Cost of living comparison
compared to
Seoul vs. San Jose Cost of Living Summary
Seoul is 2.7% cheaper than San Jose.
- Restaurants
-
pay 31.2% less in Seoul
- Groceries
-
pay 34.8% more in Seoul
- Transportation
-
pay 18.6% less in Seoul
- Housing
-
pay 2.8% more in Seoul
- Childcare
-
pay 15.9% more in Seoul
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 0.4% less in Seoul
- Clothing
-
pay 21.9% less in Seoul
The cost of groceries, childcare, and housing in Seoul are more expensive than in San Jose. Expenses including restaurants, clothing, transportation, and entertainment and sports are lower in Seoul.
Seoul vs. San Jose Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Seoul instead of San Jose, you would:
pay 31.2% less for restaurants
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.95
CRC4,861.62
|
$8.49
₩12,514
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.91
CRC4,838.51
|
$6.30
₩9,281
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.06
CRC1,004.21
|
$1.64
₩2,415
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.67
CRC817.27
|
$0.78
₩1,151
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of restaurants
pay 34.8% more for groceries
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.64
CRC1,288.25
|
$3.24
₩4,772
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.95
CRC2,419.25
|
$6.79
₩10,011
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.78
CRC3,801.22
|
$7.85
₩11,566
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.88
CRC1,404.76
|
$2.93
₩4,321
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.97
CRC1,936.83
|
$4.67
₩6,880
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.94
CRC946.86
|
$3.45
₩5,078
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
CRC319.23
|
$1.52
₩2,246
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.95
CRC951.04
|
$2.35
₩3,466
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.58
CRC772.54
|
$2.77
₩4,086
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.55
CRC755.52
|
$1.62
₩2,386
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.43
CRC699.02
|
$1.30
₩1,912
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of groceries
pay 18.6% less for transportation
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.39
CRC2,631.92
|
$4.43
₩6,530
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$41.21
CRC20,128.19
|
$45.99
₩67,782
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$37,640.45
CRC18,386,324.93
|
$25,072.36
₩36,951,647
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.12
CRC7,872.25
|
$10.50
₩15,475
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of transportation
pay 2.8% more for housing
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$58.88
CRC28,758.87
|
$20.56
₩30,296
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$891.63
CRC435,536.79
|
$925.55
₩1,364,083
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$560.77
CRC273,921.38
|
$559.33
₩824,340
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$68.88
CRC33,646.32
|
$118.88
₩175,208
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of housing
pay 15.9% more for childcare
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$600.27
CRC293,213.50
|
$360.15
₩530,786
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,608.22
CRC6,158,769.04
|
$21,667.04
₩31,932,878
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of childcare
pay 0.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.67
CRC1,306.40
|
$3.54
₩5,214
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.85
CRC1,882.21
|
$3.70
₩5,450
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.15
CRC2,516.02
|
$3.18
₩4,693
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.98
CRC27,346.16
|
$56.34
₩83,028
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.91
CRC4,838.51
|
$10.61
₩15,642
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 21.9% less for clothing
|
San Jose
|
Seoul
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$61.74
CRC30,160.02
|
$49.77
₩73,344
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$51.32
CRC25,068.28
|
$39.49
₩58,201
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$120.28
CRC58,753.29
|
$74.94
₩110,450
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.98
CRC52,255.87
|
$99.06
₩145,992
|
|
San Jose vs. Seoul - 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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