Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Jinju

For one person, living is cheaper in Jinju: $1,448 a month against $2,853 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $16,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Melbourne
🇦🇺 Australia
$2,853
/mo nomad
Jinju
🇰🇷 South Korea
$1,448
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Jinju

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 Jinju actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,853 per month in Melbourne vs $1,448 in Jinju, rent included.

  • Melbourne $2,853
  • Jinju $1,448

A couple spends around $4,275 per month in Melbourne vs $2,429 in Jinju, rent included.

  • Melbourne $4,275
  • Jinju $2,429

A family of three spends $5,697 per month in Melbourne vs $3,410 in Jinju, rent included.

  • Melbourne $5,697
  • Jinju $3,410

Melbourne costs about 97% more than Jinju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Melbourne and Jinju sit above the global median – Melbourne by 111%, Jinju by 7%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.20 A$24.75
$8.79 ₩11.7K
95.68%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$83.1 A$120
$67.2 ₩89.3K
23.71%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.43 A$17.88
$7.33 ₩9,746
69.58%
Cappuccino
$4.05 A$5.82
$4.04 ₩5,378
0.25%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.12 A$4.50
$1.63 ₩2,164
91.41%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.46 A$3.54
$0.79 ₩1,049
211.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$9.52 A$13.71
$3.85 ₩5,117
147.27%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$8.16 A$11.74
$5.96 ₩7,928
36.91%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.56 A$2.25
$2.03 ₩2,701
-23.15%
White Bread (500g)
$2.90 A$4.18
$3.14 ₩4,173
-7.64%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.66 A$3.82
$4.40 ₩5,850
-39.55%
Eggs
$5.37 A$7.72
$3.65 ₩4,850
47.12%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.67 A$15.36
$17.53 ₩23.3K
-39.13%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.85 A$14.17
$10.42 ₩13.9K
-5.47%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.36 A$22.11
$25.81 ₩34.3K
-40.49%
Apples (1kg)
$4.17 A$6.00
$7.61 ₩10.1K
-45.20%
Banana (1kg)
$3.15 A$4.53
$3.38 ₩4,495
-6.80%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.26 A$4.69
$5.69 ₩7,570
-42.71%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.76 A$6.85
$6.44 ₩8,568
-26.09%
Potato (1kg)
$3.06 A$4.41
$3.74 ₩4,968
-18.18%
Onion (1kg)
$2.47 A$3.55
$2.60 ₩3,455
-5.00%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.45 A$3.52
$2.87 ₩3,822
-14.63%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.63 A$2.34
$1.15 ₩1,524
41.74%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$45.17 A$65.0
$3.28 ₩4,367
1277.13%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.68 A$18.25
$18.58 ₩24.7K
-31.75%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$5.69 A$8.18
$2.36 ₩3,144
141.10%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.23 A$7.53
$3.20 ₩4,258
63.44%
🚌 Getting Around
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.87 A$5.57
$1.15 ₩1,527
236.52%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$142 A$204
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.54 A$6.53
$3.63 ₩4,823
25.07%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.42 A$2.04
$0.64 ₩846
121.87%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$30.59 A$44.01
$8.81 ₩11.7K
247.22%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.47 A$2.11
$1.49 ₩1,982
-1.34%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.9K A$41.5K
$29.0K ₩38.6M
-0.52%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.9K A$37.3K
$28.1K ₩37.4M
-7.84%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$235 A$338
$217 ₩288.6K
8.31%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.45 A$39.51
$35.79 ₩47.6K
-23.30%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.1 A$80.8
$20.79 ₩27.6K
169.99%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$50.1 A$72.1
$55.1 ₩73.2K
-8.99%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$21.49 A$30.93
$13.25 ₩17.6K
62.19%
Cinema Ticket
$17.76 A$25.56
$11.24 ₩15.0K
58.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$2,385 A$3,432
$371 ₩493.2K
543.04%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$29.7K A$42.7K
$22.7K ₩30.2M
30.52%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$79.2 A$114
$57.7 ₩76.7K
37.24%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.49 A$71.2
$32.31 ₩43.0K
53.17%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$118 A$170
$70.2 ₩93.3K
68.71%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$132 A$190
$81.9 ₩108.9K
61.33%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,763 A$2,537
$453 ₩602.1K
289.41%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,411 A$2,031
$318 ₩423.4K
343.19%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,522 A$5,069
$1,162 ₩1.5M
203.26%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,525 A$3,634
$860 ₩1.1M
193.72%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,136 A$10.3K
$6,219 ₩8.3M
14.74%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,355 A$9,144
$6,161 ₩8.2M
3.14%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Melbourne
Jinju
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,258 A$6,128
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.9
4.08
44.61%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Last update for Jinju: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Melbourne
$1.4K
Jinju
$318 77.4% $1.1K
Groceries & Markets
Melbourne
$388
Jinju
$476 22.7% $88
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Melbourne
$319
Jinju
$274 14.1% $45
Eating Out
Melbourne
$310
Jinju
$182 41.3% $128
Clothing & Footwear
Melbourne
$171
Jinju
$109 36.2% $62
Getting Around
Melbourne
$169
Jinju
$11 * 93.3% $158
Sport & Entertainment
Melbourne
$86
Jinju
$78 9.4% $8.1

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,763 in Melbourne versus $453 in Jinju. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83.0 in Melbourne versus $67.0 in Jinju. Groceries tell a different story – $388 in Melbourne vs $476 in Jinju – so Melbourne wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇦🇺 Melbourne
🇰🇷 Jinju
🕒 Local time
10:45 10:45 AM
08:45 8:45 AM
2 h behind Melbourne
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
5,031,195
340,548
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Melbourne Jinju 8,300 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Melbourne
  • Jinju

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 Jinju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Jinju cheaper than Melbourne?
Yes – Melbourne is pricier by about 97%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,280 per month in Melbourne and $2,172 in Jinju. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Jinju, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Is eating out cheaper in Melbourne or in Jinju?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $83.0 in Melbourne and $67.0 in Jinju. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Melbourne and in Jinju?
Interestingly, groceries are about 23% cheaper in Melbourne – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Melbourne or in Jinju?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Jinju, where all-in costs run around $1,448, than in Melbourne at $2,853. In Jinju it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Melbourne or Jinju more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Jinju – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is safer, Melbourne or Jinju?
Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Jinju. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Melbourne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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