Cost of living comparison

compared to

Seoul vs. Bangkok Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 39.3% more expensive than Bangkok.

Restaurants
pay 2.0 times more in Seoul
Groceries
pay 2.1 times more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 6.1% less in Seoul
Housing
pay 51.4% more in Seoul
Childcare
pay 10.7% more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 17.4% more in Seoul
Clothing
pay 7.9% less in Seoul

The cost of groceries, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, and childcare in Seoul are more expensive than in Bangkok. Expenses including clothing and transportation are lower in Seoul. Notably, groceries and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Seoul.

Seoul vs. Bangkok Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Seoul instead of Bangkok, you would:

pay 2.0 times more for restaurants

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $3.10
THB97.49
$8.49
₩12,520
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$6.20
THB194.99
$6.30
₩9,286
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.79
THB24.89
$1.64
₩2,416

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pay 2.1 times more for groceries

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$1.44
THB45.28
$3.24
₩4,774
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.50
THB267.43
$6.79
₩10,016
Milk (1 gallon) $7.23
THB227.32
$7.85
₩11,571

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pay 6.1% less for transportation

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.69
THB147.55
$4.43
₩6,533
Monthly public transit pass $37.21
THB1,169.93
$45.99
₩67,816
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $37,206.42
THB1,169,932.86
$25,072.36
₩36,969,950

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pay 51.4% more for housing

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$16.91
THB531.61
$20.56
₩30,311
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $675.06
THB21,226.75
$925.55
₩1,364,758
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $321.97
THB10,124.02
$559.33
₩824,748

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pay 10.7% more for childcare

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $609.37
THB19,161.40
$360.15
₩531,049
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $13,346.39
THB419,669.10
$21,667.04
₩31,948,695

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pay 17.4% more for entertainment and sports

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.79
THB87.74
$3.54
₩5,217
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.54
THB79.88
$3.70
₩5,453
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$4.40
THB138.20
$3.18
₩4,695

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pay 7.9% less for clothing

 
Bangkok
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$58.81
THB1,849.09
$49.77
₩73,380
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$38.03
THB1,195.92
$39.49
₩58,230
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$104.24
THB3,277.67
$74.94
₩110,505

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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