Cost of living comparison
compared to
Gwangju vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
Gwangju is 46.5% cheaper than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 65.3% less in Gwangju
- Groceries
-
pay 10.5% less in Gwangju
- Transportation
-
pay 18.1% less in Gwangju
- Housing
-
pay 58.9% less in Gwangju
- Childcare
-
pay 81.6% less in Gwangju
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 57.6% less in Gwangju
- Clothing
-
pay 33.2% less in Gwangju
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, clothing, and transportation are lower in Gwangju.
Gwangju vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Gwangju instead of Washington, you would:
pay 65.3% less for restaurants
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$6.72
₩9,685
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$5.66
₩8,156
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$1.32
₩1,897
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$0.66
₩945
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.5% less for groceries
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$2.29
₩3,296
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$3.54
₩5,097
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$6.70
₩9,648
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$2.55
₩3,670
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$2.94
₩4,239
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$3.26
₩4,701
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$1.28
₩1,850
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.78
₩4,008
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.46
₩3,545
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.50
₩2,158
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.07
₩1,541
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of groceries
pay 18.1% less for transportation
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$4.43
₩6,379
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$63.68
₩91,754
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$26,696.92
₩38M
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$7.59
₩10,936
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of transportation
pay 58.9% less for housing
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$19.81
₩28,546
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$436.33
₩629K
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$341.99
₩493K
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$149.85
₩216K
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of housing
pay 81.6% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$254.87
₩367K
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$10,906.99
₩16M
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of childcare
pay 57.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$2.83
₩4,078
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$3.48
₩5,013
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$3.18
₩4,588
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$45.99
₩66,267
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$8.49
₩12,234
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 33.2% less for clothing
|
Washington
|
Gwangju
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$48.35
₩69,665
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$35.38
₩50,975
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$61.32
₩88,356
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$95.52
₩138K
|
|
Washington vs. Gwangju - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: February 2026
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United States vs. South Korea.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States and South Korea.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Gwangju or Washington. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.