Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between China and South Korea

Name: South Korea
Address: KR

For one person, living is cheaper in China: $791 a month against $1,596 in South Korea, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in China
Learn more

China Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in South Korea
Learn more

South Korea Living Index

Jump to prices

🇨🇳 China

$791

/mo nomad

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,596

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in China and in South Korea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $791 in China versus $1,596 in South Korea.

China $791
South Korea $1,596

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,251 in China versus $2,542 in South Korea.

China $1,251
South Korea $2,542

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,711 in China versus $3,487 in South Korea.

China $1,711
South Korea $3,487

China ($465–$1,222) and South Korea ($1,044–$1,848) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in China costs about 50% less than in South Korea on average.

China (42% below) and South Korea (17% above) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.98 ¥19.82

$7.44 ₩9,879

-59.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.09 ¥147

$44.54 ₩59.1K

-50.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.20 ¥34.61

$6.51 ₩8,644

-20.12%

Cappuccino

$2.97 ¥19.74

$3.83 ₩5,084

-22.45%

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

$0.48 ¥3.19

$1.59 ₩2,113

-69.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ¥2.01

$0.78 ₩1,033

-61.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.08 ¥7.18

$3.84 ₩5,093

-71.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ¥15.15

$4.42 ₩5,872

-48.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 ¥11.96

$2.20 ₩2,920

-18.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.68 ¥11.15

$2.96 ₩3,931

-43.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.92 ¥6.14

$3.54 ₩4,694

-74.01%

Eggs

$1.61 ¥10.73

$3.22 ₩4,271

-50.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.38 ¥89.1

$13.36 ₩17.7K

0.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.35 ¥22.28

$8.89 ₩11.8K

-62.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.35 ¥75.5

$26.17 ₩34.7K

-56.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ¥12.13

$8.49 ₩11.3K

-78.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 ¥8.69

$3.39 ₩4,495

-61.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 ¥9.89

$6.42 ₩8,516

-76.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ¥8.48

$5.87 ₩7,795

-78.36%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 ¥4.73

$3.89 ₩5,166

-81.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$2.84 ₩3,774

-67.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.12

$2.69 ₩3,568

-76.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥3.74

$1.15 ₩1,533

-51.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.78 ¥25.16

$3.42 ₩4,544

10.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.13 ¥80.8

$16.56 ₩22.0K

-26.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 ¥5.54

$2.13 ₩2,821

-61.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ¥11.21

$2.91 ₩3,860

-42.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$1.10 ₩1,457

-73.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.83 ¥119

$48.35 ₩64.2K

-63.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.49 ¥9.89

$3.52 ₩4,667

-57.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 ¥2.49

$0.65 ₩867

-43.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.10 ¥47.25

$9.13 ₩12.1K

-22.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 ¥8.37

$1.38 ₩1,833

-8.70%

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

$19.4K ¥129.4K

$30.3K ₩40.2M

-35.73%

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

$17.5K ¥116.7K

$30.0K ₩39.8M

-41.53%

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

$54.6 ¥363

$210 ₩278.4K

-73.98%

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

$8.73 ¥58.1

$40.27 ₩53.5K

-78.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.07 ¥73.7

$24.18 ₩32.1K

-54.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.77 ¥271

$53.8 ₩71.4K

-24.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.48 ¥96.4

$16.81 ₩22.3K

-13.86%

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ¥45.13

$11.50 ₩15.3K

-41.04%

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

$517 ¥3,438

$985 ₩1.3M

-47.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.8K ¥131.9K

$23.7K ₩31.4M

-16.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.53 ¥310

$58.9 ₩78.2K

-21.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.66 ¥237

$45.48 ₩60.4K

-21.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ¥512

$78.3 ₩104.0K

-1.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.3 ¥534

$97.7 ₩129.7K

-17.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$386 ¥2,568

$645 ₩856.2K

-40.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$235 ¥1,561

$446 ₩591.9K

-47.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$822 ¥5,470

$1,711 ₩2.3M

-51.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$453 ¥3,016

$999 ₩1.3M

-54.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,697 ¥31.3K

$15.8K ₩20.9M

-70.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,372 ¥15.8K

$8,299 ₩11.0M

-71.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,093 ¥7,276

$2,345 ₩3.1M

-53.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

4.23

-18.20%

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

Last update for China: October 24, 2026

Last update for South Korea: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

China

$235 29.6%

South Korea

$446 27.9% 90.1% $211

Groceries & Markets

China

$210 26.5%

South Korea

$451 28.3% 115% $241

Clothing & Footwear

China

$108 13.6%

South Korea

$126 7.9% 17.1% $18

Eating Out

China

$88 11.1%

South Korea

$163 10.2% 84.5% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

China

$74 9.4%

South Korea

$274 17.2% 269% $200

Sport & Entertainment

China

$54 6.9%

South Korea

$77 4.8% 41.3% $22

Getting Around

China

$22 2.8%

South Korea

$60 3.7% 166% $37

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $298 in China, $493 in South Korea. Capital cities: $933 in Beijing (Pekin) vs $924 in Seoul.

National salary averages: $873 in China, $2,148 in South Korea. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 65% higher in South Korea.

Dining out costs 91% more in South Korea.

Public transport is 167% more expensive in South Korea.

Salaries are about 2.5 times higher in South Korea, and purchasing power comes out stronger in South Korea.

Good to know

🇨🇳 China

🇰🇷 South Korea

🕒 Local time

06:48 6:48 AM

07:48 7:48 AM

1 h ahead of China

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,442,965,000

51,466,201

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.53 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 6.66 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 1,327 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.53 USD). 1 EUR = 1,480 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.76 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

China South Korea 950 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

China
South Korea

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

China vs South Korea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $791 per month in China and $1,596 in South Korea, there’s a 102% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in China: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $493 in South Korea and $298 in China. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

It depends on what you’re after: China wins on affordability; South Korea may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.