Cost of Living Comparison Between South Korea and China Cost of Living Comparison Between South Korea and China

Name: China
Address: CN

😐 Solo nomad: South Korea is 88.2% more expensive than China without rent, and 98.2% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: South Korea is 99.2% more expensive than China without rent, and 98.3% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.25 ₩10.7K

$2.77 ¥19.31

161.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.33 ₩63.8K

$24.14 ¥169

79.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.04 ₩8,901

$4.75 ¥33.15

27.16%

Cappuccino

$3.84 ₩5,658

$3.02 ¥21.06

27.15%

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

$1.63 ₩2,398

$0.44 ¥3.06

270.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 ₩1,127

$0.27 ¥1.87

185.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.57 ₩5,263

$0.96 ¥6.67

271.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.84 ₩7,134

$2.04 ¥14.21

137.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 ₩3,241

$1.75 ¥12.21

25.71%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 ₩4,557

$1.69 ¥11.79

82.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.08 ₩4,530

$0.98 ¥6.85

214.29%

Eggs

$2.94 ₩4,329

$1.60 ¥11.19

83.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.59 ₩20.0K

$13.34 ¥93.1

1.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.09 ₩13.4K

$3.27 ¥22.82

177.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$29.50 ₩43.5K

$10.63 ¥74.2

177.52%

Apples (1kg)

$7.71 ₩11.4K

$1.74 ¥12.16

343.10%

Banana (1kg)

$3.41 ₩5,018

$1.26 ¥8.76

170.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.97 ₩8,800

$1.45 ¥10.13

311.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.21 ₩9,140

$1.19 ¥8.28

421.85%

Potato (1kg)

$3.81 ₩5,615

$0.73 ¥5.08

421.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.84 ₩4,181

$0.86 ¥5.99

230.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.51 ₩3,703

$0.62 ¥4.30

304.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₩1,787

$0.53 ¥3.71

128.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.26 ₩4,798

$3.44 ¥24.03

-5.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.84 ₩24.8K

$11.63 ¥81.2

44.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.14 ₩3,149

$0.84 ¥5.88

154.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 ₩4,294

$1.62 ¥11.30

80.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.13 ₩1,663

$0.44 ¥3.07

156.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.42 ₩68.4K

$20.71 ¥145

124.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 ₩4,774

$1.42 ¥9.91

128.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ₩788

$0.33 ¥2.27

60.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.63 ₩12.7K

$6.51 ¥45.42

32.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ₩1,798

$1.17 ¥8.19

4.27%

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

$28.1K ₩41.4M

$19.2K ¥133.9K

46.67%

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

$23.7K ₩34.9M

$16.6K ¥116.1K

42.50%

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

$169 ₩249.1K

$51.4 ¥359

229.04%

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

$41.72 ₩61.5K

$9.63 ¥67.2

333.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.57 ₩31.8K

$11.22 ¥78.3

92.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.1 ₩78.2K

$39.09 ¥273

35.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.71 ₩29.0K

$14.70 ¥103

34.08%

Cinema Ticket

$11.16 ₩16.4K

$6.14 ¥42.89

81.76%

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

$391 ₩575.8K

$416 ¥2,905

-6.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.0K ₩33.9M

$17.9K ¥125.0K

28.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.4 ₩86.0K

$45.24 ¥316

29.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.84 ₩71.9K

$32.59 ¥228

49.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.0 ₩117.8K

$73.0 ¥509

9.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 ₩157.4K

$72.8 ¥508

46.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$626 ₩921.9K

$432 ¥3,018

44.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$408 ₩600.4K

$253 ¥1,767

61.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,566 ₩2.3M

$923 ¥6,441

69.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$972 ₩1.4M

$546 ¥3,811

78.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.8K ₩20.4M

$5,324 ¥37.2K

159.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,446 ₩12.4M

$2,784 ¥19.4K

203.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,319 ₩3.4M

$1,037 ¥7,240

123.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.2

4.06

3.45%

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

Last update for South Korea: January 10, 2026

Last update for China: January 11, 2026

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living Comparison Between South Korea and China Cost of Living Comparison Between South Korea and China

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