Cost of Living Comparison Between United States and South Korea Reverse

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Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in South Korea is 11.0% lower than in United States (without rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in South Korea is 27.9% lower than in United States
Rent Prices in South Korea are 61.8% lower than in United States
Restaurant Prices in South Korea are 50.6% lower than in United States
Groceries Prices in South Korea are 5.4% higher than in United States
Local Purchasing Power in South Korea is 32.6% lower than in United States
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
 United States Edit South Korea Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 20.00 $
(29,407.30 ₩)		 6.80 $
(10,000.00 ₩)		      -66.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 75.00 $
(110,277.36 ₩)		 40.81 $
(60,000.00 ₩)		      -45.6 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 11.00 $
(16,174.01 ₩)		 5.44 $
(8,000.00 ₩)		      -50.5 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 6.00 $
(8,822.19 ₩)		 3.40 $
(5,000.00 ₩)		      -43.3 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 7.00 $
(10,292.55 ₩)		 4.76 $
(7,000.00 ₩)		      -32.0 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.22 $
(7,675.60 ₩)		 3.41 $
(5,016.77 ₩)		      -34.6 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.55 $
(3,754.03 ₩)		 1.45 $
(2,135.59 ₩)		      -43.1 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 2.08 $
(3,058.15 ₩)		 0.73 $
(1,070.16 ₩)		      -65.0 %
Markets
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 4.00 $
(5,879.61 ₩)		 7.67 $
(11,272.99 ₩)		      +91.7 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 3.29 $
(4,839.39 ₩)		 2.61 $
(3,841.65 ₩)		      -20.6 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 2.08 $
(3,061.32 ₩)		 1.28 $
(1,884.34 ₩)		      -38.4 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 4.15 $
(6,105.94 ₩)		 2.90 $
(4,259.52 ₩)		      -30.2 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 5.88 $
(8,643.13 ₩)		 5.79 $
(8,518.93 ₩)		      -1.4 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 5.51 $
(8,103.29 ₩)		 3.89 $
(5,718.33 ₩)		      -29.4 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 7.36 $
(10,819.66 ₩)		 12.61 $
(18,538.14 ₩)		      +71.3 %
Apples (1 lb) 2.39 $
(3,516.59 ₩)		 3.29 $
(4,840.41 ₩)		      +37.6 %
Banana (1 lb) 0.76 $
(1,117.93 ₩)		 1.46 $
(2,142.09 ₩)		      +91.6 %
Oranges (1 lb) 2.04 $
(2,992.86 ₩)		 2.50 $
(3,670.74 ₩)		      +22.7 %
Tomato (1 lb) 2.22 $
(3,271.34 ₩)		 2.58 $
(3,792.87 ₩)		      +15.9 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.33 $
(1,952.52 ₩)		 1.62 $
(2,387.41 ₩)		      +22.3 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.39 $
(2,049.95 ₩)		 1.22 $
(1,797.15 ₩)		      -12.3 %
Lettuce (1 head) 2.20 $
(3,239.15 ₩)		 2.29 $
(3,373.78 ₩)		      +4.2 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.22 $
(3,268.87 ₩)		 1.10 $
(1,620.58 ₩)		      -50.4 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 15.00 $
(22,055.47 ₩)		 17.00 $
(25,000.00 ₩)		      +13.4 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 1.94 $
(2,854.70 ₩)		 2.02 $
(2,972.99 ₩)		      +4.1 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 3.59 $
(5,275.88 ₩)		 2.75 $
(4,049.63 ₩)		      -23.2 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 10.00 $
(14,703.65 ₩)		 3.06 $
(4,500.00 ₩)		      -69.4 %
Transportation
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.50 $
(3,675.91 ₩)		 1.02 $
(1,500.00 ₩)		      -59.2 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 65.00 $
(95,573.71 ₩)		 44.21 $
(65,000.00 ₩)		      -32.0 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 3.75 $
(5,513.87 ₩)		 3.06 $
(4,500.00 ₩)		      -18.4 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 2.80 $
(4,117.02 ₩)		 0.88 $
(1,287.48 ₩)		      -68.7 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 30.00 $
(44,110.94 ₩)		 8.16 $
(12,000.00 ₩)		      -72.8 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 3.51 $
(5,167.35 ₩)		 4.26 $
(6,267.07 ₩)		      +21.3 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 30,000.00 $
(44,110,942.80 ₩)		 25,660.98 $
(37,731,000.00 ₩)		      -14.5 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 25,963.01 $
(38,175,088.72 ₩)		 21,752.07 $
(31,983,479.37 ₩)		      -16.2 %
Utilities (Monthly)
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 207.86 $
(305,635.54 ₩)		 156.53 $
(230,153.78 ₩)		      -24.7 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 57.17 $
(84,065.04 ₩)		 37.43 $
(55,040.83 ₩)		      -34.5 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 71.48 $
(105,102.84 ₩)		 19.97 $
(29,363.23 ₩)		      -72.1 %
Sports And Leisure
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 46.54 $
(68,437.20 ₩)		 48.30 $
(71,021.20 ₩)		      +3.8 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 21.84 $
(32,118.38 ₩)		 19.88 $
(29,236.84 ₩)		      -9.0 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 14.00 $
(20,585.11 ₩)		 10.20 $
(15,000.00 ₩)		      -27.1 %
Childcare
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 1,374.71 $
(2,021,326.30 ₩)		 368.16 $
(541,333.10 ₩)		      -73.2 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 22,628.80 $
(33,272,587.34 ₩)		 20,689.04 $
(30,420,430.82 ₩)		      -8.6 %
Clothing And Shoes
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 52.02 $
(76,482.12 ₩)		 54.97 $
(80,825.98 ₩)		      +5.7 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 42.59 $
(62,624.90 ₩)		 45.94 $
(67,555.84 ₩)		      +7.9 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 89.46 $
(131,537.36 ₩)		 77.32 $
(113,694.94 ₩)		      -13.6 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 113.17 $
(166,398.72 ₩)		 102.32 $
(150,454.55 ₩)		      -9.6 %
Rent Per Month
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 1,744.51 $
(2,565,064.77 ₩)		 543.21 $
(798,720.53 ₩)		      -68.9 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 1,437.94 $
(2,114,299.72 ₩)		 341.62 $
(502,299.33 ₩)		      -76.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 2,910.15 $
(4,278,975.80 ₩)		 1,471.50 $
(2,163,643.42 ₩)		      -49.4 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 2,398.92 $
(3,527,289.30 ₩)		 886.95 $
(1,304,146.55 ₩)		      -63.0 %
Buy Apartment Price
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 300.24 $
(441,465.98 ₩)		 1,140.46 $
(1,676,889.44 ₩)		      +279.8 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 251.42 $
(369,683.14 ₩)		 767.11 $
(1,127,931.36 ₩)		      +205.1 %
Salaries And Financing
 United States Edit South Korea Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 4,338.87 $
(6,379,715.03 ₩)		 2,109.54 $
(3,101,797.58 ₩)		      -51.4 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 6.57 4.51      -31.3 %
Last update: March 2025March 2025
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