Cost of living comparison

South Korea

compared to

United States

Cedar Rapids vs. Seoul Cost of Living Summary

Cedar Rapids is 6.2% more expensive than Seoul.

Restaurants: pay 66.9% more in Cedar Rapids
Groceries: pay 31.8% less in Cedar Rapids
Transportation: pay 13.8% less in Cedar Rapids
Housing: pay 24.7% more in Cedar Rapids
Childcare: pay 49.5% less in Cedar Rapids
Entertainment and Sports: pay 46.9% more in Cedar Rapids
Clothing: pay 62.4% more in Cedar Rapids

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

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Cedar Rapids vs. Seoul Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Cedar Rapids instead of Seoul, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 66.9% more for restaurants

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.96 ₩11,943	$15.00	+67.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.46 ₩9,953	$10.99	+47.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.58 ₩2,110	$2.83	+79.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.79 ₩1,048	$1.87	+138.2%
Average			+66.9%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of restaurants

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pay 31.8% less for groceries

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Bread 1 loaf	$3.10 ₩4,130	$2.51	-18.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.84 ₩11,786	$7.12	-19.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.79 ₩10,392	$2.70	-65.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.61 ₩4,808	$2.46	-31.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.74 ₩6,322	$4.93	+4.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.46 ₩4,619	$2.25	-35.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.57 ₩2,089	$0.51	-67.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.59 ₩3,458	$2.41	-7.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.83 ₩3,778	$2.13	-24.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.66 ₩2,209	$1.16	-30.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.16 ₩1,540	$1.04	-10.1%
Average			-31.8%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of groceries

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pay 13.8% less for transportation

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.53 ₩7,377	$3.28	-40.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$46.28 ₩61,706	$30.00	-35.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$29,385.60 ₩39M	$36,531.00	+24.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.51 ₩11,346	$18.41	+116.4%
Average			-13.8%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of transportation

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pay 24.7% more for housing

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$20.82 ₩27,759	$69.50	+233.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$886.39 ₩1M	$1,156.25	+30.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$620.25 ₩827K	$719.00	+15.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$162.69 ₩217K	$157.02	-3.5%
Average			+24.7%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of housing

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pay 49.5% less for childcare

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,927.59 ₩3M	$879.75	-54.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$22,602.27 ₩30M	$12,631.67	-44.1%
Average			-49.5%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of childcare

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pay 46.9% more for entertainment and sports

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.73 ₩4,976	$4.50	+20.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.10 ₩5,468	$5.71	+39.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.36 ₩4,479	$9.80	+191.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$58.22 ₩77,630	$100.50	+72.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$11.20 ₩14,929	$13.00	+16.1%
Average			+46.9%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 62.4% more for clothing

	Seoul	Cedar Rapids
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.88 ₩77,178	$62.47	+7.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$32.77 ₩43,700	$63.33	+93.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$69.99 ₩93,325	$128.26	+83.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$82.45 ₩110K	$150.00	+81.9%
Average			+62.4%

Seoul vs. Cedar Rapids - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this

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