Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Cheongju

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $1,398 in Cheongju, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Cheongju
Learn more

Cheongju Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Cheongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Cheongju

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 Cheongju actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $1,398 in Cheongju.

Dhaka $406
Cheongju $1,398

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $2,320 in Cheongju.

Dhaka $687
Cheongju $2,320

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $3,241 in Cheongju.

Dhaka $969
Cheongju $3,241

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 71% less than in Cheongju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dhaka is 70% below, Cheongju is 4% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$7.64 ₩10.2K

-70.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$48.79 ₩64.9K

-74.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$6.13 ₩8,153

-35.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$2.28 ৳281

$3.65 ₩4,851

-37.53%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$1.78 ₩2,361

-81.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$1.41 ₩1,873

-88.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.79 ₩5,033

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 ₩5,845

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$2.35 ₩3,128

-63.83%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$3.11 ₩4,129

-80.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$3.14 ₩4,178

-78.03%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$2.71 ₩3,606

-54.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$11.18 ₩14.9K

-21.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$10.27 ₩13.7K

-67.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$24.55 ₩32.6K

-72.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$11.41 ₩15.2K

-75.02%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$3.56 ₩4,727

-74.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$8.30 ₩11.0K

-71.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$5.91 ₩7,859

-89.34%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$6.14 ₩8,161

-96.09%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$3.26 ₩4,336

-85.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$2.74 ₩3,637

-87.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$1.29 ₩1,717

-78.29%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.28 ৳405

$3.32 ₩4,413

-1.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.55 ₩24.7K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 ₩3,287

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 ₩4,458

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$1.09 ₩1,450

-61.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$3.57 ₩4,741

-66.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.77 ₩1,017

-49.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$16.65 ₩22.1K

-80.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$1.36 ₩1,811

-19.12%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$29.5K ₩39.2M

-0.28%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$33.4K ₩44.4M

-3.62%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$203 ₩269.6K

-81.12%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$24.35 ₩32.4K

-83.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$26.57 ₩35.3K

-66.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$52.5 ₩69.8K

-73.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$12.07 ₩16.1K

-15.41%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$12.10 ₩16.1K

-66.03%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$624 ₩830.0K

-85.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$22.0K ₩29.3M

-88.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$37.95 ₩50.5K

-55.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$64.9 ₩86.3K

-67.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$95.1 ₩126.4K

-45.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$113 ₩150.1K

-67.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$347 ₩461.0K

-61.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$267 ₩354.8K

-75.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$1,158 ₩1.5M

-67.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$758 ₩1.0M

-74.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$7,214 ₩9.6M

-77.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$5,577 ₩7.4M

-86.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$2,595 ₩3.5M

-90.52%

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 10, 2026

Last update for Cheongju: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Cheongju

$485 34.7% 293% $362

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Cheongju

$267 19.1% 310% $202

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Cheongju

$164 11.7% 176% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Cheongju

$140 10% 146% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Cheongju

$254 18.2% 394% $202

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Cheongju

$12 * 0.8% 56.9% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Cheongju

$77 5.5% 250% $55

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $347 in Cheongju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cheongju pays 955% 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: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $49.00 in Cheongju for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $485 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇰🇷 Cheongju

🕒 Local time

01:03 1:03 AM

04:03 4:03 AM

3 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

835,669

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 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 BDT in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Cheongju 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Cheongju

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 Cheongju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka wins on cost – living expenses run 245% lower than in Cheongju. 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 955% lower in Cheongju. 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: $133 in Dhaka versus $347 in Cheongju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $90.7 in Dhaka versus $624 in Cheongju. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $12.00 versus $49.00 in Cheongju. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $406 in Dhaka versus $1,398 in Cheongju, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dhaka but tight or insufficient in Cheongju. 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 Cheongju 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 245% less than in Cheongju. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.