Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Korea vs. Sao Tome and Principe Cost of Living Summary
South Korea is 36.8% more expensive than Sao Tome and Principe overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 21.8% less in South Korea
- Groceries
-
pay 30.8% more in South Korea
- Transportation
-
pay 17.3% less in South Korea
- Housing
-
pay 61.1% more in South Korea
- Childcare
-
pay 4.7 times more in South Korea
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 29.0% more in South Korea
- Clothing
-
pay 99.7% more in South Korea
The cost of childcare, clothing, housing, groceries, and entertainment and sports in South Korea are more expensive than in Sao Tome and Principe. Expenses including restaurants and transportation are lower in South Korea. Notably, childcare and clothing are significantly more expensive in South Korea.
South Korea vs. Sao Tome and Principe Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Korea instead of Sao Tome and Principe, you would:
pay 21.8% less for restaurants
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.96
STD200K
|
$7.06
₩9,422
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.89
STD176K
|
$6.17
₩8,230
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.84
STD41,004
|
$1.53
₩2,039
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.25
STD27,770
|
$0.88
₩1,181
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of restaurants
pay 30.8% more for groceries
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.00
STD22,187
|
$3.04
₩4,055
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.80
STD218K
|
$6.12
₩8,174
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.87
STD131K
|
$8.23
₩10,982
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.85
STD108K
|
$2.94
₩3,923
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$8.89
STD198K
|
$4.11
₩5,484
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.70
STD37,881
|
$4.00
₩5,342
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.79
STD17,644
|
$1.55
₩2,069
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
STD36,419
|
$3.00
₩4,000
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.57
STD34,958
|
$2.63
₩3,513
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.31
STD29,299
|
$2.03
₩2,715
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.08
STD23,986
|
$1.26
₩1,685
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of groceries
pay 17.3% less for transportation
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.46
STD144K
|
$5.01
₩6,685
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$46.10
₩61,538
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,634.18
STD549M
|
$28,394.53
₩38M
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.43
STD500K
|
$8.59
₩11,470
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of transportation
pay 61.1% more for housing
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.91
STD1M
|
$24.34
₩32,490
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$284.91
STD6M
|
$561.73
₩750K
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$195.02
STD4M
|
$387.83
₩518K
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$174.83
STD4M
|
$153.72
₩205K
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of housing
pay 4.7 times more for childcare
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$228.62
STD5M
|
$545.93
₩729K
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,194.77
STD49M
|
$20,214.53
₩27M
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of childcare
pay 29.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.70
STD37,799
|
$3.30
₩4,403
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.26
STD50,442
|
$3.66
₩4,888
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.26
STD50,420
|
$3.35
₩4,467
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$33.92
STD756K
|
$57.32
₩76,507
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.16
STD449K
|
$11.28
₩15,062
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 99.7% more for clothing
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
South Korea
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$67.53
₩90,139
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$75.02
STD2M
|
$53.43
₩71,316
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$78.10
₩104K
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$18.36
STD409K
|
$102.84
₩137K
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea - Cost of clothing
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
Change currency:
Compare further: Sao Tome and Principe vs. South Korea
Salary Calculator · Free tool
What salary would you need in South Korea?
→
Quality of Life Comparison · 22 statistics
Make 8.9 times more money in South Korea
→
Size Comparison · See true size
Sao Tome and Principe is about 103 times smaller than South Korea.
→
Moving from Sao Tome and Principe to South Korea · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
→
More cost comparisons
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about South Korea or Sao Tome and Principe. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.