Cost of living comparison
compared to
Des Moines vs. Seoul Cost of Living Summary
Des Moines is 12.6% more expensive than Seoul.
Des Moines vs. Seoul Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Des Moines instead of Seoul, you would:
pay 2.0 times more for restaurants
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.96
₩11,943
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.46
₩9,953
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
₩2,110
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.79
₩1,048
|
$2.49
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of restaurants
pay 29.9% less for groceries
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.10
₩4,130
|
$2.95
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.84
₩11,786
|
$4.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.79
₩10,392
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.61
₩4,808
|
$3.93
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.74
₩6,322
|
$4.39
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.46
₩4,619
|
$2.01
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.57
₩2,089
|
$0.70
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.59
₩3,458
|
$2.01
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.83
₩3,778
|
$1.70
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.66
₩2,209
|
$1.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.16
₩1,540
|
$1.00
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of groceries
pay 0.3% more for transportation
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.53
₩7,377
|
$3.71
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$46.28
₩61,706
|
$58.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,385.60
₩39M
|
$35,052.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.51
₩11,346
|
$11.94
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of transportation
pay 32.8% more for housing
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$20.82
₩27,759
|
$71.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$886.39
₩1M
|
$1,161.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$620.25
₩827K
|
$864.75
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$162.69
₩217K
|
$143.28
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of housing
pay 43.4% less for childcare
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,927.59
₩3M
|
$1,183.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,602.27
₩30M
|
$11,812.00
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of childcare
pay 37.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.73
₩4,976
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.10
₩5,468
|
$6.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.36
₩4,479
|
$8.03
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.22
₩77,630
|
$63.75
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.20
₩14,929
|
$15.00
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 37.8% more for clothing
|
Seoul
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$57.88
₩77,178
|
$60.68
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$32.77
₩43,700
|
$43.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$69.99
₩93,325
|
$103.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$82.45
₩110K
|
$145.78
|
|
Seoul vs. Des Moines - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this
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Compare further: Seoul vs. Des Moines
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cost of living in South Korea vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within South Korea and United States.
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