Cost of Living in Seoul

Summary of cost of living in Seoul, South Korea:

Restaurants
Edit Range
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 12.09 A$ 8.79-16.48
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 71.43 A$ 43.96-131.87
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 9.34 A$ 8.24-10.99
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 5.49 A$ 3.30-7.69
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 8.79 A$ 4.95-10.99
Cappuccino (regular) 5.64 A$ 3.30-7.47
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.53 A$ 1.76-4.40
Water (12 oz small bottle) 1.27 A$ 1.10-1.98
Markets
Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 12.57 A$ 8.82-16.64
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 4.52 A$ 2.99-9.47
Rice (white), (1 lb) 2.21 A$ 1.32-3.99
Eggs (regular) (12) 4.87 A$ 2.64-9.31
Local Cheese (1 lb) 8.96 A$ 4.98-14.95
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 7.39 A$ 2.99-9.97
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 24.65 A$ 12.46-37.39
Apples (1 lb) 5.19 A$ 3.99-7.48
Banana (1 lb) 2.42 A$ 1.55-3.99
Oranges (1 lb) 3.79 A$ 1.74-7.33
Tomato (1 lb) 4.17 A$ 2.32-6.48
Potato (1 lb) 2.65 A$ 1.34-3.91
Onion (1 lb) 2.13 A$ 1.25-3.48
Lettuce (1 head) 3.77 A$ 1.65-4.95
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 1.95 A$ 0.89-2.75
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 31.87 A$ 16.48-49.45
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 3.98 A$ 2.20-6.59
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 4.77 A$ 2.75-8.79
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 4.95 A$ 4.95-8.46
Transportation
Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 1.65 A$ 1.54-2.42
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 69.23 A$ 65.94-98.90
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 5.27 A$ 4.40-5.27
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 1.38 A$ 1.34-2.65
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 13.19 A$ 13.19-13.19
Gasoline (1 gallon) 7.02 A$ 6.45-8.32
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 41,464.18 A$ 39,561.91-41,464.18
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 33,166.07 A$ 32,858.36-39,561.91
Utilities (Monthly)
Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 262.43 A$ 142.86-431.18
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 58.12 A$ 32.97-87.92
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 35.22 A$ 24.18-54.95
Sports And Leisure
Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 81.66 A$ 43.96-142.86
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 37.16 A$ 13.19-54.95
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 16.48 A$ 14.29-19.78
Childcare
Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 596.59 A$ 344.94-931.35
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 33,887.37 A$ 21,978.84-43,957.68
Clothing And Shoes
Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 91.00 A$ 54.95-164.84
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 72.67 A$ 32.97-109.89
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 134.45 A$ 87.92-207.70
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 186.62 A$ 109.89-329.68
Rent Per Month
Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 1,383.84 A$ 879.15-2,747.35
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 752.68 A$ 514.47-1,241.79
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 4,030.59 A$ 2,197.88-6,593.65
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 2,138.81 A$ 1,538.52-3,414.93
Buy Apartment Price
Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 2,826.26 A$ 1,837.70-4,083.77
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 1,612.45 A$ 1,020.94-2,143.98
Salaries And Financing
Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 4,533.89 A$
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 5.03 3.90-6.50

Prices in Seoul

This city had 2186 entries in the past 12 months by 271 different contributors.
Last update: December 2024
Distribution of Expenses Using Our Statistical Model:
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21 Comments so far
Bumsu Kim on Nov 04, 2024:
If you make 130,000,000 KRW after paying tax, yes it's super nice. But if you make 130,000,000 KRW and didn't pay the tax yet, I doubt you can enjoy the Korea fully. You can still, but not too much.
ahahaha on Aug 03, 2024:
yeah that exchange rate is true but you can't really be a millionaire with just 5663000krw in korea
Aya on Jun 26, 2024:
Is this true? I am a Tunisian person and I was shocked by the difference between the two currencies. Is 5,663,058.7₩ really 12,747 dinars? Is it true? if it's true i will be a millionere in korea i hope someone answer me
hifi on May 16, 2024:
It's interesting to compare it to London, but it's nonsense that the overall living costs are only 10% different. It's almost double... It seems like a full statistical review is needed.
hifi on May 16, 2024:
I didn't look at it in detail, but it's okay that Volkswagen is the model car compared Seoul to Tokyo, but why are you comparing Toyota... Buying a car from your own country is the cheapest locally, so buying a Hyundai in Seoul would be cheaper than buying a Toyota in Tokyo. ...There appears to be a statistical error.
And in Korea, if you change from a bus to a subway, the next fare is free. It would be unreasonable to expect such details to be reflected.
Jw lee on Mar 30, 2024:
Normally its true. But some part of the items such as price of apartment is little over evaluated than the fact. Even the price is higher its about 10000 dollars fer square meters not 19000 dollars in the city.
ccmcya on Jan 17, 2024:
It's something I always feel, but there are still a lot of people who play it as a price prank. The system has changed now, so I don't put it into the statistics randomly, but most of them are high-priced items that I still don't see around. There are basically 30 sets of eggs distributed in Korea. 30 are usually W6,000, and the mart I go to often always weighs W5,700 ($4.2) over 1.8 kg of 30. Antibiotic-free or high grade eggs are over $6. Expensive grade is not a normal price. 12 eggs (only 10, 15, and 30 packages exist to be exact) at $3.5 is just an expensive grade egg. There are so many ridiculously expensive items such as beer prices and bottled water prices.
Julius kireki on Oct 12, 2023:
Am in Kenya and I would like to supply banana from Kenya please give me an avenue to the same
Korean on Aug 26, 2022:
"A single person estimated monthly costs are 1,432,775.68₩ without rent."

This is just nonsense. There is no way, it costs this much to live in Seoul. A rather reasonable number would be around 800,000 to 1,000,000KRW
Anonymous on Jul 26, 2022:
I’m curious is a 130,000,000 KRW ($100,000) salary in Seoul enough to live nice?
Anonymous on Jun 11, 2022:
Apartment prices in Seoul for the past four years
It went up very high
When purchasing an apartment in Seoul, the price per m² is about 40,000 dollars, and the center of Gangnam-gu is about 65,000 dollars per m²
Peter Kim on May 21, 2022:
As for the property price, it is rising rapidly. To rant a flat you would need large amount of deposit. It starts from around 8500 USD = 10,000,000KRW depend on size and location. Also, there is Korean unique ranting system, namely 'Jeonse', which need far more deposit (60~70% of the property price) but there's no monthly rental fee so it is popular option if you have some spare money.
Contract period is usually 2years and you have right to extend once.
Peter Kim on May 21, 2022:
I am a upper middle class in Seoul. And compare to Berlin and Sydney cost of living here is much higher especially fresh fruits and meat products. But it is quite safe city with low crime rate. And services are very fast. Free wifi is available virtually everywhere. If you leave a MacBook on a table in a Cafe nobody touches it. Women can stroll around safely midnight. In a nutshell it is convenient city if you have enough budget.
Anonymous on Nov 28, 2021:
I am a Korean who is very upset about the price of meat. Pork is $3 for 100g and this is crazy. I am very dissatisfied because I eat meat like a North American.
J on Jun 19, 2021:
Say goodbye to fruits and vegetables and eggs then you are good to go.
Anonymous on Feb 14, 2021:
Average mid class here, moved to seoul 10 years ago, getting 40k a year working in a small company, family of 4 (2children),great health and transportation system, can't complain so far except its overpopulated and the air quality is not good.
Anonymous on Jan 23, 2021:
Totally accurate. Been living in Gangnam for 4 years. Rent is dependent on your key money.
Anonymous on Jan 21, 2021:
I'm looking for identical twin Seoul women to live with me.They must be gorgeous intelligent and calm.One set of twins will do and in their early 20's.
Anonymous on Jan 02, 2021:
Yes Seoul is more expensive than other countries but you get what you pay for. Seoul is a very nice and developed city full of progression,a modern city.If you're looking for cities on a budget try Cambodia, Vietnam, or Bangkok.But none of those cities can compare with Seoul's modern and efficient transportation systems and only Japan comes close.
Seoulsaram on Nov 27, 2020:
You should know about the amount of deposit when you are trying to get a rent room in Korea. It is quite massive than other countries. That's a trade off for relatively cheap rent price.
Seoul Song on Oct 29, 2020:
Everything is quite correct but apartment price.
It is increased a lot for last a year