Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bintulu and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Bintulu: $849 a month against $1,822 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Bintulu
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Bintulu Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index

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Bintulu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$849

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,822

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bintulu 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 Bintulu and in Seoul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $849 in Bintulu versus $1,822 in Seoul.

Bintulu $849
Seoul $1,822

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,312 in Bintulu versus $2,847 in Seoul.

Bintulu $1,312
Seoul $2,847

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,775 in Bintulu versus $3,872 in Seoul.

Bintulu $1,775
Seoul $3,872

Living in Bintulu costs roughly 53% less than in Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bintulu is 37% below, Seoul is 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.95 MYR 16.13

$9.10 ₩12.2K

-56.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.43 MYR 75.3

$67.0 ₩89.8K

-72.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.79 MYR 23.63

$7.42 ₩9,941

-21.97%

Cappuccino

$2.99 MYR 12.20

$4.08 ₩5,470

-26.72%

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

$0.63 MYR 2.59

$1.60 ₩2,141

-60.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 MYR 1.54

$0.80 ₩1,078

-52.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 MYR 12.17

$3.65 ₩4,886

-18.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.17 MYR 21.12

$5.94 ₩7,956

-12.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 MYR 8.77

$2.05 ₩2,742

4.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 MYR 5.59

$3.08 ₩4,130

-55.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 MYR 5.41

$4.21 ₩5,646

-68.65%

Eggs

$2.16 MYR 8.83

$3.57 ₩4,784

-39.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.81 MYR 68.6

$17.95 ₩24.1K

-6.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.48 MYR 14.19

$10.64 ₩14.3K

-67.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.90 MYR 24.11

$26.44 ₩35.4K

-77.69%

Apples (1kg)

$1.76 MYR 7.19

$7.42 ₩9,946

-76.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 MYR 4.18

$3.53 ₩4,732

-71.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 MYR 7.17

$5.87 ₩7,866

-70.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.13 MYR 4.60

$6.37 ₩8,534

-82.26%

Potato (1kg)

$0.51 MYR 2.08

$3.75 ₩5,028

-86.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.85

$2.49 ₩3,337

-52.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 MYR 2.84

$2.92 ₩3,911

-76.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.42 MYR 1.71

$1.15 ₩1,542

-63.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 MYR 17.08

$3.29 ₩4,408

27.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.74 MYR 80.6

$18.49 ₩24.8K

6.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.01 MYR 12.29

$2.28 ₩3,057

32.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 MYR 8.17

$3.28 ₩4,398

-39.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.20 MYR 4.91

$1.14 ₩1,526

5.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.62 MYR 67.9

$45.47 ₩60.9K

-63.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 MYR 4.18

$3.48 ₩4,663

-70.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.83 MYR 3.39

$0.60 ₩803

38.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.50 MYR 10.21

$8.70 ₩11.7K

-71.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 MYR 2.57

$1.50 ₩2,004

-58.00%

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

$44.5K MYR 181.7K

$29.1K ₩39.0M

52.81%

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

$38.5K MYR 157.0K

$28.2K ₩37.8M

36.43%

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

$59.2 MYR 242

$209 ₩279.9K

-71.65%

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

$31.51 MYR 129

$35.13 ₩47.1K

-10.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.98 MYR 122

$21.18 ₩28.4K

41.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.4 MYR 271

$57.3 ₩76.8K

15.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.43 MYR 50.8

$15.89 ₩21.3K

-21.77%

Cinema Ticket

$4.33 MYR 17.67

$11.33 ₩15.2K

-61.78%

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

$124 MYR 508

$1,902 ₩2.5M

-93.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,230 MYR 29.5K

$22.5K ₩30.2M

-67.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 MYR 262

$58.9 ₩78.9K

9.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.02 MYR 147

$32.12 ₩43.0K

12.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.5 MYR 329

$70.1 ₩94.0K

14.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.8 MYR 371

$82.5 ₩110.5K

10.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$220 MYR 898

$885 ₩1.2M

-75.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$157 MYR 642

$624 ₩835.5K

-74.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$485 MYR 1,979

$2,494 ₩3.3M

-80.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 MYR 1,361

$1,275 ₩1.7M

-73.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,730 MYR 7,062

$29.8K ₩40.0M

-94.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,137 MYR 4,644

$11.8K ₩15.9M

-90.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$598 MYR 2,441

$3,649 ₩4.9M

-83.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

4.08

10.29%

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

Last update for Bintulu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bintulu

$232 27.4%

Seoul

$479 26.7% 106% $247

Accommodation & Living

Bintulu

$157 18.5%

Seoul

$624 34.7% 296% $466

Clothing & Footwear

Bintulu

$122 14.4%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 10.3% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bintulu

$121 14.2%

Seoul

$265 14.8% 120% $144

Eating Out

Bintulu

$114 13.5%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 61% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Bintulu

$75 8.9%

Seoul

$80 4.5% 6.5% $4.9

Getting Around

Bintulu

$27 3.1%

Seoul

$57 3.1% 112% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $220 in Bintulu and $885 in Seoul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 510% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $18.00 in Bintulu vs $67.0 in Seoul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $232 vs $479 per month, with Bintulu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Bintulu

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

18:22 6:22 PM

19:22 7:22 PM

1 h ahead of Bintulu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

240,172

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.66 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,340 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,502 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.66 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bintulu Seoul 4,080 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Bintulu
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

Bintulu vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bintulu wins on cost – living expenses run 115% lower than in Seoul. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bintulu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 510% lower in Seoul. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $220 in Bintulu versus $885 in Seoul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $849 per month in Bintulu versus $1,822 in Seoul – a 115% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bintulu runs roughly 174% less than in Seoul. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $849 in Bintulu versus $1,822 in Seoul, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bintulu but tight or insufficient in Seoul. The gap between the two cities makes Bintulu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Bintulu and Seoul are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bintulu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 115% less than in Seoul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.