Cost of living comparison
compared to
Kentucky vs. South Korea Cost of Living Summary
Kentucky is 31.3% more expensive than South Korea overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 80.3% more in Kentucky
- Groceries
-
pay 24.6% less in Kentucky
- Transportation
-
pay 3.9% less in Kentucky
- Housing
-
pay 99.4% more in Kentucky
- Childcare
-
pay 75.4% more in Kentucky
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 15.8% more in Kentucky
- Clothing
-
pay 7.6% less in Kentucky
The cost of housing, restaurants, childcare, and entertainment and sports in Kentucky are more expensive than in South Korea. Expenses including groceries, clothing, and transportation are lower in Kentucky. Notably, housing, restaurants, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Kentucky.
Kentucky vs. South Korea Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Kentucky instead of South Korea, you would:
pay 80.3% more for restaurants
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.06
₩9,413
|
$14.79
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.17
₩8,222
|
$9.20
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.53
₩2,037
|
$2.33
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.88
₩1,180
|
$1.86
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of restaurants
pay 24.6% less for groceries
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.04
₩4,051
|
$2.91
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.12
₩8,166
|
$5.53
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.23
₩10,971
|
$3.21
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.94
₩3,919
|
$3.45
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.11
₩5,479
|
$4.99
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$4.00
₩5,336
|
$2.52
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.55
₩2,067
|
$0.72
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.00
₩3,996
|
$1.87
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
₩3,510
|
$2.06
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.03
₩2,713
|
$1.26
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.26
₩1,683
|
$1.34
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of groceries
pay 3.9% less for transportation
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.01
₩6,678
|
$3.44
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$46.10
₩61,477
|
$39.17
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,394.53
₩38M
|
$36,400.12
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.59
₩11,459
|
$15.39
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of transportation
pay 99.4% more for housing
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$24.34
₩32,458
|
$67.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$561.73
₩749K
|
$1,182.82
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$387.83
₩517K
|
$938.27
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$153.72
₩205K
|
$141.63
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of housing
pay 75.4% more for childcare
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$545.93
₩728K
|
$1,588.30
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$20,214.53
₩27M
|
$21,365.71
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of childcare
pay 15.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.30
₩4,398
|
$5.28
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.66
₩4,884
|
$5.13
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.35
₩4,463
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$57.32
₩76,432
|
$32.58
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.28
₩15,047
|
$12.88
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 7.6% less for clothing
|
South Korea
|
Kentucky
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.53
₩90,049
|
$53.64
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.43
₩71,245
|
$38.27
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$78.10
₩104K
|
$91.99
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$102.84
₩137K
|
$111.74
|
|
South Korea vs. Kentucky - 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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