Cost of living comparison

South Korea

compared to

Kazakhstan

Almaty vs. Seoul Cost of Living Summary

Almaty is 28.3% cheaper than Seoul.

Restaurants: pay 27.7% more in Almaty
Groceries: pay 54.7% less in Almaty
Transportation: pay 42.2% less in Almaty
Housing: pay 22.1% less in Almaty
Childcare: pay 64.2% less in Almaty
Entertainment and Sports: pay 16.1% less in Almaty
Clothing: pay 68.9% more in Almaty

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

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Almaty vs. Seoul Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 27.7% more for restaurants

	Seoul	Almaty
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.96 ₩11,955	$13.42 KZT6,082.92	+49.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.46 ₩9,962	$8.95 KZT4,055.28	+19.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.58 ₩2,112	$1.36 KZT615.44	-14.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.79 ₩1,049	$0.91 KZT410.90	+15.3%
Average			+27.7%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of restaurants

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pay 54.7% less for groceries

	Seoul	Almaty
Bread 1 loaf	$3.10 ₩4,134	$0.94 KZT425.21	-69.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.84 ₩11,798	$6.46 KZT2,925.52	-27.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.79 ₩10,403	$6.48 KZT2,938.79	-16.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.61 ₩4,813	$2.45 KZT1,109.97	-32.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.74 ₩6,328	$3.09 KZT1,401.59	-34.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.46 ₩4,624	$0.86 KZT387.73	-75.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.57 ₩2,091	$1.06 KZT481.68	-32.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.59 ₩3,462	$1.37 KZT621.58	-47.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.83 ₩3,782	$1.34 KZT605.34	-52.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.66 ₩2,211	$0.35 KZT160.60	-78.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.16 ₩1,542	$0.26 KZT119.25	-77.2%
Average			-54.7%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of groceries

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pay 42.2% less for transportation

	Seoul	Almaty
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.53 ₩7,384	$2.64 KZT1,198.22	-52.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$46.28 ₩61,767	$22.15 KZT10,036.82	-52.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$29,385.60 ₩39M	$22,370.46 KZT10M	-23.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.51 ₩11,357	$6.71 KZT3,041.46	-21.1%
Average			-42.2%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of transportation

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pay 22.1% less for housing

	Seoul	Almaty
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$20.82 ₩27,787	$18.11 KZT8,207.89	-13.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$886.39 ₩1M	$802.28 KZT364K	-9.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$620.25 ₩828K	$513.47 KZT233K	-17.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$162.69 ₩217K	$69.56 KZT31,526.07	-57.2%
Average			-22.1%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of housing

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pay 64.2% less for childcare

	Seoul	Almaty
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,927.59 ₩3M	$456.34 KZT207K	-76.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$22,602.27 ₩30M	$12,216.13 KZT6M	-46.0%
Average			-64.2%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of childcare

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pay 16.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Seoul	Almaty
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.73 ₩4,981	$3.24 KZT1,470.04	-13.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.10 ₩5,473	$3.30 KZT1,497.69	-19.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.36 ₩4,483	$2.63 KZT1,191.24	-21.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$58.22 ₩77,707	$70.49 KZT31,945.91	+21.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$11.20 ₩14,944	$6.71 KZT3,041.46	-40.1%
Average			-16.1%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 68.9% more for clothing

	Seoul	Almaty
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.88 ₩77,255	$96.07 KZT43,537.96	+66.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$32.77 ₩43,743	$47.45 KZT21,502.09	+44.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$69.99 ₩93,417	$145.68 KZT66,021.45	+108.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$82.45 ₩110K	$134.22 KZT60,829.24	+62.8%
Average			+68.9%

Seoul vs. Almaty - Cost of clothing

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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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