Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Setagaya-ku and Cheonan

For one person, living is cheaper in Setagaya-ku: $1,183 a month against $1,467 in Cheonan, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Setagaya-ku
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Setagaya-ku Living Index
71

Cost of Living Index in Cheonan
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Cheonan Living Index

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Setagaya-ku

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,183

/mo nomad

Cheonan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,467

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Setagaya-ku and in Cheonan

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

A single person spends $1,183 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $1,467 in Cheonan, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $1,183
Cheonan $1,467

A couple spends around $1,834 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $2,259 in Cheonan, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $1,834
Cheonan $2,259

A family of three spends $2,484 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $3,051 in Cheonan, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $2,484
Cheonan $3,051

Setagaya-ku is about 19% cheaper than Cheonan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Setagaya-ku sits 12% below the global median, while Cheonan is 9% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.12 ¥968

$7.53 ₩10.0K

-18.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.64 ¥4,050

$22.63 ₩30.1K

13.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.36 ¥690

$4.28 ₩5,693

1.87%

Cappuccino

$2.97 ¥470

$1.47 ₩1,951

102.04%

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

$1.04 ¥165

$1.16 ₩1,538

-10.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 ¥102

$1.40 ₩1,867

-53.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 ¥346

$2.28 ₩3,031

-3.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 ¥508

$4.40 ₩5,853

-26.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 ¥194

$1.60 ₩2,125

-23.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 ¥272

$3.22 ₩4,287

-46.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.64 ¥575

$3.07 ₩4,078

18.57%

Eggs

$1.17 ¥186

$2.61 ₩3,476

-55.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.40 ¥1,643

$11.19 ₩14.9K

-7.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.11 ¥965

$10.38 ₩13.8K

-41.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.25 ¥2,252

$25.11 ₩33.4K

-43.25%

Apples (1kg)

$5.59 ¥883

$11.23 ₩14.9K

-50.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 ¥433

$3.73 ₩4,965

-26.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 ¥466

$8.07 ₩10.7K

-63.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.14 ¥654

$6.04 ₩8,035

-31.46%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 ¥415

$6.10 ₩8,106

-57.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.63 ¥416

$3.34 ₩4,438

-21.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ¥196

$2.75 ₩3,651

-54.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥87.7

$1.33 ₩1,765

-57.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.79 ¥599

$3.38 ₩4,494

12.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.26 ¥989

$18.30 ₩24.3K

-65.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 ¥287

$2.43 ₩3,229

-25.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 ¥330

$3.35 ₩4,454

-37.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 ¥231

$1.14 ₩1,509

28.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.7 ¥8,012

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.23 ¥510

$3.05 ₩4,050

5.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.66 ¥421

$0.78 ₩1,036

241.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.85 ¥3,294

$16.69 ₩22.2K

24.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ¥174

$1.24 ₩1,650

-11.29%

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

$21.2K ¥3.4M

$29.7K ₩39.5M

-28.63%

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

$18.6K ¥2.9M

$34.2K ₩45.5M

-45.75%

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

$131 ¥20.6K

$199 ₩264.9K

-34.42%

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

$23.82 ¥3,764

$35.67 ₩47.4K

-33.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.73 ¥5,013

$27.08 ₩36.0K

17.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 ¥8,691

$51.6 ₩68.6K

6.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.77 ₩15.6K

Cinema Ticket

$11.52 ¥1,820

$12.13 ₩16.1K

-5.03%

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

$636 ¥100.5K

$636 ₩845.7K

-0.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K ¥2.3M

$21.5K ₩28.6M

-31.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.3 ¥9,846

$66.2 ₩88.0K

-5.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.37 ¥5,747

$59.5 ₩79.1K

-38.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.1 ¥9,814

$92.6 ₩123.1K

-32.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.2K

$127 ₩168.9K

-19.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$534 ¥84.4K

$478 ₩636.1K

11.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 ¥51.4K

$361 ₩479.5K

-9.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,152 ¥182.0K

$1,153 ₩1.5M

-0.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$674 ¥106.4K

$739 ₩982.3K

-8.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,724 ¥588.4K

$7,244 ₩9.6M

-48.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,635 ¥258.4K

$5,422 ₩7.2M

-69.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,824 ₩2.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

-52.61%

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

Last update for Setagaya-ku: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cheonan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Setagaya-ku

$325 27.5%

Cheonan

$361 24.6% 10.9% $36

Groceries & Markets

Setagaya-ku

$281 23.7%

Cheonan

$480 32.8% 71% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Setagaya-ku

$186 15.7%

Cheonan

$262 17.9% 40.7% $76

Eating Out

Setagaya-ku

$122 10.3%

Cheonan

$121 8.3% 0.6% $0.8

Clothing & Footwear

Setagaya-ku

$118 10%

Cheonan

$155 10.6% 31.3% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Setagaya-ku

$78 6.6%

Cheonan

$76 5.2% 2.8% $2.2

Getting Around

Setagaya-ku

$73 6.2%

Cheonan

$11 * 0.8% 84.3% $62

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $534 in Setagaya-ku versus $478 in Cheonan. 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 $26.00 in Setagaya-ku versus $23.00 in Cheonan. Groceries tell a different story – $281 in Setagaya-ku vs $480 in Cheonan – so Setagaya-ku wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Setagaya-ku

🇰🇷 Cheonan

🕒 Local time

02:18 2:18 AM

Same time as Setagaya-ku

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

943,664

658,486

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Setagaya-ku Cheonan 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Setagaya-ku
Cheonan

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

Setagaya-ku vs Cheonan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cheonan costs about 24% more than Setagaya-ku, 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 $1,775 per month in Setagaya-ku and $2,200 in Cheonan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Setagaya-ku, 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 $1,183 in Setagaya-ku and $1,467 in Cheonan. That's a gap of about 24%.

Kindergarten costs $636 per month in Setagaya-ku and $636 in Cheonan. 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 Setagaya-ku, where all-in costs run around $1,183, than in Cheonan at $1,467. In Setagaya-ku it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cheonan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Setagaya-ku – 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 Setagaya-ku. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cheonan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.