Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Wonju

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,202 a month against $1,549 in Wonju, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Wonju
Learn more

Wonju Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,202

/mo nomad

Wonju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,202 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,549 in Wonju, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $1,202
Wonju $1,549

A couple spends around $2,082 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,516 in Wonju, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,082
Wonju $2,516

A family of three spends $2,962 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $3,483 in Wonju, rent included.

Playa del Carmen $2,962
Wonju $3,483

Playa del Carmen is about 22% cheaper than Wonju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Playa del Carmen sits 11% below the global median, while Wonju is 15% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.67 MX$201

$7.44 ₩10.0K

43.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.80 MX$824

$48.11 ₩64.6K

-8.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 MX$222

$6.72 ₩9,026

75.45%

Cappuccino

$3.79 MX$71.2

$3.68 ₩4,950

2.99%

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

$1.30 MX$24.41

$1.86 ₩2,494

-30.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 MX$15.69

$1.40 ₩1,881

-40.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.15 MX$59.2

$3.77 ₩5,061

-16.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.93 MX$92.9

$4.30 ₩5,777

14.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 MX$26.51

$2.22 ₩2,987

-36.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 MX$41.32

$3.19 ₩4,283

-31.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 MX$27.71

$3.05 ₩4,100

-51.80%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.99

$2.63 ₩3,539

-4.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.29 MX$137

$10.97 ₩14.7K

-33.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.95 MX$150

$10.34 ₩13.9K

-23.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.86 MX$242

$24.64 ₩33.1K

-47.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 MX$54.5

$11.24 ₩15.1K

-74.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MX$26.03

$3.58 ₩4,814

-61.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 MX$46.88

$7.84 ₩10.5K

-68.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 MX$38.20

$6.08 ₩8,175

-66.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$38.11

$5.80 ₩7,795

-65.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.82

$3.25 ₩4,364

-41.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.54

$2.75 ₩3,689

-58.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 MX$23.32

$1.27 ₩1,704

-2.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$80.4

$3.27 ₩4,394

30.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.81 MX$185

$18.24 ₩24.5K

-46.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 MX$29.85

$2.44 ₩3,275

-34.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 MX$51.7

$3.63 ₩4,880

-24.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MX$9.69

$0.97 ₩1,309

-47.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.39 MX$515

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.76 MX$89.6

$3.55 ₩4,766

34.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MX$61.1

$0.64 ₩856

407.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 MX$101

$14.85 ₩20.0K

-63.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 MX$28.76

$1.18 ₩1,579

29.66%

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

$21.2K MX$399.2K

$38.6K ₩51.9M

-45.07%

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

$23.3K MX$437.8K

$33.3K ₩44.7M

-30.13%

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

$83.5 MX$1,571

$202 ₩271.7K

-58.71%

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

$23.19 MX$436

$36.46 ₩49.0K

-36.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.61 MX$520

$27.33 ₩36.7K

1.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 MX$1,062

$52.4 ₩70.4K

7.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.19 MX$531

$11.90 ₩16.0K

136.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.00 MX$94.1

$12.10 ₩16.3K

-58.68%

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

$207 MX$3,897

$477 ₩641.1K

-56.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,231 MX$98.4K

$21.8K ₩29.4M

-76.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.45 MX$818

$104 ₩139.6K

-58.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.54 MX$801

$64.7 ₩86.9K

-34.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 MX$1,369

$91.5 ₩122.9K

-20.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.4 MX$1,663

$128 ₩171.5K

-30.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$995 MX$18.7K

$507 ₩681.5K

96.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$382 MX$7,197

$377 ₩505.9K

1.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 MX$31.5K

$1,239 ₩1.7M

35.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 MX$20.3K

$916 ₩1.2M

17.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,909 MX$73.6K

$6,883 ₩9.2M

-43.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,138 MX$115.5K

$6,178 ₩8.3M

-0.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$832 MX$15.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

4.22

171.33%

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 Wonju: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$382 31.8%

Wonju

$377 24.3% 1.5% $5.9

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$257 21.4%

Wonju

$481 31% 86.8% $223

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.7%

Wonju

$164 10.6% 17.9% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$134 11.2%

Wonju

$266 17.2% 98.1% $132

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$111 9.3%

Wonju

$174 11.3% 56.8% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$66 5.5%

Wonju

$77 4.9% 15.3% $10

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2%

Wonju

$11 * 0.7% 78.9% $40

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $995 in Playa del Carmen versus $507 in Wonju. 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 $48 in Wonju. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $257 vs $481 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇰🇷 Wonju

🕒 Local time

05:12 5:12 AM

19:12 7:12 PM

14 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

340,196

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.31 USD

100 MXN = 4.74 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.44 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.64 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.82 MXN (100 MXN = 5.31 USD). 1 EUR = 21.1 MXN (100 MXN = 4.74 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1,344 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.44 USD). 1 EUR = 1,506 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.64 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Playa del Carmen Wonju 12,600 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Wonju

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 Wonju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Wonju is pricier by about 29%, 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 $2,324 in Wonju. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Wonju, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $507 there versus $995 in Playa del Carmen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,202 in Playa del Carmen and $1,549 in Wonju. That makes Playa del Carmen about 22% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $207 per month in Playa del Carmen and $477 in Wonju. 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 $1,202, than in Wonju at $1,549. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wonju it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,202 in Playa del Carmen to $1,549 in Wonju. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.