Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ongjin and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Ongjin: $710 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Ongjin
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Ongjin Living Index
137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Ongjin

🇰🇵 North Korea

$710

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ongjin and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $710 in Ongjin versus $2,852 in Melbourne.

Ongjin $710
Melbourne $2,852

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,126 in Ongjin versus $4,297 in Melbourne.

Ongjin $1,126
Melbourne $4,297

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,543 in Ongjin versus $5,742 in Melbourne.

Ongjin $1,543
Melbourne $5,742

Living in Ongjin costs roughly 75% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ongjin is 47% below, Melbourne is 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.79 $2.79

$17.75 A$25.40

-84.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.34 $23.34

$84.8 A$121

-72.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 $7.98

$12.16 A$17.40

-34.38%

Cappuccino

$1.16 $1.16

$3.93 A$5.62

-70.48%

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

$0.98 $0.98

$3.14 A$4.49

-68.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$2.43 A$3.47

-59.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.64 $6.64

$9.90 A$14.17

-32.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 $2.26

$8.29 A$11.86

-72.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.55 A$2.21

-40.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 $1.57

$3.01 A$4.31

-47.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 $2.26

$2.88 A$4.12

-21.53%

Eggs

$3.28 $3.28

$5.44 A$7.79

-39.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.66 $4.66

$10.59 A$15.16

-56.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.29 $2.29

$9.61 A$13.76

-76.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.67 $5.67

$14.99 A$21.46

-62.17%

Apples (1kg)

$6.80 $6.80

$4.15 A$5.94

63.86%

Banana (1kg)

$4.63 $4.63

$3.05 A$4.37

51.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 $2.34

$3.30 A$4.72

-29.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 $2.29

$4.76 A$6.81

-51.89%

Potato (1kg)

$3.50 $3.50

$3.04 A$4.34

15.13%

Onion (1kg)

$3.33 $3.33

$2.55 A$3.65

30.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 $2.31

$2.48 A$3.55

-6.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 $0.43

$1.63 A$2.33

-73.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.67 $4.67

$44.07 A$63.1

-89.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.81 $7.81

$12.43 A$17.79

-37.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 $1.11

$5.33 A$7.63

-79.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 $2.23

$5.16 A$7.38

-56.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.00 $1.00

$3.84 A$5.50

-73.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.98 $39.98

$142 A$203

-71.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 $1.57

$4.40 A$6.29

-64.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.40 A$2.01

59.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.01 $41.01

$29.83 A$42.69

37.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.75 $0.75

$1.46 A$2.09

-48.63%

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

$23.0K $23.0K

$28.1K A$40.3K

-18.32%

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

$27.9K $27.9K

$25.9K A$37.1K

7.52%

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

$33.78 $33.78

$233 A$333

-85.48%

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

$11.46 $11.46

$27.28 A$39.04

-57.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.71 $45.71

$57.0 A$81.6

-19.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.61 $43.61

$52.7 A$75.4

-17.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.96 $14.96

$22.62 A$32.37

-33.86%

Cinema Ticket

$7.75 $7.75

$17.10 A$24.48

-54.68%

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

$109 $109

$2,373 A$3,397

-95.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,117 $2,117

$30.5K A$43.6K

-93.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.72 $22.72

$78.2 A$112

-70.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.97 $27.97

$50.5 A$72.2

-44.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.6 $61.6

$121 A$172

-48.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.1 $84.1

$133 A$191

-36.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$89.2 $89.2

$1,713 A$2,451

-94.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$91.3 $91.3

$1,402 A$2,006

-93.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,244 $2,244

$3,339 A$4,778

-32.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$136 $136

$2,529 A$3,619

-94.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,691 $1,691

$7,018 A$10.0K

-75.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,423 $1,423

$6,767 A$9,685

-78.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 $214

$4,228 A$6,051

-94.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.11

5.9

20.51%

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

Last update for Ongjin: October 5, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ongjin

$229 31.8%

Melbourne

$385 13.5% 68% $156

Eating Out

Ongjin

$106 14.7%

Melbourne

$314 11% 197% $208

Accommodation & Living

Ongjin

$91 12.7%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 1435% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ongjin

$91 12.6%

Melbourne

$317 11.1% 249% $226

Clothing & Footwear

Ongjin

$88 12.3%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 94.7% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Ongjin

$59 8.2%

Melbourne

$87 3.1% 47% $28

Getting Around

Ongjin

$57 7.9%

Melbourne

$168 5.9% 197% $112

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $89.2 in Ongjin and $1,713 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 1873% 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: $23.00 in Ongjin vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $229 vs $385 per month, with Ongjin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇵 Ongjin

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

16:02 4:02 PM

18:02 6:02 PM

2 h ahead of Ongjin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

152,878

5,031,195

💱 Currency

USD USD

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

AUD to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Ongjin Melbourne 8,660 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Ongjin
Melbourne

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

Ongjin vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ongjin and Melbourne differ by about 302% in total monthly costs ($710 vs $2,852 including rent). Ongjin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 1873% lower in Melbourne. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $89.2 in Ongjin versus $1,713 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $109 in Ongjin versus $2,373 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 68% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $710 in Ongjin versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ongjin but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Ongjin 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, Ongjin and Melbourne 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 Ongjin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 302% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.