Cost of living comparison

compared to

Busan vs. Rome Cost of Living Summary

Busan is 13.9% cheaper than Rome.

Restaurants
pay 45.1% less in Busan
Groceries
pay 70.1% more in Busan
Transportation
pay 16.2% less in Busan
Housing
pay 43.3% less in Busan
Childcare
pay 29.7% more in Busan
Entertainment and Sports
pay 3.8% less in Busan
Clothing
pay 31.9% more in Busan

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

Busan vs. Rome Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Busan instead of Rome, you would:

pay 45.1% less for restaurants

 
Rome
Busan
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $16.80
€14.95
$7.46
₩9,962
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$11.20
€9.97
$6.64
₩8,867
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.96
€2.63
$1.82
₩2,433

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pay 70.1% more for groceries

 
Rome
Busan
Bread
1 loaf
$2.22
€1.98
$3.17
₩4,234
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.42
€6.61
$5.50
₩7,347
Milk (1 gallon) $6.49
€5.77
$8.67
₩11,568

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pay 16.2% less for transportation

 
Rome
Busan
Gasoline (1 gallon) $8.04
€7.16
$5.24
₩6,996
Monthly public transit pass $39.19
€34.88
$59.71
₩79,700
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $35,551.60
€31,642.21
$29,385.60
₩39M

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pay 43.3% less for housing

 
Rome
Busan
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$31.87
€28.36
$27.06
₩36,114
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,208.81
€1,075.88
$720.80
₩962K
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $873.39
€777.35
$365.55
₩488K

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pay 29.7% more for childcare

 
Rome
Busan
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $487.21
€433.63
$634.44
₩847K
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $16,862.20
€15,007.96
$21,781.84
₩29M

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pay 3.8% less for entertainment and sports

 
Rome
Busan
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.60
€4.98
$3.73
₩4,981
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.07
€1.84
$3.68
₩4,908
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$7.28
€6.48
$3.36
₩4,483

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pay 31.9% more for clothing

 
Rome
Busan
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$71.31
€63.47
$104.50
₩139K
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$36.31
€32.32
$65.31
₩87,171
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$83.63
€74.43
$93.30
₩125K

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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