Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Korea vs. Gwangju Cost of Living Summary

South Korea is 14.9% more expensive than Gwangju.

Restaurants: pay 11.4% more in South Korea
Groceries: pay 14.6% more in South Korea
Transportation: pay 4.4% less in South Korea
Housing: pay 2.7% more in South Korea
Childcare: pay 43.2% more in South Korea
Entertainment and Sports: pay 10.1% more in South Korea
Clothing: pay 26.9% more in South Korea

The cost of childcare, clothing, groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and housing in South Korea are more expensive than in Gwangju.

South Korea vs. Gwangju Cost Breakdown

If you lived in South Korea instead of Gwangju, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 11.4% more for restaurants

	Gwangju	South Korea
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.72 ₩9,907	$6.72 ₩9,907
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.66 ₩8,342	$5.50 ₩8,102	-2.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.32 ₩1,940	$1.47 ₩2,161	+11.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.66 ₩966	$0.82 ₩1,216	+25.8%
Average			+11.4%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of restaurants

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pay 14.6% more for groceries

	Gwangju	South Korea
Bread 1 loaf	$2.29 ₩3,372	$2.87 ₩4,235	+25.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.54 ₩5,214	$5.63 ₩8,290	+59.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.70 ₩9,869	$7.67 ₩11,311	+14.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.55 ₩3,754	$2.84 ₩4,180	+11.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.94 ₩4,336	$3.34 ₩4,917	+13.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.26 ₩4,809	$3.24 ₩4,768	-0.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.28 ₩1,892	$1.39 ₩2,045	+8.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.78 ₩4,099	$2.80 ₩4,121	+0.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.46 ₩3,626	$2.40 ₩3,543	-2.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.50 ₩2,207	$1.78 ₩2,627	+19.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.07 ₩1,577	$1.20 ₩1,775	+12.5%
Average			+14.6%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of groceries

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pay 4.4% less for transportation

	Gwangju	South Korea
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.43 ₩6,524	$4.40 ₩6,485	-0.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$63.68 ₩93,852	$47.17 ₩69,524	-25.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$26,696.92 ₩39,345,918	$26,440.41 ₩38,967,875	-1.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.59 ₩11,186	$8.33 ₩12,280	+9.8%
Average			-4.4%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.7% more for housing

	Gwangju	South Korea
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$19.81 ₩29,198	$21.68 ₩31,958	+9.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$436.33 ₩643,061	$473.91 ₩698,442	+8.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$341.99 ₩504,020	$357.19 ₩526,420	+4.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$149.85 ₩220,851	$132.53 ₩195,326	-11.6%
Average			+2.7%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of housing

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pay 43.2% more for childcare

	Gwangju	South Korea
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$254.87 ₩375,621	$378.52 ₩557,869	+48.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$10,906.99 ₩16,074,725	$15,055.40 ₩22,188,655	+38.0%
Average			+43.2%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of childcare

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pay 10.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Gwangju	South Korea
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.83 ₩4,171	$3.12 ₩4,595	+10.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.48 ₩5,127	$3.57 ₩5,258	+2.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.18 ₩4,693	$3.18 ₩4,693
Monthly membership at local gym	$45.99 ₩67,782	$49.86 ₩73,483	+8.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.49 ₩12,514	$10.12 ₩14,912	+19.2%
Average			+10.1%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 26.9% more for clothing

	Gwangju	South Korea
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$48.35 ₩71,258	$66.46 ₩97,948	+37.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$35.38 ₩52,140	$50.68 ₩74,697	+43.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$61.32 ₩90,376	$72.74 ₩107,204	+18.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.52 ₩140,778	$103.23 ₩152,146	+8.1%
Average			+26.9%

Gwangju vs. South Korea - Cost of clothing

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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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