Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Newcastle upon Tyne and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Seoul: $1,794 a month against $2,244 in Newcastle upon Tyne, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Newcastle upon Tyne
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Newcastle upon Tyne Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index

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Newcastle upon Tyne

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,244

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Newcastle upon Tyne and in Seoul

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

A single person spends $2,244 per month in Newcastle upon Tyne vs $1,794 in Seoul, rent included.

Newcastle upon Tyne $2,244
Seoul $1,794

A couple spends around $3,335 per month in Newcastle upon Tyne vs $2,863 in Seoul, rent included.

Newcastle upon Tyne $3,335
Seoul $2,863

A family of three spends $4,427 per month in Newcastle upon Tyne vs $3,931 in Seoul, rent included.

Newcastle upon Tyne $4,427
Seoul $3,931

Newcastle upon Tyne costs about 25% more than Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Newcastle upon Tyne and Seoul sit above the global median – Newcastle upon Tyne by 66%, Seoul by 33%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.50 £14.63

$8.80 ₩11.7K

121.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.6 £74.0

$68.4 ₩90.9K

44.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.61 £7.96

$7.54 ₩10.0K

40.72%

Cappuccino

$4.89 £3.67

$4.23 ₩5,624

15.60%

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

$3.04 £2.28

$1.63 ₩2,167

86.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 £1.73

$0.74 ₩985

212.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.65 £4.99

$3.64 ₩4,843

82.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.55 £4.91

$6.15 ₩8,175

6.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 £1.03

$2.01 ₩2,679

-31.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 £1.44

$3.13 ₩4,164

-38.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.18 £1.64

$4.32 ₩5,744

-49.54%

Eggs

$3.66 £2.75

$3.61 ₩4,794

1.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.52 £7.14

$17.83 ₩23.7K

-46.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.02 £6.77

$10.45 ₩13.9K

-13.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.25 £10.69

$25.80 ₩34.3K

-44.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$7.66 ₩10.2K

-63.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.82 £1.36

$3.38 ₩4,499

-46.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 £2.06

$5.81 ₩7,723

-52.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.59 £2.70

$6.41 ₩8,520

-43.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$3.75 ₩4,983

-54.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.54 ₩3,375

-44.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.86

$2.84 ₩3,782

-59.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.11 ₩1,472

36.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.47 £15.36

$3.35 ₩4,455

511.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.58 £7.94

$18.49 ₩24.6K

-42.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.06 £2.30

$2.40 ₩3,185

27.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 £2.69

$3.37 ₩4,480

6.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.35 £2.51

$1.14 ₩1,521

193.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.1 £64.6

$46.11 ₩61.3K

86.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.69 £5.02

$3.49 ₩4,643

91.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 £1.19

$0.63 ₩840

150.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.60 £20.71

$8.86 ₩11.8K

211.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 £1.56

$1.51 ₩2,005

37.75%

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

$37.8K £28.4K

$29.3K ₩38.9M

29.13%

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

$41.1K £30.8K

$28.2K ₩37.5M

45.74%

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

$242 £182

$218 ₩289.2K

11.32%

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

$16.78 £12.59

$35.15 ₩46.7K

-52.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.04 £31.54

$21.29 ₩28.3K

97.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.74 £27.56

$58.1 ₩77.2K

-36.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.21 £14.41

$16.10 ₩21.4K

19.32%

Cinema Ticket

$10.38 £7.79

$11.31 ₩15.0K

-8.22%

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

$1,240 £930

$1,948 ₩2.6M

-36.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.3K £13.0K

$22.9K ₩30.4M

-24.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.3 £68.5

$57.0 ₩75.8K

60.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.43 £35.58

$33.39 ₩44.4K

42.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.2

$71.5 ₩95.0K

51.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.2 £70.7

$82.5 ₩109.7K

14.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,334 £1,001

$901 ₩1.2M

48.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,003 £752

$612 ₩813.5K

63.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,165 £1,624

$2,526 ₩3.4M

-14.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,584 £1,189

$1,266 ₩1.7M

25.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,188 £3,892

$29.4K ₩39.1M

-82.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,565 £2,675

$11.9K ₩15.8M

-70.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,403 £2,553

$3,650 ₩4.9M

-6.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.15

4.08

26.23%

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

Last update for Newcastle upon Tyne: October 11, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Newcastle upon Tyne

$1K 44.7%

Seoul

$612 34.1% 39% $391

Eating Out

Newcastle upon Tyne

$314 14%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 41.5% $130

Groceries & Markets

Newcastle upon Tyne

$301 13.4%

Seoul

$477 26.6% 58.5% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Newcastle upon Tyne

$301 13.4%

Seoul

$274 15.3% 9% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Newcastle upon Tyne

$154 6.8%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 28.4% $44

Getting Around

Newcastle upon Tyne

$114 5.1%

Seoul

$57 3.2% 49.7% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Newcastle upon Tyne

$58 2.6%

Seoul

$81 4.5% 40.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,334 in Newcastle upon Tyne versus $901 in Seoul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 7% higher in Seoul, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $99.0 in Newcastle upon Tyne versus $68.0 in Seoul. Groceries tell a different story – $301 in Newcastle upon Tyne vs $477 in Seoul – so Newcastle upon Tyne wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Newcastle upon Tyne

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

07:00 7:00 AM

15:00 3:00 PM

8 h ahead of Newcastle upon Tyne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

809,000

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Newcastle upon Tyne Seoul 8,620 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Newcastle upon Tyne
Seoul

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

Newcastle upon Tyne vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,244 in Newcastle upon Tyne, $1,794 in Seoul – roughly 25% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,366 per month in Newcastle upon Tyne and $2,692 in Seoul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Seoul, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 87% less in Seoul. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,240 per month in Newcastle upon Tyne and $1,948 in Seoul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Seoul, where all-in costs run around $1,794, than in Newcastle upon Tyne at $2,244. In Seoul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Newcastle upon Tyne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Newcastle upon Tyne has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,794 in Seoul to $2,244 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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.

If budget matters most, go with Seoul. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Newcastle upon Tyne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.