Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Wonju

For one person, living is cheaper in Wonju: $1,526 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 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
75

Cost of Living Index in Wonju
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Wonju Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Wonju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,526

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Wonju

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $1,526 in Wonju.

Melbourne $2,821
Wonju $1,526

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $2,418 in Wonju.

Melbourne $4,235
Wonju $2,418

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $3,309 in Wonju.

Melbourne $5,650
Wonju $3,309

Living in Melbourne is roughly 85% more expensive than in Wonju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 109% above, Wonju 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$7.45 ₩9,900

133.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$48.19 ₩64.1K

75.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$6.69 ₩8,892

86.25%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.65 ₩4,859

12.60%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.79 ₩2,381

70.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$1.45 ₩1,923

73.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$3.70 ₩4,926

164.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$4.32 ₩5,740

98.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$2.25 ₩2,998

-34.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$3.20 ₩4,252

-8.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$3.08 ₩4,095

-13.64%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.69 ₩3,579

105.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$10.93 ₩14.5K

-3.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$10.41 ₩13.8K

-7.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$24.90 ₩33.1K

-38.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$11.04 ₩14.7K

-63.86%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$3.54 ₩4,712

-14.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$7.98 ₩10.6K

-61.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$6.04 ₩8,034

-20.20%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$5.80 ₩7,718

-47.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$3.40 ₩4,527

-28.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$2.86 ₩3,807

-13.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$1.29 ₩1,711

26.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.42 ₩4,550

1188.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$18.38 ₩24.4K

-30.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.35 ₩3,131

135.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$3.39 ₩4,513

54.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$1.10 ₩1,467

240.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$3.63 ₩4,825

24.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.71 ₩950

91.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$16.85 ₩22.4K

80.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.25 ₩1,656

17.60%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$29.4K ₩39.1M

-1.42%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$33.6K ₩44.7M

-21.28%

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

$234 A$336

$196 ₩260.7K

19.18%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$35.94 ₩47.8K

-22.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$26.92 ₩35.8K

107.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$52.6 ₩69.9K

-6.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$12.15 ₩16.2K

76.79%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$11.79 ₩15.7K

27.99%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$491 ₩652.3K

383.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$21.9K ₩29.1M

37.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$104 ₩138.1K

-23.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$64.1 ₩85.2K

-20.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$92.1 ₩122.5K

30.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$129 ₩171.3K

1.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$494 ₩657.0K

255.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$359 ₩477.3K

287.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,181 ₩1.6M

195.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$744 ₩988.6K

235.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$7,157 ₩9.5M

-3.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$5,494 ₩7.3M

17.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

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 Wonju: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Wonju

$359 23.5% 74.2% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Wonju

$482 31.6% 25.6% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Wonju

$259 17% 18.4% $58

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Wonju

$164 10.7% 48% $151

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Wonju

$175 11.5% 1.9% $3.3

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Wonju

$12 * 0.8% 92.9% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Wonju

$76 5% 4.3% $3.4

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 $494 in Wonju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $48.00 in Wonju. Groceries flip the comparison at $384 vs $482, with Melbourne cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇰🇷 Wonju

🕒 Local time

14:20 2:20 PM

12:20 12:20 PM

2 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

340,196

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 →

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Between locations

Melbourne Wonju 8,540 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Wonju

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 Wonju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Wonju differ by about 85% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $1,526 including rent). Wonju is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,231 in Melbourne and $2,290 in Wonju to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $494 in Wonju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Melbourne pay roughly 26% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $2,821 per month in Melbourne versus $1,526 in Wonju – a 85% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,526 in Wonju versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Wonju but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Wonju 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 Wonju 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 Wonju gentler on the wallet – expenses run 85% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.