Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alor Setar and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Alor Setar: $881 a month against $1,794 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Alor Setar
Learn more

Alor Setar Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
Learn more

Seoul Living Index

Jump to prices

Alor Setar

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$881

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alor Setar and in Seoul

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Alor Setar and in Seoul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $881 per month in Alor Setar vs $1,794 in Seoul, rent included.

Alor Setar $881
Seoul $1,794

A couple spends around $1,277 per month in Alor Setar vs $2,863 in Seoul, rent included.

Alor Setar $1,277
Seoul $2,863

A family of three spends $1,672 per month in Alor Setar vs $3,931 in Seoul, rent included.

Alor Setar $1,672
Seoul $3,931

Alor Setar is about 51% cheaper than Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Alor Setar sits 35% below the global median, while Seoul is 33% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.08 MYR 8.48

$8.80 ₩11.7K

-76.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.30 MYR 50.2

$68.4 ₩90.9K

-82.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.28 MYR 17.44

$7.54 ₩10.0K

-43.24%

Cappuccino

$1.82 MYR 7.40

$4.23 ₩5,624

-56.97%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 MYR 2.30

$1.63 ₩2,167

-65.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 MYR 1.24

$0.74 ₩985

-59.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.25 MYR 17.33

$3.64 ₩4,843

16.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 MYR 17.68

$6.15 ₩8,175

-29.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 MYR 6.51

$2.01 ₩2,679

-20.40%

White Bread (500g)

$0.85 MYR 3.49

$3.13 ₩4,164

-72.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.85

$4.32 ₩5,744

-61.11%

Eggs

$1.51 MYR 6.17

$3.61 ₩4,794

-58.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.63 MYR 55.6

$17.83 ₩23.7K

-23.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.35 MYR 17.76

$10.45 ₩13.9K

-58.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.75 MYR 35.68

$25.80 ₩34.3K

-66.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 MYR 11.98

$7.66 ₩10.2K

-61.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 MYR 5.04

$3.38 ₩4,499

-63.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.72 MYR 11.10

$5.81 ₩7,723

-53.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 MYR 5.91

$6.41 ₩8,520

-77.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 MYR 4.33

$3.75 ₩4,983

-71.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 MYR 4.62

$2.54 ₩3,375

-55.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 MYR 4.48

$2.84 ₩3,782

-61.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MYR 2.18

$1.11 ₩1,472

-51.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 MYR 18.37

$3.35 ₩4,455

34.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.89 MYR 77.1

$18.49 ₩24.6K

2.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 MYR 11.83

$2.40 ₩3,185

20.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.36 MYR 21.88

$3.37 ₩4,480

59.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.79 MYR 3.21

$1.14 ₩1,521

-30.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.78 MYR 43.98

$46.11 ₩61.3K

-76.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 MYR 6.80

$3.49 ₩4,643

-52.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 MYR 1.65

$0.63 ₩840

-36.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.37 MYR 30.08

$8.86 ₩11.8K

-16.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.51 MYR 2.09

$1.51 ₩2,005

-66.23%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$41.8K MYR 170.3K

$29.3K ₩38.9M

42.65%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$35.9K MYR 146.6K

$28.2K ₩37.5M

27.39%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$37.61 MYR 153

$218 ₩289.2K

-82.71%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$7.49 MYR 30.57

$35.15 ₩46.7K

-78.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.82 MYR 89.0

$21.29 ₩28.3K

2.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.96 MYR 163

$58.1 ₩77.2K

-31.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.19 MYR 29.33

$16.10 ₩21.4K

-55.34%

Cinema Ticket

$4.95 MYR 20.19

$11.31 ₩15.0K

-56.23%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$427 MYR 1,741

$1,948 ₩2.6M

-78.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K MYR 43.7K

$22.9K ₩30.4M

-53.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.3 MYR 246

$57.0 ₩75.8K

5.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.46 MYR 141

$33.39 ₩44.4K

3.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.4 MYR 336

$71.5 ₩95.0K

15.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.8 MYR 281

$82.5 ₩109.7K

-16.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$371 MYR 1,513

$901 ₩1.2M

-58.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 MYR 1,246

$612 ₩813.5K

-50.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$662 MYR 2,700

$2,526 ₩3.4M

-73.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 MYR 1,831

$1,266 ₩1.7M

-64.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,986 MYR 8,103

$29.4K ₩39.1M

-93.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$970 MYR 3,958

$11.9K ₩15.8M

-91.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,642 MYR 6,697

$3,650 ₩4.9M

-55.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.04

4.08

-0.98%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Alor Setar: October 11, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Alor Setar

$305 34.7%

Seoul

$612 34.1% 100% $306

Groceries & Markets

Alor Setar

$246 27.9%

Seoul

$477 26.6% 94.1% $231

Clothing & Footwear

Alor Setar

$111 12.6%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 0.6% $0.7

Eating Out

Alor Setar

$85 9.6%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 117% $99

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alor Setar

$67 7.6%

Seoul

$274 15.3% 309% $207

Sport & Entertainment

Alor Setar

$50 5.7%

Seoul

$81 4.5% 61.8% $31

Getting Around

Alor Setar

$18 2%

Seoul

$57 3.2% 225% $40

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $371 in Alor Setar versus $901 in Seoul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 122% higher in Seoul, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $12.00 in Alor Setar versus $68.0 in Seoul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $246 vs $477 – making Alor Setar the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Alor Setar

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

02:08 2:08 AM

03:08 3:08 AM

1 h ahead of Alor Setar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

423,868

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Alor Setar Seoul 4,410 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Alor Setar
Seoul

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Alor Setar vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seoul costs about 104% more than Alor Setar, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,321 per month in Alor Setar and $2,692 in Seoul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Alor Setar, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $427 per month in Alor Setar and $1,948 in Seoul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 94% more in Seoul, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Alor Setar, where all-in costs run around $881, than in Seoul at $1,794. In Alor Setar it covers expenses comfortably, while in Seoul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Alor Setar – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Alor Setar. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Seoul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.