Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kaohsiung and Tainan

For one person, living is cheaper in Kaohsiung: $1,105 a month against $1,148 in Tainan, rent and utilities included – about $520 less a year. The total is higher in Tainan despite lower rent and utilities.

53

Cost of Living Index in Kaohsiung
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Kaohsiung Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Tainan
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Tainan Living Index

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Kaohsiung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,105

/mo nomad

Tainan

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,148

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kaohsiung and in Tainan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,105 in Kaohsiung versus $1,148 in Tainan.

Kaohsiung $1,105
Tainan $1,148

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,796 in Kaohsiung versus $1,985 in Tainan.

Kaohsiung $1,796
Tainan $1,985

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,487 in Kaohsiung versus $2,822 in Tainan.

Kaohsiung $2,487
Tainan $2,822

Living in Kaohsiung costs roughly 4% less than in Tainan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kaohsiung 19% lower, Tainan 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.74 NT$154

$3.63 NT$118

30.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.77 NT$997

$25.03 NT$811

22.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.60 NT$149

$4.72 NT$153

-2.54%

Cappuccino

$2.93 NT$94.8

$3.09 NT$100.0

-5.18%

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

$1.05 NT$33.99

$1.35 NT$43.73

-22.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 NT$22.47

$0.82 NT$26.52

-15.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 NT$48.93

$3.06 NT$99.0

-50.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 NT$77.6

$3.33 NT$108

-28.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.16 NT$102

$3.00 NT$97.1

5.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.18 NT$70.7

$1.75 NT$56.7

24.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.87 NT$92.9

$3.97 NT$129

-27.71%

Eggs

$2.54 NT$82.4

$2.90 NT$93.9

-12.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.21 NT$493

$21.70 NT$703

-29.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.03 NT$260

$12.55 NT$406

-36.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.77 NT$478

$20.38 NT$660

-27.53%

Apples (1kg)

$6.40 NT$207

$5.30 NT$172

20.75%

Banana (1kg)

$2.79 NT$90.3

$2.71 NT$87.8

2.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.42 NT$78.3

$4.94 NT$160

-51.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.02 NT$98.0

$7.03 NT$228

-57.04%

Potato (1kg)

$2.68 NT$86.9

$4.50 NT$146

-40.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 NT$64.0

$4.48 NT$145

-56.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 NT$74.5

$2.91 NT$94.1

-20.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 NT$32.91

$1.43 NT$46.36

-28.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.24 NT$137

$3.93 NT$127

7.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.44 NT$500

$18.61 NT$603

-17.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 NT$52.1

$1.96 NT$63.5

-17.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 NT$67.6

$2.26 NT$73.3

-7.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 NT$20.22

$0.54 NT$17.45

14.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.04 NT$390

$19.90 NT$645

-39.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 NT$85.4

$2.58 NT$83.6

2.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 NT$25.32

$0.93 NT$30.25

-16.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.68 NT$184

$5.67 NT$184

0.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.97 NT$31.58

$1.01 NT$32.71

-3.96%

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

$37.1K NT$1.2M

$35.9K NT$1.2M

3.36%

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

$22.7K NT$734.7K

$23.0K NT$744.0K

-1.25%

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

$82.1 NT$2,659

$85.9 NT$2,782

-4.43%

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

$16.89 NT$547

$17.17 NT$556

-1.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.27 NT$819

$20.75 NT$672

21.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.20 NT$1,270

$44.23 NT$1,433

-11.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.12 NT$328

Cinema Ticket

$10.11 NT$328

$9.31 NT$302

8.59%

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

$448 NT$14.5K

$430 NT$13.9K

4.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.7K NT$443.0K

$5,382 NT$174.4K

154.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.0 NT$2,916

$90.7 NT$2,939

-0.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.24 NT$1,012

$44.43 NT$1,440

-29.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.0 NT$2,787

$116 NT$3,749

-25.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.3 NT$3,218

$121 NT$3,917

-17.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$430 NT$13.9K

$324 NT$10.5K

32.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$301 NT$9,744

$190 NT$6,144

58.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 NT$31.9K

$826 NT$26.8K

19.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$681 NT$22.1K

$707 NT$22.9K

-3.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,146 NT$134.3K

$3,122 NT$101.2K

32.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,875 NT$93.1K

$2,148 NT$69.6K

33.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,401 NT$45.4K

$1,350 NT$43.7K

3.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.56

2.5

2.40%

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

Last update for Kaohsiung: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tainan: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kaohsiung

$355 32.1%

Tainan

$464 40.5% 30.8% $109

Accommodation & Living

Kaohsiung

$301 27.2%

Tainan

$190 16.5% 37% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Kaohsiung

$138 12.5%

Tainan

$167 14.6% 21.3% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kaohsiung

$124 11.3%

Tainan

$124 10.8% 0.4% $0.4

Eating Out

Kaohsiung

$106 9.6%

Tainan

$111 9.7% 4.4% $4.7

Sport & Entertainment

Kaohsiung

$59 5.4%

Tainan

$63 5.5% 5.8% $3.4

Getting Around

Kaohsiung

$21 1.9%

Tainan

$29 2.6% 39% $8.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $430 in Kaohsiung and $324 in Tainan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kaohsiung pays 4% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $31 in Kaohsiung vs $25 in Tainan. Groceries flip the comparison at $355 vs $464, with Kaohsiung cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Kaohsiung

🇹🇼 Tainan

🕒 Local time

15:31 3:31 PM

Same time as Kaohsiung

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,777,873

1,886,033

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.09 USD

100 TWD = 2.77 EUR

100 TWD = 3.09 USD

100 TWD = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Kaohsiung Tainan 43 km

From you

Kaohsiung
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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

Kaohsiung vs Tainan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,105 in Kaohsiung and $1,148 in Tainan, so Kaohsiung is about 4% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 4% higher in Kaohsiung, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $430 in Kaohsiung versus $324 in Tainan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $448 in Kaohsiung versus $430 in Tainan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Tainan. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Kaohsiung gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Safety-wise, Kaohsiung and Tainan are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.