Cost of living comparison
compared to
Puerto Rico vs. South Korea Cost of Living Summary
Puerto Rico is 26.0% more expensive than South Korea overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 77.7% more in Puerto Rico
- Groceries
-
pay 10.1% less in Puerto Rico
- Transportation
-
pay 2.2% more in Puerto Rico
- Housing
-
pay 87.1% more in Puerto Rico
- Childcare
-
pay 17.1% less in Puerto Rico
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 17.4% less in Puerto Rico
- Clothing
-
pay 4.2% less in Puerto Rico
The cost of housing, restaurants, and transportation in Puerto Rico are more expensive than in South Korea. Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, groceries, and clothing are lower in Puerto Rico. Notably, housing and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico vs. South Korea Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Puerto Rico instead of South Korea, you would:
pay 77.7% more for restaurants
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.06
₩9,422
|
$16.34
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.17
₩8,230
|
$9.24
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.53
₩2,039
|
$1.74
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.88
₩1,181
|
$1.35
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.1% less for groceries
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.04
₩4,055
|
$3.37
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.12
₩8,174
|
$5.35
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.23
₩10,982
|
$7.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.94
₩3,923
|
$6.03
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.11
₩5,484
|
$3.95
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$4.00
₩5,342
|
$2.15
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.55
₩2,069
|
$1.17
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.00
₩4,000
|
$1.88
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
₩3,513
|
$2.09
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.03
₩2,715
|
$1.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.26
₩1,685
|
$1.54
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of groceries
pay 2.2% more for transportation
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.01
₩6,685
|
$4.08
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$46.10
₩61,538
|
$37.75
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,394.53
₩38M
|
$38,571.43
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.59
₩11,470
|
$14.50
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of transportation
pay 87.1% more for housing
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$24.34
₩32,490
|
$66.43
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$561.73
₩750K
|
$1,098.02
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$387.83
₩518K
|
$722.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$153.72
₩205K
|
$228.66
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of housing
pay 17.1% less for childcare
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$545.93
₩729K
|
$700.71
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$20,214.53
₩27M
|
$10,819.51
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of childcare
pay 17.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.30
₩4,403
|
$2.61
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.66
₩4,888
|
$2.78
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.35
₩4,467
|
$11.22
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$57.32
₩76,507
|
$29.37
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.28
₩15,062
|
$9.50
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.2% less for clothing
|
South Korea
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.53
₩90,139
|
$52.28
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.43
₩71,316
|
$47.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$78.10
₩104K
|
$96.61
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$102.84
₩137K
|
$101.25
|
|
South Korea vs. Puerto Rico - 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
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Compare further: South Korea vs. Puerto Rico
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What salary would you need in Puerto Rico?
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Quality of Life Comparison · 16 statistics
Be 2.2 times more likely to be unemployed in Puerto Rico
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Size Comparison · See true size
South Korea is about 11 times bigger than Puerto Rico.
→
Moving from South Korea to Puerto Rico · UN DESA 2020
4 people born in South Korea live in Puerto Rico.
→
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