Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Korea vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary

South Korea is 17.9% cheaper than Ottawa.

Restaurants: pay 46.6% less in South Korea
Groceries: pay 26.3% more in South Korea
Transportation: pay 19.6% less in South Korea
Housing: pay 45.9% less in South Korea
Childcare: pay 28.2% less in South Korea
Entertainment and Sports: pay 24.1% less in South Korea
Clothing: pay 12.7% more in South Korea

The cost of groceries and clothing in South Korea are more expensive than in Ottawa. Expenses including restaurants, housing, childcare, entertainment and sports, and transportation are lower in South Korea.

South Korea vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 46.6% less for restaurants

	Ottawa	South Korea
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$17.99 CA$24.87	$6.72 ₩9,907	-62.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.01 CA$15.22	$5.50 ₩8,102	-50.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.00 CA$2.77	$1.47 ₩2,161	-26.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.56 CA$2.15	$0.82 ₩1,216	-47.0%
Average			-46.6%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of restaurants

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pay 26.3% more for groceries

	Ottawa	South Korea
Bread 1 loaf	$2.73 CA$3.77	$2.87 ₩4,235	+5.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.85 CA$8.09	$5.63 ₩8,290	-3.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$8.65 CA$11.97	$7.67 ₩11,311	-11.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.52 CA$4.86	$2.84 ₩4,180	-19.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.74 CA$7.94	$3.34 ₩4,917	-41.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.91 CA$2.64	$3.24 ₩4,768	+69.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.60 CA$0.83	$1.39 ₩2,045	+131.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.63 CA$2.25	$2.80 ₩4,121	+71.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.67 CA$2.30	$2.40 ₩3,543	+44.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.11 CA$1.53	$1.78 ₩2,627	+61.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.46 CA$2.02	$1.20 ₩1,775	-17.5%
Average			+26.3%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of groceries

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pay 19.6% less for transportation

	Ottawa	South Korea
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.05 CA$5.60	$4.40 ₩6,485	+8.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$97.12 CA$134.31	$47.17 ₩69,524	-51.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,444.83 CA$33,803.54	$26,440.41 ₩38,967,875	+8.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$14.82 CA$20.49	$8.33 ₩12,280	-43.8%
Average			-19.6%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of transportation

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pay 45.9% less for housing

	Ottawa	South Korea
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$49.93 CA$69.04	$21.68 ₩31,958	-56.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,452.55 CA$2,008.67	$473.91 ₩698,442	-67.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,228.71 CA$1,699.13	$357.19 ₩526,420	-70.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$118.93 CA$164.46	$132.53 ₩195,326	+11.4%
Average			-45.9%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of housing

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pay 28.2% less for childcare

	Ottawa	South Korea
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$788.18 CA$1,089.93	$378.52 ₩557,869	-52.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$15,753.32 CA$21,784.48	$15,055.40 ₩22,188,655	-4.4%
Average			-28.2%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of childcare

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pay 24.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Ottawa	South Korea
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.76 CA$7.96	$3.12 ₩4,595	-45.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.74 CA$5.18	$3.57 ₩5,258	-4.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$12.95 CA$17.91	$3.18 ₩4,693	-75.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$44.60 CA$61.68	$49.86 ₩73,483	+11.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$10.79 CA$14.92	$10.12 ₩14,912	-6.2%
Average			-24.1%

Ottawa vs. South Korea - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 12.7% more for clothing

	Ottawa	South Korea
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$52.82 CA$73.05	$66.46 ₩97,948	+25.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$38.91 CA$53.81	$50.68 ₩74,697	+30.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.10 CA$120.44	$72.74 ₩107,204	-16.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$92.91 CA$128.48	$103.23 ₩152,146	+11.1%
Average			+12.7%

Ottawa 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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