Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seoul and Mataram

For one person, living is cheaper in Mataram: $608 a month against $1,804 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Mataram
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Mataram Living Index

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Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,804

/mo nomad

Mataram

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seoul and in Mataram

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,804 in Seoul versus $608 in Mataram.

Seoul $1,804
Mataram $608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,877 in Seoul versus $967 in Mataram.

Seoul $2,877
Mataram $967

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,950 in Seoul versus $1,327 in Mataram.

Seoul $3,950
Mataram $1,327

Living in Seoul is roughly 197% more expensive than in Mataram, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Seoul is 33% above, Mataram is 55% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.10 ₩12.1K

$0.93 Rp 16.8K

878.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.7 ₩88.6K

$9.22 Rp 166.0K

623.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.49 ₩9,959

$3.21 Rp 57.8K

133.33%

Cappuccino

$4.19 ₩5,569

$1.47 Rp 26.4K

185.03%

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

$1.55 ₩2,067

$0.44 Rp 7,889

252.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.79 ₩1,055

$0.31 Rp 5,491

154.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.64 ₩4,846

$2.71 Rp 48.8K

34.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 ₩8,164

$3.45 Rp 62.1K

77.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 ₩2,811

$1.38 Rp 24.9K

52.90%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 ₩4,051

$1.47 Rp 26.4K

107.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.21 ₩5,599

$0.80 Rp 14.5K

426.25%

Eggs

$3.54 ₩4,709

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

137.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.02 ₩24.0K

$7.12 Rp 128.2K

153.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.35 ₩13.8K

$3.00 Rp 54.1K

245.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.47 ₩35.2K

$7.39 Rp 133.0K

258.19%

Apples (1kg)

$7.91 ₩10.5K

$2.28 Rp 41.1K

246.93%

Banana (1kg)

$3.44 ₩4,578

$1.25 Rp 22.4K

175.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.64 ₩7,493

$1.70 Rp 30.6K

231.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.41 ₩8,517

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

396.90%

Potato (1kg)

$3.71 ₩4,938

$1.24 Rp 22.3K

199.19%

Onion (1kg)

$2.52 ₩3,345

$1.94 Rp 34.9K

29.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 ₩3,816

$0.73 Rp 13.1K

293.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 ₩1,536

$0.40 Rp 7,214

190.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.37 ₩4,480

$2.63 Rp 47.3K

28.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.72 ₩24.9K

$20.99 Rp 377.9K

-10.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,036

$1.91 Rp 34.4K

19.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 ₩4,397

$3.04 Rp 54.7K

8.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.13 ₩1,497

$0.27 Rp 4,838

318.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.73 ₩62.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.52 ₩4,684

$0.50 Rp 8,960

604.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₩849

$0.35 Rp 6,222

82.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.76 ₩11.7K

$2.72 Rp 48.9K

222.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₩1,930

$0.62 Rp 11.2K

133.87%

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

$29.7K ₩39.4M

$23.8K Rp 428.7M

24.55%

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

$28.2K ₩37.5M

$30.6K Rp 551.3M

-7.94%

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

$211 ₩280.4K

$66.0 Rp 1.2M

219.68%

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

$35.36 ₩47.0K

$3.96 Rp 71.3K

792.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.57 ₩27.4K

$19.47 Rp 350.5K

5.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.7 ₩76.7K

$19.35 Rp 348.4K

198.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.20 ₩21.5K

$8.15 Rp 146.8K

98.77%

Cinema Ticket

$11.37 ₩15.1K

$2.85 Rp 51.2K

298.95%

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

$1,967 ₩2.6M

$94.8 Rp 1.7M

1975.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.8K ₩30.3M

$7,572 Rp 136.3M

200.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.5 ₩76.4K

$44.19 Rp 795.3K

30.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.08 ₩44.0K

$28.84 Rp 519.0K

14.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 ₩93.2K

$73.5 Rp 1.3M

-4.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.3 ₩112.0K

$71.4 Rp 1.3M

18.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$878 ₩1.2M

$225 Rp 4.0M

290.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 ₩829.7K

$133 Rp 2.4M

368.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,513 ₩3.3M

$530 Rp 9.5M

373.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 ₩1.7M

$356 Rp 6.4M

261.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$30.4K ₩40.4M

$1,184 Rp 21.3M

2465.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.9K ₩15.8M

$796 Rp 14.3M

1393.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,599 ₩4.8M

$222 Rp 4.0M

1519.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

9.46

-56.87%

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

Last update for Seoul: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mataram: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seoul

$624 34.6%

Mataram

$133 21.9% 78.7% $491

Groceries & Markets

Seoul

$480 26.6%

Mataram

$201 33.1% 58% $278

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seoul

$267 14.8%

Mataram

$89 14.7% 66.5% $177

Eating Out

Seoul

$185 10.3%

Mataram

$58 9.6% 68.6% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Seoul

$110 6.1%

Mataram

$98 16.1% 11.1% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Seoul

$80 4.5%

Mataram

$25 4.1% 68.9% $55

Getting Around

Seoul

$58 3.2%

Mataram

$3.3 * 0.5% 94.3% $55

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 $878 in Seoul and $225 in Mataram. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 1520% 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: $67.0 in Seoul vs $9.00 in Mataram for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $480 vs $201 per month, with Mataram cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Seoul

🇮🇩 Mataram

🕒 Local time

22:17 10:17 PM

21:17 9:17 PM

1 h behind Seoul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,509,458 Capital

402,843

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Seoul Mataram 5,250 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Seoul
Mataram

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 Mataram: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seoul and Mataram differ by about 197% in total monthly costs ($1,804 vs $608 including rent). Mataram is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1520% higher in Seoul, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $878 in Seoul versus $225 in Mataram. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 138% higher in Seoul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,804 per month in Seoul versus $608 in Mataram – a 197% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $608 in Mataram versus $1,804 in Seoul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mataram but tight or insufficient in Seoul. The gap between the two cities makes Mataram 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, Seoul and Mataram 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 Mataram gentler on the wallet – expenses run 197% less than in Seoul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.