Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Cheongju

For one person, living is cheaper in Cheongju: $1,398 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Cheongju
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Cheongju Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Cheongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,398 in Cheongju.

Melbourne $2,821
Cheongju $1,398

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $2,320 in Cheongju.

Melbourne $4,235
Cheongju $2,320

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $3,241 in Cheongju.

Melbourne $5,650
Cheongju $3,241

Living in Melbourne is roughly 102% more expensive than in Cheongju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 109% above, Cheongju 4% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$7.64 ₩10.2K

128.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$48.79 ₩64.9K

73.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$6.13 ₩8,153

103.26%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.65 ₩4,851

12.60%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.78 ₩2,361

71.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$1.41 ₩1,873

78.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$3.79 ₩5,033

158.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$4.40 ₩5,845

94.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$2.35 ₩3,128

-37.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$3.11 ₩4,129

-5.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$3.14 ₩4,178

-15.29%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.71 ₩3,606

104.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$11.18 ₩14.9K

-5.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$10.27 ₩13.7K

-6.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$24.55 ₩32.6K

-38.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$11.41 ₩15.2K

-65.03%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$3.56 ₩4,727

-15.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$8.30 ₩11.0K

-62.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$5.91 ₩7,859

-18.44%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$6.14 ₩8,161

-50.65%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$3.26 ₩4,336

-25.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$2.74 ₩3,637

-10.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$1.29 ₩1,717

26.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.32 ₩4,413

1227.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$18.55 ₩24.7K

-31.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.47 ₩3,287

124.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$3.35 ₩4,458

56.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.09 ₩1,450

243.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.57 ₩4,741

26.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.77 ₩1,017

76.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$16.65 ₩22.1K

82.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.36 ₩1,811

8.09%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$29.5K ₩39.2M

-1.74%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$33.4K ₩44.4M

-20.66%

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

$234 A$336

$203 ₩269.6K

15.23%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$24.35 ₩32.4K

14.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$26.57 ₩35.3K

109.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$52.5 ₩69.8K

-5.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$12.07 ₩16.1K

77.96%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$12.10 ₩16.1K

24.71%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$624 ₩830.0K

279.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$22.0K ₩29.3M

37.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$37.95 ₩50.5K

110.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$64.9 ₩86.3K

-21.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$95.1 ₩126.4K

26.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$113 ₩150.1K

15.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$347 ₩461.0K

407.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$267 ₩354.8K

420.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,158 ₩1.5M

201.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$758 ₩1.0M

228.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$7,214 ₩9.6M

-4.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$5,577 ₩7.4M

15.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$2,595 ₩3.5M

68.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

4.22

39.81%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cheongju: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Cheongju

$267 19.1% 80.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Cheongju

$485 34.7% 26.4% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Cheongju

$254 18.2% 20.1% $64

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Cheongju

$164 11.7% 47.9% $151

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Cheongju

$140 10% 18.5% $32

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Cheongju

$12 * 0.8% 92.8% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Cheongju

$77 5.5% 3.6% $2.9

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 $1,759 in Melbourne and $347 in Cheongju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 69% 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: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $49.00 in Cheongju. Groceries flip the comparison at $384 vs $485, with Melbourne cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇰🇷 Cheongju

🕒 Local time

07:31 7:31 AM

05:31 5:31 AM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

835,669

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 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 AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Melbourne Cheongju 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
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

Melbourne vs Cheongju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cheongju wins on cost – living expenses run 102% lower than in Melbourne. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cheongju the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 69% higher in Melbourne, 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: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $347 in Cheongju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne 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 Cheongju – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $85.0 in Melbourne. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,398 in Cheongju versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cheongju but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Cheongju 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, Melbourne 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 Cheongju gentler on the wallet – expenses run 102% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.