Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nara and Pohang

For one person, living is cheaper in Nara: $1,215 a month against $1,362 in Pohang, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Nara
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Nara Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Pohang
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Pohang Living Index

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Nara

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,215

/mo nomad

Pohang

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,362

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nara and in Pohang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,215 in Nara versus $1,362 in Pohang.

Nara $1,215
Pohang $1,362

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,828 in Nara versus $1,682 in Pohang.

Nara $1,828
Pohang $1,682

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,442 in Nara versus $2,002 in Pohang.

Nara $2,442
Pohang $2,002

Living in Nara costs roughly 11% less than in Pohang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nara is 10% below, Pohang is 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.40 ¥1,011

$5.91 ₩7,857

8.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.96 ¥5,049

$22.55 ₩30.0K

41.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.10 ¥805

$6.52 ₩8,675

-21.78%

Cappuccino

$2.48 ¥392

$3.02 ₩4,012

-17.88%

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

$1.30 ¥206

$1.48 ₩1,967

-12.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 ¥119

$0.53 ₩710

41.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 ¥489

$3.64 ₩4,836

-14.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 ¥483

$3.81 ₩5,062

-19.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ¥238

$2.36 ₩3,142

-36.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.34 ¥211

$3.25 ₩4,319

-58.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.05 ¥640

$1.46 ₩1,940

177.40%

Eggs

$2.13 ¥336

$2.73 ₩3,634

-21.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.60 ¥1,517

$10.95 ₩14.6K

-12.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.01 ¥1,108

$10.36 ₩13.8K

-32.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.82 ¥2,815

$24.86 ₩33.1K

-28.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.41 ¥539

$2.20 ₩2,929

55.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.99 ¥315

$3.61 ₩4,798

-44.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.01 ¥317

$7.91 ₩10.5K

-74.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.01 ¥633

$2.92 ₩3,879

37.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 ¥248

$5.00 ₩6,653

-68.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 ¥184

$3.41 ₩4,532

-65.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ¥177

$2.27 ₩3,015

-50.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 ¥128

$1.34 ₩1,785

-39.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 ¥604

$3.31 ₩4,407

15.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.49 ¥1,500

$6.49 ₩8,631

46.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 ¥305

$1.53 ₩2,031

26.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 ¥337

$3.49 ₩4,638

-38.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 ¥245

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.0 ¥11.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.23 ¥510

$3.30 ₩4,388

-2.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.83 ¥447

$0.58 ₩766

387.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.70 ¥2,480

$16.64 ₩22.1K

-5.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ¥175

$1.24 ₩1,647

-10.48%

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

$21.9K ¥3.5M

$29.5K ₩39.2M

-25.77%

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

$14.9K ¥2.4M

$28.4K ₩37.8M

-47.56%

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

$115 ¥18.2K

$102 ₩136.1K

12.73%

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

$24.28 ¥3,836

$36.26 ₩48.2K

-33.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.63 ¥4,840

$26.84 ₩35.7K

14.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$82.2 ¥13.0K

$30.38 ₩40.4K

170.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.44 ¥1,176

$7.43 ₩9,884

0.13%

Cinema Ticket

$11.85 ¥1,872

$11.38 ₩15.1K

4.13%

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

$511 ¥80.8K

$637 ₩847.5K

-19.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K ¥2.0M

$21.8K ₩29.0M

-41.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.43 ¥7,652

$105 ₩139.2K

-53.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.90 ¥4,882

$64.3 ₩85.5K

-51.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.5 ¥9,398

$92.5 ₩122.9K

-35.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.7 ¥14.0K

$111 ₩147.9K

-20.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$404 ¥63.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ¥52.7K

$447 ₩594.3K

-25.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$810 ¥128.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$544 ¥86.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,669 ¥421.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,959 ¥309.5K

$2,990 ₩4.0M

-34.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,110 ¥175.3K

$2,240 ₩3.0M

-50.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

4.22

-52.13%

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

Last update for Nara: October 13, 2026

Last update for Pohang: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nara

$333 27.4%

Pohang

$447 32.8% 34.1% $114

Groceries & Markets

Nara

$282 23.2%

Pohang

$386 28.3% 36.9% $104

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nara

$170 14%

Pohang

$165 12.2% 2.9% $4.9

Eating Out

Nara

$126 10.4%

Pohang

$137 10.1% 8.6% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Nara

$106 8.7%

Pohang

$53 3.9% 49.8% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Nara

$102 8.4%

Pohang

$168 12.3% 63.8% $65

Getting Around

Nara

$96 7.9%

Pohang

$6.2 * 0.5% 93.5% $89

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

Cost Breakdown

Pohang pays 102% 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: $32.00 in Nara vs $23.00 in Pohang. Groceries flip the comparison at $282 vs $386, with Nara cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Nara

🇰🇷 Pohang

🕒 Local time

08:41 8:41 AM

Same time as Nara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

355,280

514,869

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 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 JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nara Pohang 600 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Nara
Pohang

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

Nara vs Pohang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 12% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 102% lower in Pohang. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Pohang. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,215 per month in Nara versus $1,362 in Pohang – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,215 in Nara versus $1,362 in Pohang, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nara but tight or insufficient in Pohang. The gap between the two cities makes Nara 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, Nara and Pohang 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 Nara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Pohang. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.