Cost of living comparison
compared to
Washington vs. South Korea Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 71.9% more expensive than South Korea overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5 times more in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 14.7% less in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 26.1% more in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 3.0 times more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2 times more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 48.8% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 6.9% less in Washington
The cost of housing, restaurants, childcare, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Washington are more expensive than in South Korea. Expenses including groceries and clothing are lower in Washington. Notably, housing, restaurants, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Washington.
Washington vs. South Korea Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of South Korea, you would:
pay 2.5 times more for restaurants
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.06
₩9,413
|
$22.26
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.17
₩8,222
|
$12.24
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.53
₩2,037
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.88
₩1,180
|
$2.18
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants
pay 14.7% less for groceries
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.04
₩4,051
|
$4.04
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.12
₩8,166
|
$7.06
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.23
₩10,971
|
$4.15
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.94
₩3,919
|
$4.91
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.11
₩5,479
|
$6.11
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$4.00
₩5,336
|
$2.34
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.55
₩2,067
|
$0.83
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.00
₩3,996
|
$1.87
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
₩3,510
|
$2.03
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.03
₩2,713
|
$1.24
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.26
₩1,683
|
$1.24
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of groceries
pay 26.1% more for transportation
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.01
₩6,678
|
$4.99
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$46.10
₩61,477
|
$70.32
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,394.53
₩38M
|
$34,567.40
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$8.59
₩11,459
|
$17.13
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of transportation
pay 3.0 times more for housing
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$24.34
₩32,458
|
$77.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$561.73
₩749K
|
$1,772.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$387.83
₩517K
|
$1,547.68
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$153.72
₩205K
|
$175.22
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of housing
pay 2.2 times more for childcare
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$545.93
₩728K
|
$1,891.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$20,214.53
₩27M
|
$28,281.22
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of childcare
pay 48.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.30
₩4,398
|
$6.38
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.66
₩4,884
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.35
₩4,463
|
$11.44
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$57.32
₩76,432
|
$55.23
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.28
₩15,047
|
$15.12
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.9% less for clothing
|
South Korea
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.53
₩90,049
|
$54.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.43
₩71,245
|
$40.93
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$78.10
₩104K
|
$89.87
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$102.84
₩137K
|
$109.43
|
|
South Korea vs. Washington - 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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cost of living in South Korea vs. United States.
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