Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wagga Wagga and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $1,906 in Wagga Wagga, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Wagga Wagga, Australia
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Wagga Wagga
🇦🇺 Australia
$1,906
/mo nomad
Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $1,906 per month in Wagga Wagga vs $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Wagga Wagga $1,906
  • Playa del Carmen $1,204

A couple spends around $2,885 per month in Wagga Wagga vs $2,082 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Wagga Wagga $2,885
  • Playa del Carmen $2,082

A family of three spends $3,865 per month in Wagga Wagga vs $2,959 in Playa del Carmen, rent included.

  • Wagga Wagga $3,865
  • Playa del Carmen $2,959

Wagga Wagga costs about 58% more than Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Wagga Wagga sits 40% above the global median, while Playa del Carmen is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.65 A$19.48
$10.92 MX$205
25.00%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$90.4 A$129
$43.37 MX$813
108.32%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.32 A$14.73
$11.78 MX$221
-12.39%
Cappuccino
$4.02 A$5.74
$3.81 MX$71.4
5.51%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.12 A$4.46
$1.28 MX$24.03
143.75%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.51 A$3.58
$0.78 MX$14.67
221.79%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$8.64 A$12.33
$3.17 MX$59.3
172.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$10.01 A$14.28
$4.93 MX$92.5
103.04%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.49 A$2.13
$1.41 MX$26.35
5.67%
White Bread (500g)
$3.21 A$4.59
$2.22 MX$41.54
44.59%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.60 A$3.72
$1.42 MX$26.56
83.10%
Eggs
$5.32 A$7.59
$2.52 MX$47.27
111.11%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.97 A$18.51
$7.26 MX$136
78.65%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.90 A$14.14
$7.70 MX$144
28.57%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.47 A$22.08
$12.69 MX$238
21.91%
Apples (1kg)
$4.02 A$5.74
$2.78 MX$52.2
44.60%
Banana (1kg)
$3.13 A$4.47
$1.37 MX$25.64
128.47%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.46 A$4.94
$2.55 MX$47.80
35.69%
Tomato (1kg)
$5.20 A$7.42
$2.12 MX$39.78
145.28%
Potato (1kg)
$3.09 A$4.42
$1.94 MX$36.32
59.28%
Onion (1kg)
$2.72 A$3.88
$1.89 MX$35.34
43.92%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.46 A$3.51
$1.15 MX$21.49
113.91%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.40 A$2.00
$1.18 MX$22.09
18.64%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$45.05 A$64.3
$4.30 MX$80.5
947.67%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.91 A$19.85
$9.95 MX$186
39.80%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$4.65 A$6.64
$1.58 MX$29.67
194.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.46 A$7.79
$2.67 MX$50.1
104.49%
🚌 Getting Around
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.18 A$4.54
$0.55 MX$10.37
478.18%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$26.62 MX$499
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.14 A$5.91
$4.97 MX$93.1
-16.70%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.57 A$2.24
$3.33 MX$62.4
-52.85%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$42.56 A$60.7
$5.36 MX$100
694.03%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 A$1.87
$1.44 MX$27.06
-9.03%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.4K A$40.5K
$20.7K MX$387.3K
37.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.8K A$38.3K
$23.5K MX$439.7K
14.29%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$186 A$265
$84.8 MX$1,589
119.21%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.04 A$38.59
$23.41 MX$439
15.51%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.3 A$80.3
$28.66 MX$537
96.41%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$28.02 A$39.99
$57.1 MX$1,069
-50.89%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$28.91 MX$542
-
Cinema Ticket
$15.87 A$22.65
$5.14 MX$96.3
208.75%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$2,202 A$3,143
$207 MX$3,871
965.96%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$20.5K A$29.3K
$3,927 MX$73.6K
421.87%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$77.3 A$110
$43.35 MX$812
78.41%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$56.3 A$80.4
$41.44 MX$777
35.86%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$109 A$155
$74.2 MX$1,390
46.79%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$131 A$187
$89.3 MX$1,672
46.82%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$907 A$1,294
$980 MX$18.4K
-7.44%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$714 A$1,019
$381 MX$7,136
87.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,526 A$2,179
$1,708 MX$32.0K
-10.63%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,128 A$1,610
$1,075 MX$20.1K
4.95%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,463 A$4,942
$3,943 MX$73.9K
-12.18%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,408 A$3,436
$6,158 MX$115.4K
-60.90%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Wagga Wagga
Playa del Carmen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$735 MX$13.8K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.95
11.45
-48.03%

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

Last update for Wagga Wagga: October 27, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Wagga Wagga
$714
Playa del Carmen
$381 46.7% $333
Groceries & Markets
Wagga Wagga
$396
Playa del Carmen
$255 35.6% $141
Eating Out
Wagga Wagga
$274
Playa del Carmen
$202 26.2% $72
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Wagga Wagga
$269
Playa del Carmen
$137 49.2% $132
Clothing & Footwear
Wagga Wagga
$168
Playa del Carmen
$112 33.6% $56
Sport & Entertainment
Wagga Wagga
$60
Playa del Carmen
$67 12.7% $7.6
Getting Around
Wagga Wagga
$25 *
Playa del Carmen
$50 104% $26

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $907 in Wagga Wagga versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. 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 $90 in Wagga Wagga versus $43 in Playa del Carmen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $396 vs $255 – making Playa del Carmen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇦🇺 Wagga Wagga
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🕒 Local time
05:26 5:26 AM
13:26 1:26 PM
16 h behind Wagga Wagga
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
49,686
149,923
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.628 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Wagga Wagga Playa del Carmen 14,500 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Wagga Wagga
  • Playa del Carmen

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
Wagga Wagga vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa del Carmen cheaper than Wagga Wagga?
Yes – Wagga Wagga is pricier by about 58%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,859 per month in Wagga Wagga and $1,806 in Playa del Carmen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
What is the rent difference between Wagga Wagga and Playa del Carmen?
A central 1-bedroom goes for about $907 in Wagga Wagga and $980 in Playa del Carmen. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.
What are total monthly expenses in Wagga Wagga and in Playa del Carmen?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,906 in Wagga Wagga and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen. That makes Playa del Carmen about 37% cheaper.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $2,202 per month in Wagga Wagga and $207 in Playa del Carmen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Wagga Wagga or in Playa del Carmen?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Playa del Carmen, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in Wagga Wagga at $1,906. In Playa del Carmen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wagga Wagga it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is it better to live in Wagga Wagga or in Playa del Carmen?
It depends on your priorities. Playa del Carmen has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Playa del Carmen to $1,906 in Wagga Wagga. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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