Seoul vs. Portland Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 34.8% cheaper than Portland.

Restaurants
pay 55.4% less in Seoul
Groceries
pay 1.7% more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 5.8% less in Seoul
Housing
pay 57.0% less in Seoul
Childcare
pay 25.6% more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 29.5% less in Seoul
Clothing
pay 33.8% less in Seoul

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

Seoul vs. Portland Cost Breakdown

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

pay 55.4% less for restaurants

 
Portland
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $25.00
 
$8.96
₩12,006
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$12.00
 
$7.46
₩10,005
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.10
 
$1.58
₩2,121

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pay 1.7% more for groceries

 
Portland
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$4.68
 
$3.10
₩4,152
Local cheese (8 oz) $9.55
 
$8.84
₩11,848
Milk (1 gallon) $4.00
 
$7.79
₩10,447

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pay 5.8% less for transportation

 
Portland
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.90
 
$5.53
₩7,416
Monthly public transit pass $60.00
 
$46.28
₩62,031
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,372.00
 
$29,385.60
₩39M

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pay 57.0% less for housing

 
Portland
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$77.83
 
$20.82
₩27,906
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $2,250.00
 
$886.39
₩1M
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,676.67
 
$620.25
₩831K

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pay 25.6% more for childcare

 
Portland
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $828.50
 
$1,927.59
₩3M
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $33,333.33
 
$22,602.27
₩30M

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pay 29.5% less for entertainment and sports

 
Portland
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $8.00
 
$3.73
₩5,002
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.00
 
$4.10
₩5,497
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$11.00
 
$3.36
₩4,502

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pay 33.8% less for clothing

 
Portland
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$52.50
 
$57.88
₩77,585
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$80.00
 
$32.77
₩43,930
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$102.25
 
$69.99
₩93,816

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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: October 2026
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