Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Haikou and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Haikou: $806 a month against $1,794 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Haikou
Learn more

Haikou Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
Learn more

Seoul Living Index

Jump to prices

Haikou

🇨🇳 China

$806

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $806 in Haikou versus $1,794 in Seoul.

Haikou $806
Seoul $1,794

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,152 in Haikou versus $2,863 in Seoul.

Haikou $1,152
Seoul $2,863

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,497 in Haikou versus $3,931 in Seoul.

Haikou $1,497
Seoul $3,931

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

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ¥29.45

$8.80 ₩11.7K

-50.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.72 ¥98.4

$68.4 ₩90.9K

-78.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.02 ¥40.26

$7.54 ₩10.0K

-20.16%

Cappuccino

$2.43 ¥16.25

$4.23 ₩5,624

-42.55%

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

$0.86 ¥5.74

$1.63 ₩2,167

-47.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ¥2.27

$0.74 ₩985

-54.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 ¥10.06

$3.64 ₩4,843

-58.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 ¥18.18

$6.15 ₩8,175

-55.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.13 ¥14.26

$2.01 ₩2,679

5.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 ¥9.90

$3.13 ₩4,164

-52.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.66 ¥4.40

$4.32 ₩5,744

-84.72%

Eggs

$1.36 ¥9.07

$3.61 ₩4,794

-62.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.83 ₩23.7K

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.92 ¥26.23

$10.45 ₩13.9K

-62.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.42 ¥103

$25.80 ₩34.3K

-40.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.69 ¥11.30

$7.66 ₩10.2K

-77.94%

Banana (1kg)

$0.87 ¥5.80

$3.38 ₩4,499

-74.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.11 ¥7.40

$5.81 ₩7,723

-80.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.24

$6.41 ₩8,520

-85.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.95

$3.75 ₩4,983

-76.27%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 ¥4.85

$2.54 ₩3,375

-71.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 ¥3.12

$2.84 ₩3,782

-83.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 ¥3.83

$1.11 ₩1,472

-48.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.09 ¥20.68

$3.35 ₩4,455

-7.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.76 ¥58.6

$18.49 ₩24.6K

-52.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 ¥3.84

$2.40 ₩3,185

-76.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 ¥8.23

$3.37 ₩4,480

-63.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 ¥6.17

$1.14 ₩1,521

-19.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ¥356

$46.11 ₩61.3K

15.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.19 ¥14.66

$3.49 ₩4,643

-37.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ¥2.86

$0.63 ₩840

-31.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₩11.8K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ¥8.15

$1.51 ₩2,005

-19.21%

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

$29.3K ₩38.9M

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

$28.2K ₩37.5M

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

$35.41 ¥237

$218 ₩289.2K

-83.72%

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

$13.21 ¥88.3

$35.15 ₩46.7K

-62.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.38 ¥89.4

$21.29 ₩28.3K

-37.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.67 ¥305

$58.1 ₩77.2K

-21.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.33 ¥42.35

$16.10 ₩21.4K

-60.68%

Cinema Ticket

$4.50 ¥30.10

$11.31 ₩15.0K

-60.21%

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

$862 ¥5,762

$1,948 ₩2.6M

-55.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.5K ¥130.4K

$22.9K ₩30.4M

-14.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.00 ¥181

$57.0 ₩75.8K

-52.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.89 ¥233

$33.39 ₩44.4K

4.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$44.76 ¥299

$71.5 ₩95.0K

-37.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$37.57 ¥251

$82.5 ₩109.7K

-54.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ¥2,523

$901 ₩1.2M

-58.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 ¥1,966

$612 ₩813.5K

-51.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$570 ¥3,808

$2,526 ₩3.4M

-77.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 ¥2,469

$1,266 ₩1.7M

-70.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,154 ¥21.1K

$29.4K ₩39.1M

-89.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,183 ¥14.6K

$11.9K ₩15.8M

-81.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$727 ¥4,859

$3,650 ₩4.9M

-80.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.08

-5.64%

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

Last update for Haikou: October 12, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Haikou

$294 36.5%

Seoul

$612 34.1% 108% $318

Groceries & Markets

Haikou

$169 * 20.9%

Seoul

$477 26.6% 183% $308

Eating Out

Haikou

$100 12.4%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 83.4% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Haikou

$65 8.1%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 69.5% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Haikou

$62 7.7%

Seoul

$274 15.3% 342% $212

Getting Around

Haikou

$61 7.6%

Seoul

$57 3.2% 6.5% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Haikou

$55 6.8%

Seoul

$81 4.5% 47.5% $26

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 $377 in Haikou and $901 in Seoul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 402% 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: $15.00 in Haikou vs $68.0 in Seoul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $169 vs $477 per month, with Haikou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Haikou

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

03:06 3:06 AM

04:06 4:06 AM

1 h ahead of Haikou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,873,358

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 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 CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Haikou Seoul 2,530 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Haikou
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

Haikou vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Haikou and Seoul differ by about 123% in total monthly costs ($806 vs $1,794 including rent). Haikou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 402% 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: $377 in Haikou versus $901 in Seoul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $806 per month in Haikou versus $1,794 in Seoul – a 123% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Haikou runs roughly 16% less than in Seoul. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $806 in Haikou versus $1,794 in Seoul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Haikou but tight or insufficient in Seoul. The gap between the two cities makes Haikou 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, Haikou 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 Haikou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 123% less than in Seoul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.