Cost of living comparison

compared to

Seoul vs. Saipan Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 32.3% more expensive than Saipan.

Restaurants
pay 29.0% less in Seoul
Groceries
pay 6.3% more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 34.1% less in Seoul
Housing
pay 11.6% less in Seoul
Childcare
pay 3.6 times more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 4.4% less in Seoul
Clothing
pay 38.0% more in Seoul

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

Seoul vs. Saipan Cost Breakdown

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

pay 29.0% less for restaurants

 
Saipan
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $11.50
 
$8.49
₩12,318
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$12.00
 
$6.30
₩9,136
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.67
 
$1.64
₩2,378

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pay 6.3% more for groceries

 
Saipan
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$3.33
 
$3.24
₩4,697
Local cheese (8 oz) ?? $6.79
₩9,855
Milk (1 gallon) $8.44
 
$7.85
₩11,385

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pay 34.1% less for transportation

 
Saipan
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $5.49
 
$4.43
₩6,428
Monthly public transit pass ?? $45.99
₩66,724
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,999.00
 
$25,072.36
₩36M

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pay 11.6% less for housing

 
Saipan
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$60.00
 
$20.56
₩29,823
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $625.00
 
$925.55
₩1M
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $450.00
 
$559.33
₩811K

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pay 3.6 times more for childcare

 
Saipan
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly ?? $360.15
₩522K
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $6,000.00
 
$21,667.04
₩31M

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pay 4.4% less for entertainment and sports

 
Saipan
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.00
 
$3.54
₩5,133
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.12
 
$3.70
₩5,365
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
?? $3.18
₩4,619

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pay 38.0% more for clothing

 
Saipan
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$30.00
 
$49.77
₩72,199
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$40.00
 
$39.49
₩57,293
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$70.00
 
$74.94
₩109K

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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: February 2026
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