Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Korea vs. San Diego Cost of Living Summary
North Korea is 44.6% cheaper than San Diego.
- Restaurants
-
pay 38.1% less in North Korea
- Groceries
-
pay 44.8% less in North Korea
- Housing
-
pay 93.2% less in North Korea
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.5% less in North Korea
Expenses including housing, groceries, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in North Korea.
North Korea vs. San Diego Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Korea instead of San Diego, you would:
pay 38.1% less for restaurants
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.00
|
?? | |
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
|
?? | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.03
|
$2.34
KPW2,102
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.50
|
$1.17
KPW1,051
|
|
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of restaurants
pay 44.8% less for groceries
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.57
|
$2.40
KPW2,161
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.36
|
?? | |
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$3.70
KPW3,332
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.84
|
$2.08
KPW1,876
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.07
|
?? | |
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.22
|
?? | |
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
?? | |
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
?? | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.26
|
?? | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.42
|
?? | |
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
?? | |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of groceries
pay (unknown) more for transportation
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.76
|
?? | |
| Monthly public transit pass |
$72.00
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,965.00
|
?? | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.40
|
?? |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of transportation
pay 93.2% less for housing
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$82.19
|
?? | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,033.00
|
$93.44
KPW84,095
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,538.64
|
$262.80
KPW236,518
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$205.84
|
?? | |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of housing
pay (unknown) more for childcare
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,750.00
|
?? | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$28,750.00
|
?? |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of childcare
pay 2.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$14.02
KPW12,614
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.90
|
$1.17
KPW1,051
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
?? | |
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$73.21
|
?? | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$17.50
|
?? | |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
San Diego
|
North Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.72
|
?? | |
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$58.44
|
?? | |
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.68
|
?? | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$126.25
|
?? |
San Diego vs. North Korea - Cost of clothing
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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