Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Macao and Gwangju

For one person, living is cheaper in Gwangju: $1,341 a month against $2,158 in Macao, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Macao
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Macao Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Gwangju
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Gwangju Living Index

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Macao

🇲🇴 Macao (China)

$2,158

/mo nomad

Gwangju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,341

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Macao and in Gwangju

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,158 in Macao versus $1,341 in Gwangju.

Macao $2,158
Gwangju $1,341

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,053 in Macao versus $2,048 in Gwangju.

Macao $3,053
Gwangju $2,048

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,948 in Macao versus $2,756 in Gwangju.

Macao $3,948
Gwangju $2,756

Living in Macao is roughly 61% more expensive than in Gwangju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Macao is 59% above, Gwangju is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.37 MOP 51.5

$6.02 ₩8,024

5.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.4 MOP 447

$34.32 ₩45.8K

61.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.76 MOP 46.56

$5.82 ₩7,763

-1.03%

Cappuccino

$4.97 MOP 40.18

$3.17 ₩4,229

56.78%

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

$1.05 MOP 8.46

$1.59 ₩2,126

-33.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 MOP 6.33

$0.63 ₩842

23.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.66 MOP 45.71

$2.38 ₩3,175

137.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.34 MOP 59.3

$4.59 ₩6,128

59.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.12 MOP 25.18

$1.72 ₩2,296

81.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 MOP 13.78

$2.49 ₩3,325

-31.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 MOP 13.88

$2.29 ₩3,054

-24.89%

Eggs

$3.50 MOP 28.24

$2.64 ₩3,516

32.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.90 MOP 128

$8.80 ₩11.7K

80.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$19.42 MOP 157

$7.82 ₩10.4K

148.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$29.46 MOP 238

$11.15 ₩14.9K

164.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.58 MOP 20.84

$5.16 ₩6,886

-50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.86 MOP 23.08

$3.02 ₩4,022

-5.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 MOP 15.24

$3.72 ₩4,965

-49.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.44 MOP 19.73

$3.09 ₩4,115

-21.04%

Potato (1kg)

$3.95 MOP 31.93

$3.60 ₩4,802

9.72%

Onion (1kg)

$2.94 MOP 23.74

$1.89 ₩2,524

55.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 MOP 5.00

$2.11 ₩2,819

-70.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 MOP 9.21

$1.28 ₩1,713

-10.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.64 MOP 53.7

$3.36 ₩4,484

97.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 MOP 98.2

$11.19 ₩14.9K

8.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 MOP 14.41

$1.51 ₩2,017

17.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 MOP 18.67

$2.31 ₩3,079

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.71 MOP 5.76

$1.01 ₩1,342

-29.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.93 MOP 185

$68.8 ₩91.8K

-66.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 MOP 21.53

$3.06 ₩4,074

-13.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.24 MOP 9.99

$0.64 ₩848

93.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.00 MOP 121

$7.84 ₩10.5K

91.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 MOP 14.21

$1.20 ₩1,605

46.67%

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

$31.1K MOP 251.3K

$28.1K ₩37.4M

10.85%

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

$31.4K MOP 253.5K

$35.2K ₩47.0M

-10.92%

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

$122 MOP 988

$212 ₩282.5K

-42.25%

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

$24.02 MOP 194

$44.13 ₩58.9K

-45.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.91 MOP 298

$20.64 ₩27.5K

78.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$95.6 MOP 772

$55.4 ₩73.8K

72.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.64 MOP 29.43

$14.36 ₩19.1K

-74.65%

Cinema Ticket

$14.43 MOP 117

$11.20 ₩14.9K

28.84%

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

$1,194 MOP 9,645

$299 ₩398.4K

299.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.4K MOP 156.7K

$17.5K ₩23.3M

10.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.8 MOP 556

$32.50 ₩43.3K

111.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.15 MOP 268

$26.36 ₩35.1K

25.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 MOP 739

$63.9 ₩85.2K

43.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 MOP 1,095

$89.9 ₩119.9K

50.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MOP 8,849

$508 ₩677.9K

115.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,065 MOP 8,605

$370 ₩493.0K

188.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,089 MOP 16.9K

$1,163 ₩1.6M

79.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,452 MOP 11.7K

$744 ₩991.7K

95.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,783 MOP 79.0K

$7,980 ₩10.6M

22.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,861 MOP 55.4K

$6,343 ₩8.5M

8.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,042 MOP 16.5K

$2,834 ₩3.8M

-27.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.6

-16.67%

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

Last update for Macao: October 24, 2026

Last update for Gwangju: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Macao

$1.1K 49.4%

Gwangju

$370 27.6% 65.3% $695

Groceries & Markets

Macao

$424 19.6%

Gwangju

$308 23% 27.3% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Macao

$183 8.5%

Gwangju

$277 20.6% 50.9% $93

Eating Out

Macao

$178 8.3%

Gwangju

$134 10% 25% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Macao

$148 6.9%

Gwangju

$96 7.1% 35.4% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Macao

$124 5.8%

Gwangju

$78 5.8% 37.5% $47

Getting Around

Macao

$35 1.6%

Gwangju

$79 5.9% 128% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,095 in Macao and $508 in Gwangju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gwangju pays 39% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $55 in Macao vs $34 in Gwangju for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $424 vs $308 per month, with Gwangju cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇴 Macao

🇰🇷 Gwangju

🕒 Local time

17:50 5:50 PM

18:50 6:50 PM

1 h ahead of Macao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

622,567 Capital

1,467,996

💱 Currency

Macanese Pataca MOP P

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 MOP = 0.124 USD

1 MOP = 0.111 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.5 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.72 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to MOP – Macanese Pataca Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇴 Macanese Pataca (P)

Macanese Pataca exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 MOP (1 MOP = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.02 MOP (1 MOP = 0.111 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1,334 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,488 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.72 EUR).

USD to MOP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Macao Gwangju 1,940 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Macao
Gwangju

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

Macao vs Gwangju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gwangju is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 28% lower in Macao. 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: $1,095 in Macao versus $508 in Gwangju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Gwangju – a meal for two runs $34 versus $55 in Macao. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,158 per month in Macao versus $1,341 in Gwangju – Gwangju is about 38% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,341 in Gwangju versus $2,158 in Macao, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Gwangju but tight or insufficient in Macao. The gap between the two cities makes Gwangju 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, Macao and Gwangju are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.