Cost of living comparison
South Korea is 0.6% more expensive than Japan.
If you lived in South Korea instead of Japan, you would:
pay 3.1% less for restaurants
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$6.87
¥1,086
|
$6.13
₩8,447
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.20
¥821
|
$5.18
₩7,137
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.13
¥179
|
$1.41
₩1,938
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.90
¥143
|
$0.67
₩930
|
|
pay 23.6% more for groceries
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.58
¥251
|
$2.74
₩3,780
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.69
¥1,058
|
$8.12
₩11,189
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.53
¥874
|
$7.20
₩9,923
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.87
¥295
|
$2.73
₩3,765
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.14
¥497
|
$3.58
₩4,940
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$2.55
¥403
|
$2.90
₩3,991
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.34
¥212
|
$1.51
₩2,081
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.07
¥327
|
$2.66
₩3,668
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.14
¥338
|
$2.29
₩3,160
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.37
¥217
|
$1.40
₩1,925
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$0.98
¥154
|
$1.08
₩1,494
|
|
pay 16.1% less for transportation
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.79
¥757
|
$4.92
₩6,786
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$77.51
¥12,254
|
$43.73
₩60,262
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$20,322.73
¥3,212,923
|
$28,660.56
₩39,496,774
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$26.34
¥4,164
|
$9.34
₩12,866
|
|
pay 30.4% less for housing
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$36.05
¥5,699
|
$21.09
₩29,063
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$586.71
¥92,755
|
$392.42
₩540,792
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$401.57
¥63,486
|
$302.43
₩416,775
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$142.79
¥22,574
|
$111.18
₩153,211
|
|
pay 26.8% more for childcare
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$343.45
¥54,298
|
$342.96
₩472,623
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,362.75
¥1,954,489
|
$18,987.50
₩26,166,449
|
|
pay 15.9% less for entertainment and sports
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.03
¥479
|
$2.92
₩4,022
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.16
¥500
|
$3.29
₩4,533
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.29
¥678
|
$3.45
₩4,754
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$61.62
¥9,743
|
$44.03
₩60,673
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.07
¥2,067
|
$8.93
₩12,300
|
|
pay 19.3% more for clothing
Japan
|
South Korea
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$43.55
¥6,885
|
$48.44
₩66,758
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$32.13
¥5,079
|
$44.60
₩61,461
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$59.61
¥9,425
|
$75.46
₩103,986
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$90.53
¥14,313
|
$91.03
₩125,453
|
|
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