Moving to South Korea from Saudi Arabia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Saudi Arabia to South Korea — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Saudi Arabia to South Korea, you would find that South Korea is 21.3% more expensive than Saudi Arabia overall. A SAR280,000 salary in Saudi Arabia would need to be roughly ₩121,000,000 in South Korea to maintain the same lifestyle, and you’d need to navigate life in Korean. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Seoul averages 63°F vs 92°F in Riyadh, making it significantly cooler.
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How your spending power changes when you relocate from Saudi Arabia to South Korea.
What does your salary buy?
SAR280,000 → ₩121,000,000
To maintain the same standard of living in South Korea
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 17.7% more
Groceries
pay 2.2 times more
Transportation
pay 11.0% more
Housing
pay 6.1% less
Childcare
pay 75.2% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 14.8% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in South Korea cost about 8% less than cities in Saudi Arabia.
Compare cities head-to-head
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Who Else Is Making This Move?
Real numbers on people moving from Saudi Arabia to South Korea, and how the trend has changed.
people moved from Saudi Arabia to South Korea · OECD (latest data available)
Who's moving to South Korea?
Top countries of origin for South Korea's foreign-born residents.
- 803,011
- 177,274
- 159,264
- 68,050
- 64,942
- 55,601
Key Indicator Comparison
How Saudi Arabia and South Korea stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
per 100,000 people per year
per 100,000 people per year
South Korea performs significantly better than Saudi Arabia across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
annual government + private spending per person
affects wait times and access to care
WHO index from 0–100 measuring essential service access
share of adults with obesity
per 100,000 people — a proxy for mental health support
Saudi Arabia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though South Korea leads in health coverage index.
What about the environment?
deaths attributable to air pollution per 100k people
tonnes of CO₂ emitted per person per year
South Korea performs significantly better than Saudi Arabia across all environment metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
fixed broadband subscriptions — key for remote work
higher means greater strain on freshwater supply
annual consumption — reflects grid capacity
share of households with internet
Saudi Arabia generally does better on infrastructure, though South Korea leads in broadband per 100 people.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
the highest marginal rate on personal income
South Korea generally does better on employment & economy, though Saudi Arabia leads in top income tax rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
deaths per 1,000 live births — lower is better
government spending on education as % of GDP
percentage of adults who can read and write
South Korea performs significantly better than Saudi Arabia across all family life metrics.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), Department of Zakat and Income Tax (2016), National Tax Service, South Korea (2016), The World Factbook (2019). How we calculate this
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Riyadh | Seoul |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 75°/50°F (24°/10°C) | 43°/28°F (6°/-2°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 101°/72°F (38°/22°C) | 73°/56°F (23°/13°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 109°/77°F (43°/25°C) | 83°/70°F (28°/21°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 84°/56°F (29°/13°C) | 54°/38°F (12°/4°C) |
View all months
| Month | Riyadh | Seoul |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 68°/44°F (20.1°/6.9°C) | 36°/22°F (2.1°/-5.5°C) |
| Feb | 74°/49°F (23.3°/9.3°C) | 41°/26°F (5.1°/-3.2°C) |
| Mar | 82°/56°F (27.7°/13.2°C) | 52°/35°F (11.0°/1.9°C) |
| Apr | 92°/65°F (33.3°/18.4°C) | 64°/46°F (17.9°/8.0°C) |
| May | 103°/74°F (39.4°/23.4°C) | 74°/56°F (23.6°/13.5°C) |
| Jun | 109°/78°F (42.6°/25.3°C) | 82°/66°F (27.6°/18.7°C) |
| Jul | 111°/80°F (43.7°/26.4°C) | 84°/72°F (29.0°/22.3°C) |
| Aug | 111°/79°F (43.7°/26.3°C) | 86°/73°F (30.0°/22.9°C) |
| Sep | 105°/73°F (40.6°/22.9°C) | 79°/64°F (26.2°/17.7°C) |
| Oct | 96°/65°F (35.5°/18.2°C) | 68°/51°F (20.2°/10.6°C) |
| Nov | 83°/56°F (28.1°/13.3°C) | 53°/38°F (11.9°/3.5°C) |
| Dec | 72°/47°F (22.1°/8.4°C) | 40°/26°F (4.2°/-3.4°C) |
Data:
National Center for Meteorology,
Korea Meteorological Administration
Visitor Visa Requirements
Short-stay tourist visa rules between Saudi Arabia and South Korea. To live, work, or study long-term in South Korea, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check South Korea's immigration authority.
Saudi Arabia passport holder visiting South Korea
Electronic Travel Authorisation
South Korea passport holder visiting Saudi Arabia
Visa on ArrivalData: Henley Passport Index. Check with the destination country's embassy for the most current requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in South Korea than Saudi Arabia?
Day-to-day costs in South Korea run about 21% higher than Saudi Arabia on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to South Korea?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a SAR280,000 comparable salary, that's around ₩30,250,000 in South Korea for everyday spending, before flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees.
Can I work remotely from South Korea?
With 47.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, South Korea can support video calls in major cities. The hard part is paperwork — visa category, employer policy on overseas staff, and tax residency in Saudi Arabia and South Korea.
Is South Korea safe for expats?
South Korea performs significantly better than Saudi Arabia across all safety metrics. The homicide rate in South Korea is 0.5 per 100,000 people, compared to 0.9 in Saudi Arabia.
How is healthcare in South Korea compared to Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though South Korea leads in health coverage index. There are 26.1 doctors per 10,000 people in South Korea, compared to 34.1 in Saudi Arabia. South Korea scores 89 on the WHO universal health coverage index (Saudi Arabia: 74).
What's the weather like in South Korea compared to Saudi Arabia?
The average high temperature in Seoul is 63°F, compared to 92°F in Riyadh. Seoul receives around 55.8 in of rainfall per year, while Riyadh gets 4.4 in.
What language do they speak in South Korea?
The official language in South Korea is Korean. In Saudi Arabia, the official language is Arabic.
