Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seoul and Nanjing

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanjing: $841 a month against $1,822 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Nanjing
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Nanjing Living Index

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Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,822

/mo nomad

Nanjing

🇨🇳 China

$841

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seoul and in Nanjing

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,822 in Seoul versus $841 in Nanjing.

Seoul $1,822
Nanjing $841

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,847 in Seoul versus $1,339 in Nanjing.

Seoul $2,847
Nanjing $1,339

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,872 in Seoul versus $1,837 in Nanjing.

Seoul $3,872
Nanjing $1,837

Living in Seoul is roughly 117% more expensive than in Nanjing, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Seoul is 36% above, Nanjing is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.10 ₩12.2K

$3.67 ¥24.54

147.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.0 ₩89.8K

$22.21 ¥148

201.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.42 ₩9,941

$4.97 ¥33.22

49.30%

Cappuccino

$4.08 ₩5,470

$3.01 ¥20.12

35.55%

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

$1.60 ₩2,141

$0.50 ¥3.31

220.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 ₩1,078

$0.27 ¥1.81

196.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.65 ₩4,886

$1.45 ¥9.66

151.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.94 ₩7,956

$2.29 ¥15.28

159.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ₩2,742

$2.16 ¥14.46

-5.09%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 ₩4,130

$2.07 ¥13.84

48.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.21 ₩5,646

$0.91 ¥6.07

362.64%

Eggs

$3.57 ₩4,784

$1.35 ¥9.02

164.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.95 ₩24.1K

$10.64 ¥71.1

68.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.64 ₩14.3K

$3.02 ¥20.20

252.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.44 ₩35.4K

$8.97 ¥59.9

194.76%

Apples (1kg)

$7.42 ₩9,946

$2.09 ¥13.95

255.02%

Banana (1kg)

$3.53 ₩4,732

$1.28 ¥8.58

175.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.87 ₩7,866

$1.77 ¥11.86

231.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.37 ₩8,534

$1.07 ¥7.17

495.33%

Potato (1kg)

$3.75 ₩5,028

$0.91 ¥6.08

312.09%

Onion (1kg)

$2.49 ₩3,337

$0.90 ¥6.05

176.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.92 ₩3,911

$0.93 ¥6.24

213.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 ₩1,542

$0.52 ¥3.45

121.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ₩4,408

$3.75 ¥25.05

-12.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.49 ₩24.8K

$13.34 ¥89.2

38.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,057

$1.01 ¥6.72

125.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 ₩4,398

$1.56 ¥10.45

110.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.14 ₩1,526

$0.31 ¥2.08

267.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.47 ₩60.9K

$29.72 ¥199

52.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.48 ₩4,663

$1.75 ¥11.71

98.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₩803

$0.41 ¥2.77

46.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.70 ₩11.7K

$8.91 ¥59.6

-2.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₩2,004

$1.37 ¥9.13

9.49%

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

$29.1K ₩39.0M

$19.1K ¥127.8K

52.22%

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

$28.2K ₩37.8M

$16.6K ¥110.6K

70.34%

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

$209 ₩279.9K

$53.6 ¥358

289.83%

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

$35.13 ₩47.1K

$7.59 ¥50.7

362.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.18 ₩28.4K

$7.28 ¥48.66

190.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.3 ₩76.8K

$28.49 ¥190

101.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.89 ₩21.3K

$33.70 ¥225

-52.85%

Cinema Ticket

$11.33 ₩15.2K

$5.86 ¥39.15

93.34%

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

$1,902 ₩2.5M

$1,459 ¥9,753

30.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₩30.2M

$22.5K ¥150.7K

-0.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 ₩78.9K

$43.40 ¥290

35.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.12 ₩43.0K

$33.88 ¥226

-5.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 ₩94.0K

$65.7 ¥439

6.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.5 ₩110.5K

$86.9 ¥581

-5.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$885 ₩1.2M

$529 ¥3,535

67.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 ₩835.5K

$295 ¥1,974

111.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,494 ₩3.3M

$1,115 ¥7,452

123.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,275 ₩1.7M

$557 ¥3,722

128.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$29.8K ₩40.0M

$5,013 ¥33.5K

495.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.8K ₩15.9M

$3,140 ¥21.0K

277.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,649 ₩4.9M

$1,419 ¥9,485

157.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

3.42

19.30%

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

Last update for Seoul: October 4, 2026

Last update for Nanjing: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seoul

$624 34.7%

Nanjing

$295 35.1% 52.6% $328

Groceries & Markets

Seoul

$479 26.7%

Nanjing

$205 24.4% 57.2% $274

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seoul

$265 14.8%

Nanjing

$68 8.1% 74.2% $197

Eating Out

Seoul

$184 10.2%

Nanjing

$95 11.3% 48.1% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Seoul

$110 6.1%

Nanjing

$103 12.3% 5.6% $6.2

Sport & Entertainment

Seoul

$80 4.5%

Nanjing

$40 4.8% 49.7% $40

Getting Around

Seoul

$57 3.1%

Nanjing

$35 4.1% 38.4% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $885 in Seoul and $529 in Nanjing. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 157% 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 $22.00 in Nanjing for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $479 vs $205 per month, with Nanjing cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Seoul

🇨🇳 Nanjing

🕒 Local time

19:21 7:21 PM

18:21 6:21 PM

1 h behind Seoul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,509,458 Capital

9,314,685

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.66 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,340 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,502 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 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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Seoul Nanjing 970 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Seoul vs Nanjing: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nanjing is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 117% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 157% 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: $885 in Seoul versus $529 in Nanjing. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Nanjing – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $67.0 in Seoul. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,822 per month in Seoul versus $841 in Nanjing – a 117% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $841 in Nanjing versus $1,822 in Seoul, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nanjing but tight or insufficient in Seoul. The gap between the two cities makes Nanjing 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 Nanjing 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 Nanjing gentler on the wallet – expenses run 117% less than in Seoul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.