Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Busan

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $1,627 in Busan, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Busan
Learn more

Busan Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Busan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,627

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Busan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $426 in Dhaka versus $1,627 in Busan.

Dhaka $426
Busan $1,627

Estimated couple costs with rent: $735 in Dhaka versus $2,557 in Busan.

Dhaka $735
Busan $2,557

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,043 in Dhaka versus $3,486 in Busan.

Dhaka $1,043
Busan $3,486

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 74% less than in Busan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dhaka is 68% below, Busan is 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.49 ৳306

$7.25 ₩9,741

-65.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.06 ৳1,605

$48.28 ₩64.8K

-72.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.83 ৳594

$6.47 ₩8,684

-25.35%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$2.34 ৳287

$3.65 ₩4,899

-35.89%

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

$0.30 ৳37.39

$1.77 ₩2,378

-83.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.96

$1.39 ₩1,870

-88.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.83 ₩5,149

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 ₩5,870

Milk (1 liter)

$0.80 ৳98.1

$2.32 ₩3,114

-65.52%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 ৳79.3

$3.26 ₩4,383

-80.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 ৳87.3

$3.11 ₩4,177

-77.17%

Eggs

$1.21 ৳149

$2.62 ₩3,514

-53.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.67 ৳1,065

$11.18 ₩15.0K

-22.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.21 ৳395

$10.38 ₩13.9K

-69.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.70 ৳823

$25.03 ₩33.6K

-73.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 ৳335

$11.02 ₩14.8K

-75.23%

Banana (1kg)

$0.88 ৳109

$3.54 ₩4,749

-75.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 ৳291

$7.86 ₩10.6K

-69.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.65 ৳79.6

$5.85 ₩7,863

-88.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.20

$5.88 ₩7,901

-95.92%

Onion (1kg)

$0.49 ৳60.7

$3.39 ₩4,556

-85.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.32 ৳38.88

$2.73 ₩3,665

-88.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.30 ৳37.31

$1.32 ₩1,775

-77.27%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳819

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.23 ৳396

$3.33 ₩4,469

-3.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.44 ₩24.8K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.38 ₩3,191

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₩4,668

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.1

$1.19 ₩1,592

-64.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.54 ৳2,770

$59.1 ₩79.4K

-61.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$3.60 ₩4,839

-66.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 ৳48.60

$0.72 ₩964

-44.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.35 ৳411

$16.66 ₩22.4K

-79.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.15 ৳141

$1.36 ₩1,830

-15.44%

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

$30.3K ৳3.7M

$29.8K ₩40.1M

1.52%

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

$33.0K ৳4.1M

$33.8K ₩45.4M

-2.19%

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

$46.32 ৳5,692

$196 ₩263.8K

-76.42%

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

$4.33 ৳532

$36.52 ₩49.1K

-88.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.63 ৳1,306

$27.50 ₩36.9K

-61.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.37 ৳2,012

$62.5 ₩83.9K

-73.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.14 ৳1,983

$9.62 ₩12.9K

67.78%

Cinema Ticket

$4.13 ৳508

$12.04 ₩16.2K

-65.70%

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

$90.7 ৳11.1K

$637 ₩855.9K

-85.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,649 ৳325.5K

$21.6K ₩29.0M

-87.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.48 ৳2,025

$106 ₩142.6K

-84.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.00 ৳2,580

$65.6 ₩88.0K

-67.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.3 ৳6,175

$94.5 ₩126.9K

-46.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.46 ৳4,480

$128 ₩172.1K

-71.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$152 ৳18.6K

$734 ₩985.6K

-79.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.6 ৳9,044

$365 ₩489.9K

-79.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$436 ৳53.6K

$1,341 ₩1.8M

-67.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$214 ৳26.3K

$701 ₩941.6K

-69.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,622 ৳199.3K

$10.0K ₩13.4M

-83.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$761 ৳93.5K

$6,421 ₩8.6M

-88.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$249 ৳30.6K

$2,841 ₩3.8M

-91.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

4.22

148.34%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Last update for Busan: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$123 28.5%

Busan

$483 30.1% 294% $361

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$74 17.1%

Busan

$365 22.7% 396% $291

Eating Out

Dhaka

$64 15%

Busan

$162 10.1% 152% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$61 14.3%

Busan

$260 16.2% 325% $199

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$56 13%

Busan

$177 11.1% 218% $122

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.4%

Busan

$71 4.4% 159% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$25 5.7%

Busan

$87 5.4% 251% $62

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $152 in Dhaka and $734 in Busan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Busan pays 1041% 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: $13.00 in Dhaka vs $48.00 in Busan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $123 vs $483 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇰🇷 Busan

🕒 Local time

14:19 2:19 PM

17:19 5:19 PM

3 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

3,586,079

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,343 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD). 1 EUR = 1,506 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.64 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Busan 3,930 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Busan

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

Dhaka vs Busan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka wins on cost – living expenses run 282% lower than in Busan. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Dhaka the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 1041% lower in Busan. 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: $152 in Dhaka versus $734 in Busan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 162% less than in Busan. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $90.7 in Dhaka versus $637 in Busan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $426 in Dhaka versus $1,627 in Busan, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dhaka but tight or insufficient in Busan. The gap between the two cities makes Dhaka 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, Dhaka and Busan 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 282% less than in Busan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.