2 A$3.07
-55.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.09 MX$58.5
$6.35 A$9.72
-51.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.58 MX$86.6
$6.96 A$10.66
-34.20%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.38 MX$26.04
$1.37 A$2.1
0.73%
White Bread (500g)
$1.85 MX$34.9
$1.44 A$2.2
28.47%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.68
$1.19 A$1.82
31.93%
Eggs
$2.55 MX$48.3
$3.14 A$4.81
-18.79%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.61 MX$163
$7.51 A$11.5
14.65%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.54 MX$161
$6.07 A$9.3
40.69%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.98 MX$208
$11.78 A$18.05
-6.79%
Apples (1kg)
$2.72 MX$51.4
$3.11 A$4.76
-12.54%
Banana (1kg)
$1.51 MX$28.57
$2.7 A$4.13
-44.07%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.88 MX$35.63
$3.16 A$4.84
-40.51%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.42
$4.33 A$6.64
-49.42%
Potato (1kg)
$1.87 MX$35.3
$1.95 A$2.98
-4.10%
Onion (1kg)
$2.19 MX$41.37
$1.74 A$2.66
25.86%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 MX$20.23
$1.35 A$2.07
-20.74%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.09 MX$20.64
$1.13 A$1.73
-3.54%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.96 MX$74.9
$27.52 A$42.16
-85.61%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.86 MX$167
$7.24 A$11.09
22.38%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.72 MX$32.53
$2.62 A$4.02
-34.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.61 MX$49.37
$2.15 A$3.3
21.40%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.52 MX$9.74
$2.07 A$3.17
-74.88%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.59 MX$503
$88.9 A$136
-70.08%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.24 MX$61.2
$1.87 A$2.86
73.26%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.38 MX$44.94
$1.55 A$2.37
53.55%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 MX$58.7
$46.5 A$71.2
-93.31%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 MX$24.85
$1.19 A$1.82
10.08%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.3K MX$573K
$24.9K A$38.2K
21.53%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24K MX$453.6K
$20.2K A$30.9K
19.03%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$84.2 MX$1,592
$204 A$313
-58.79%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.14 MX$419
$10.26 A$15.72
115.79%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.14 MX$570
$42.08 A$64.5
-28.37%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52 MX$983
$49.44 A$75.7
5.14%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.72 MX$354
$15.88 A$24.33
17.88%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$95.9
$9.2 A$14.1
-44.89%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$200 MX$3,787
$1,446 A$2,215
-86.15%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,333 MX$100.8K
$9,951 A$15.2K
-46.41%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.74 MX$676
$73.4 A$112
-51.32%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.8 MX$753
$33.88 A$51.9
17.47%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$79 MX$1,493
$76.6 A$117
3.12%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.4 MX$1,671
$132 A$202
-33.13%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$965 MX$18.3K
$1,240 A$1,900
-22.13%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$474 MX$8,968
$976 A$1,495
-51.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,653 MX$31.2K
$2,007 A$3,074
-17.63%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,202 MX$22.7K
$2,055 A$3,148
-41.51%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,081 MX$58.3K
$5,582 A$8,552
-44.80%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$7,529 MX$142.3K
$4,951 A$7,584
52.09%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Lake Macquarie
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$792 MX$15K
$4,783 A$7,327
-83.45%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.42
4.35
162.53%

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 Lake Macquarie: October 29, 2025

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