Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seoul and Kunshan

For one person, living is cheaper in Kunshan: $710 a month against $1,822 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Kunshan
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Kunshan Living Index

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Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,822

/mo nomad

Kunshan

🇨🇳 China

$710

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seoul and in Kunshan

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

A single person spends $1,822 per month in Seoul vs $710 in Kunshan, rent included.

Seoul $1,822
Kunshan $710

A couple spends around $2,847 per month in Seoul vs $1,135 in Kunshan, rent included.

Seoul $2,847
Kunshan $1,135

A family of three spends $3,872 per month in Seoul vs $1,561 in Kunshan, rent included.

Seoul $3,872
Kunshan $1,561

Seoul costs about 157% more than Kunshan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Seoul sits 36% above the global median, while Kunshan is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.10 ₩12.1K

$2.76 ¥18.47

229.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.0 ₩89.4K

$21.37 ¥143

213.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.42 ₩9,900

$4.78 ¥31.96

55.23%

Cappuccino

$4.08 ₩5,448

$3.03 ¥20.28

34.65%

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

$1.60 ₩2,132

$0.46 ¥3.09

247.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 ₩1,074

$0.29 ¥1.94

175.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.65 ₩4,867

$0.94 ¥6.28

288.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.94 ₩7,924

$2.14 ¥14.32

177.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ₩2,731

$1.85 ¥12.38

10.81%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 ₩4,113

$1.56 ¥10.43

97.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.21 ₩5,623

$0.94 ¥6.29

347.87%

Eggs

$3.57 ₩4,765

$1.61 ¥10.78

121.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.95 ₩24.0K

$13.00 ¥86.9

38.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.64 ₩14.2K

$3.24 ¥21.67

228.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.44 ₩35.3K

$10.38 ¥69.4

154.72%

Apples (1kg)

$7.42 ₩9,906

$1.81 ¥12.10

309.94%

Banana (1kg)

$3.53 ₩4,713

$1.19 ¥7.98

196.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.87 ₩7,834

$1.48 ¥9.90

296.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.37 ₩8,500

$1.09 ¥7.27

484.40%

Potato (1kg)

$3.75 ₩5,008

$0.70 ¥4.70

435.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.49 ₩3,323

$0.98 ¥6.52

154.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.92 ₩3,895

$0.56 ¥3.74

421.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 ₩1,535

$0.51 ¥3.44

125.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ₩4,390

$3.16 ¥21.15

4.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.49 ₩24.7K

$10.71 ¥71.6

72.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,044

$0.74 ¥4.96

208.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 ₩4,380

$1.59 ¥10.63

106.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.14 ₩1,519

$0.27 ¥1.78

322.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.47 ₩60.7K

$17.00 ¥114

167.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.48 ₩4,644

$1.41 ¥9.44

146.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₩800

$0.33 ¥2.18

81.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.70 ₩11.6K

$6.75 ¥45.12

28.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₩1,996

$1.18 ¥7.91

27.12%

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

$29.1K ₩38.9M

$19.8K ¥132.2K

47.17%

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

$28.2K ₩37.6M

$17.4K ¥116.1K

62.22%

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

$209 ₩278.8K

$44.30 ¥296

371.49%

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

$35.13 ₩46.9K

$9.92 ¥66.3

254.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.18 ₩28.3K

$11.65 ¥77.9

81.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.3 ₩76.5K

$41.65 ¥278

37.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.89 ₩21.2K

$13.67 ¥91.4

16.24%

Cinema Ticket

$11.33 ₩15.1K

$5.99 ¥40.04

89.15%

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

$1,902 ₩2.5M

$331 ¥2,211

475.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₩30.1M

$16.7K ¥111.6K

34.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 ₩78.6K

$42.98 ¥287

37.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.12 ₩42.9K

$29.88 ¥200

7.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 ₩93.6K

$72.0 ¥481

-2.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.5 ₩110.1K

$72.0 ¥481

14.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$885 ₩1.2M

$273 ¥1,824

224.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 ₩832.2K

$196 ¥1,310

218.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,494 ₩3.3M

$601 ¥4,017

314.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,275 ₩1.7M

$356 ¥2,376

258.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$29.8K ₩39.8M

$3,052 ¥20.4K

877.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.8K ₩15.8M

$2,029 ¥13.6K

483.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,649 ₩4.9M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

3.89

4.88%

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

Last update for Seoul: October 4, 2026

Last update for Kunshan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seoul

$624 34.7%

Kunshan

$196 27.3% 68.6% $427

Groceries & Markets

Seoul

$479 26.7%

Kunshan

$199 27.7% 58.4% $280

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seoul

$265 14.8%

Kunshan

$66 9.2% 75.2% $199

Eating Out

Seoul

$184 10.2%

Kunshan

$85 11.8% 53.8% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Seoul

$110 6.1%

Kunshan

$98 13.6% 11% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Seoul

$80 4.5%

Kunshan

$54 7.5% 32.9% $26

Getting Around

Seoul

$57 3.1%

Kunshan

$21 2.9% 62.6% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $885 in Seoul versus $273 in Kunshan. 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 $67.0 in Seoul versus $21.00 in Kunshan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $479 vs $199 – making Kunshan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Seoul

🇨🇳 Kunshan

🕒 Local time

17:40 5:40 PM

16:40 4:40 PM

1 h behind Seoul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,509,458 Capital

2,092,496

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1,335 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,496 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

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Between locations

Seoul Kunshan 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Seoul
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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

Seoul vs Kunshan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Seoul is pricier by about 157%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,733 per month in Seoul and $1,065 in Kunshan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Seoul and $21.00 in Kunshan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,822 in Seoul and $710 in Kunshan. That's a gap of about 157%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kunshan, where all-in costs run around $710, than in Seoul at $1,822. In Kunshan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Seoul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kunshan – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Kunshan. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Seoul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.