Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dongguan and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Dongguan: $813 a month against $1,794 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Dongguan
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Dongguan Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index

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Dongguan

🇨🇳 China

$813

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $813 in Dongguan versus $1,794 in Seoul.

Dongguan $813
Seoul $1,794

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,291 in Dongguan versus $2,863 in Seoul.

Dongguan $1,291
Seoul $2,863

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,768 in Dongguan versus $3,931 in Seoul.

Dongguan $1,768
Seoul $3,931

Living in Dongguan costs roughly 55% less than in Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dongguan is 40% below, Seoul is 33% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.57 ¥17.18

$8.80 ₩11.8K

-70.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.04 ¥147

$68.4 ₩91.6K

-67.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.26 ¥35.16

$7.54 ₩10.1K

-30.24%

Cappuccino

$2.56 ¥17.14

$4.23 ₩5,664

-39.48%

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

$0.47 ¥3.15

$1.63 ₩2,182

-71.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.93

$0.74 ₩992

-60.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.92 ¥6.18

$3.64 ₩4,878

-74.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 ¥14.80

$6.15 ₩8,233

-64.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 ¥10.69

$2.01 ₩2,698

-20.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 ¥10.42

$3.13 ₩4,194

-50.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ¥6.90

$4.32 ₩5,785

-76.16%

Eggs

$1.66 ¥11.12

$3.61 ₩4,828

-54.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.79 ¥139

$17.83 ₩23.9K

16.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.44 ¥22.99

$10.45 ₩14.0K

-67.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.23 ¥95.2

$25.80 ₩34.6K

-44.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 ¥15.17

$7.66 ₩10.3K

-70.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 ¥10.51

$3.38 ₩4,531

-53.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ¥12.95

$5.81 ₩7,778

-66.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 ¥9.47

$6.41 ₩8,580

-77.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 ¥7.19

$3.75 ₩5,018

-71.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.24 ¥8.32

$2.54 ₩3,400

-51.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 ¥3.72

$2.84 ₩3,809

-80.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.68

$1.11 ₩1,483

-50.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.49 ¥30.04

$3.35 ₩4,487

34.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.89 ¥79.5

$18.49 ₩24.8K

-35.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 ¥5.76

$2.40 ₩3,208

-64.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ¥11.68

$3.37 ₩4,512

-48.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 ¥2.35

$1.14 ₩1,531

-69.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.79 ¥152

$46.11 ₩61.7K

-50.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ¥7.91

$3.49 ₩4,677

-66.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ¥2.59

$0.63 ₩846

-38.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.36 ¥29.14

$8.86 ₩11.9K

-50.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.53

$1.51 ₩2,020

-15.23%

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

$19.5K ¥130.7K

$29.3K ₩39.2M

-33.22%

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

$18.6K ¥124.6K

$28.2K ₩37.8M

-33.97%

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

$63.8 ¥426

$218 ₩291.3K

-70.69%

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

$9.24 ¥61.8

$35.15 ₩47.1K

-73.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.08 ¥87.5

$21.29 ₩28.5K

-38.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.1 ¥341

$58.1 ₩77.8K

-12.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 ¥107

$16.10 ₩21.6K

-0.56%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ¥51.3

$11.31 ₩15.1K

-32.18%

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

$533 ¥3,566

$1,948 ₩2.6M

-72.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.2K ¥161.6K

$22.9K ₩30.6M

5.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.76 ¥313

$57.0 ₩76.4K

-18.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.41 ¥270

$33.39 ₩44.7K

21.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.3 ¥490

$71.5 ₩95.7K

2.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.10 ¥262

$82.5 ₩110.5K

-52.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$372 ¥2,490

$901 ₩1.2M

-58.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$218 ¥1,459

$612 ₩819.3K

-64.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$662 ¥4,427

$2,526 ₩3.4M

-73.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$431 ¥2,883

$1,266 ₩1.7M

-65.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,714 ¥38.2K

$29.4K ₩39.4M

-80.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,066 ¥20.5K

$11.9K ₩15.9M

-74.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$858 ¥5,736

$3,650 ₩4.9M

-76.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.35

4.08

-17.89%

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

Last update for Dongguan: October 10, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dongguan

$246 30.3%

Seoul

$477 26.6% 93.6% $231

Accommodation & Living

Dongguan

$218 26.8%

Seoul

$612 34.1% 180% $394

Clothing & Footwear

Dongguan

$90 11%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 22.5% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dongguan

$86 10.6%

Seoul

$274 15.3% 218% $188

Eating Out

Dongguan

$79 9.7%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 132% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Dongguan

$66 8.2%

Seoul

$81 4.5% 21.5% $14

Getting Around

Dongguan

$27 3.4%

Seoul

$57 3.2% 110% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $372 in Dongguan and $901 in Seoul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 326% 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: $22.00 in Dongguan vs $68.0 in Seoul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $246 vs $477 per month, with Dongguan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Dongguan

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

13:07 1:07 PM

14:07 2:07 PM

1 h ahead of Dongguan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,254,100

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.47 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.67 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1,339 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.47 USD). 1 EUR = 1,499 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.67 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dongguan Seoul 2,050 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Dongguan
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

Dongguan vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dongguan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 121% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 326% 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: $372 in Dongguan versus $901 in Seoul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dongguan runs roughly 102% less than in Seoul. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $533 in Dongguan versus $1,948 in Seoul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $813 in Dongguan versus $1,794 in Seoul, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dongguan but tight or insufficient in Seoul. The gap between the two cities makes Dongguan 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, Dongguan 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 Dongguan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 121% less than in Seoul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.