Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seoul and Usolye-Sibirskoye

For one person, living is cheaper in Usolye-Sibirskoye: $986 a month against $1,822 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Usolye-Sibirskoye
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Usolye-Sibirskoye Living Index

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Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,822

/mo nomad

Usolye-Sibirskoye

🇷🇺 Russia

$986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Seoul and in Usolye-Sibirskoye

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 Usolye-Sibirskoye actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,822 per month in Seoul vs $986 in Usolye-Sibirskoye, rent included.

Seoul $1,822
Usolye-Sibirskoye $986

A couple spends around $2,847 per month in Seoul vs $1,552 in Usolye-Sibirskoye, rent included.

Seoul $2,847
Usolye-Sibirskoye $1,552

A family of three spends $3,872 per month in Seoul vs $2,119 in Usolye-Sibirskoye, rent included.

Seoul $3,872
Usolye-Sibirskoye $2,119

Seoul costs about 85% more than Usolye-Sibirskoye, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Seoul sits 36% above the global median, while Usolye-Sibirskoye is 26% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.10 ₩12.2K

$7.23 ₽615

25.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.0 ₩89.8K

$32.27 ₽2,746

107.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.42 ₩9,941

$5.87 ₽500

26.41%

Cappuccino

$4.08 ₩5,470

$2.97 ₽252

37.37%

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

$1.60 ₩2,141

$1.57 ₽133

1.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 ₩1,078

$0.71 ₽60.7

12.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.65 ₩4,886

$2.71 ₽231

34.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.94 ₩7,956

$4.16 ₽354

42.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ₩2,742

$1.25 ₽106

64.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 ₩4,130

$0.61 ₽51.9

404.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.21 ₩5,646

$1.40 ₽119

200.71%

Eggs

$3.57 ₩4,784

$1.58 ₽134

125.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.95 ₩24.1K

$11.57 ₽985

55.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.64 ₩14.3K

$5.99 ₽510

77.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.44 ₩35.4K

$11.18 ₽951

136.49%

Apples (1kg)

$7.42 ₩9,946

$1.82 ₽155

307.69%

Banana (1kg)

$3.53 ₩4,732

$1.91 ₽162

84.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.87 ₩7,866

$1.74 ₽148

237.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.37 ₩8,534

$3.60 ₽307

76.94%

Potato (1kg)

$3.75 ₩5,028

$0.71 ₽60.4

428.17%

Onion (1kg)

$2.49 ₩3,337

$0.65 ₽55.3

283.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.92 ₩3,911

$1.80 ₽153

62.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 ₩1,542

$0.61 ₽52.1

88.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.29 ₩4,408

$2.71 ₽230

21.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.49 ₩24.8K

$7.21 ₽613

156.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,057

$0.95 ₽81.2

140.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 ₩4,398

$2.00 ₽170

64.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.14 ₩1,526

$0.52 ₽44.00

119.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.47 ₩60.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.48 ₩4,663

$1.20 ₽102

190.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₩803

$0.18 ₽15.70

233.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.70 ₩11.7K

$8.79 ₽748

-1.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₩2,004

$0.84 ₽71.1

78.57%

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

$29.1K ₩39.0M

$29.0K ₽2.5M

0.57%

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

$28.2K ₩37.8M

$35.7K ₽3.0M

-21.01%

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

$209 ₩279.9K

$117 ₽9,935

78.89%

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

$35.13 ₩47.1K

$5.73 ₽487

513.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.18 ₩28.4K

$11.32 ₽963

87.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.3 ₩76.8K

$37.28 ₽3,172

53.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.89 ₩21.3K

$25.39 ₽2,160

-37.42%

Cinema Ticket

$11.33 ₩15.2K

$6.54 ₽557

73.24%

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

$1,902 ₩2.5M

$295 ₽25.1K

543.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₩30.2M

$3,205 ₽272.7K

602.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 ₩78.9K

$58.5 ₽4,977

0.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.12 ₩43.0K

$23.82 ₽2,027

34.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 ₩94.0K

$99.2 ₽8,442

-29.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.5 ₩110.5K

$117 ₽9,942

-29.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$885 ₩1.2M

$471 ₽40.1K

87.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 ₩835.5K

$309 ₽26.3K

102.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,494 ₩3.3M

$847 ₽72.1K

194.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,275 ₩1.7M

$573 ₽48.8K

122.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$29.8K ₩40.0M

$2,468 ₽210.0K

1109.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.8K ₩15.9M

$1,259 ₽107.1K

841.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,649 ₩4.9M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

24.57

-83.39%

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

Last update for Seoul: October 4, 2026

Last update for Usolye-Sibirskoye: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seoul

$624 34.7%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$309 31.2% 50.5% $315

Groceries & Markets

Seoul

$479 26.7%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$215 21.8% 55% $264

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seoul

$265 14.8%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$134 13.5% 49.5% $131

Eating Out

Seoul

$184 10.2%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$142 14.4% 22.7% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Seoul

$110 6.1%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$134 13.6% 22.5% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Seoul

$80 4.5%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$50 5.1% 37% $30

Getting Around

Seoul

$57 3.1%

Usolye-Sibirskoye

$4.2 * 0.4% 92.6% $52

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $885 in Seoul versus $471 in Usolye-Sibirskoye. 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 $32.00 in Usolye-Sibirskoye. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $479 vs $215 – making Usolye-Sibirskoye the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Seoul

🇷🇺 Usolye-Sibirskoye

🕒 Local time

20:51 8:51 PM

19:51 7:51 PM

1 h behind Seoul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,509,458 Capital

73,507

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.66 EUR

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, 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).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.09 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.35 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Seoul Usolye-Sibirskoye 2,470 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Seoul
Usolye-Sibirskoye

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 Usolye-Sibirskoye: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seoul costs about 85% more than Usolye-Sibirskoye, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,733 per month in Seoul and $1,478 in Usolye-Sibirskoye. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,822 in Seoul and $986 in Usolye-Sibirskoye. That's a gap of about 85%.

Kindergarten costs $1,902 per month in Seoul and $295 in Usolye-Sibirskoye. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Usolye-Sibirskoye, where all-in costs run around $986, than in Seoul at $1,822. In Usolye-Sibirskoye it covers expenses comfortably, while in Seoul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Usolye-Sibirskoye – 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 Usolye-Sibirskoye. 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.