Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Andrews and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Seoul: $1,804 a month against $2,285 in St. Andrews, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in St. Andrews
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St. Andrews Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index

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St. Andrews

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,285

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,804

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in St. Andrews and in Seoul

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

A single person spends $2,285 per month in St. Andrews vs $1,804 in Seoul, rent included.

St. Andrews $2,285
Seoul $1,804

A couple spends around $3,891 per month in St. Andrews vs $2,877 in Seoul, rent included.

St. Andrews $3,891
Seoul $2,877

A family of three spends $5,496 per month in St. Andrews vs $3,950 in Seoul, rent included.

St. Andrews $5,496
Seoul $3,950

St. Andrews costs about 27% more than Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both St. Andrews and Seoul sit above the global median – St. Andrews by 69%, Seoul by 33%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.15 £15.87

$9.10 ₩12.1K

132.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.9 £65.9

$66.7 ₩88.6K

31.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.51 £7.89

$7.49 ₩9,959

40.32%

Cappuccino

$4.61 £3.46

$4.19 ₩5,569

10.02%

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

$2.84 £2.13

$1.55 ₩2,067

83.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 £1.57

$0.79 ₩1,055

165.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.76 £5.07

$3.64 ₩4,846

85.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.76 £5.07

$6.14 ₩8,164

10.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 £1.13

$2.11 ₩2,811

-28.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 £1.28

$3.05 ₩4,051

-43.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 £1.52

$4.21 ₩5,599

-51.78%

Eggs

$4.49 £3.37

$3.54 ₩4,709

26.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.37 £5.53

$18.02 ₩24.0K

-59.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 £7.24

$10.35 ₩13.8K

-6.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.41 £11.56

$26.47 ₩35.2K

-41.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.50 £1.88

$7.91 ₩10.5K

-68.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 £1.00

$3.44 ₩4,578

-61.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 £2.07

$5.64 ₩7,493

-51.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 £2.15

$6.41 ₩8,517

-55.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 £1.27

$3.71 ₩4,938

-54.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 £1.14

$2.52 ₩3,345

-39.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$2.87 ₩3,816

-58.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.85

$1.16 ₩1,536

112.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.57 £16.93

$3.37 ₩4,480

569.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.86 £8.15

$18.72 ₩24.9K

-41.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 £2.03

$2.28 ₩3,036

18.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.24

$3.31 ₩4,397

-9.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.79 £3.59

$1.13 ₩1,497

323.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.73 ₩62.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.05 £3.04

$3.52 ₩4,684

15.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 £1.83

$0.64 ₩849

281.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.73 £17.80

$8.76 ₩11.7K

170.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 £1.58

$1.45 ₩1,930

44.83%

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

$38.3K £28.7K

$29.7K ₩39.4M

29.15%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$28.2K ₩37.5M

46.05%

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

$243 £182

$211 ₩280.4K

15.08%

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

$13.40 £10.06

$35.36 ₩47.0K

-62.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.64 £31.24

$20.57 ₩27.4K

102.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.6 £68.7

$57.7 ₩76.7K

58.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.20 ₩21.5K

Cinema Ticket

$13.06 £9.80

$11.37 ₩15.1K

14.86%

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

$1,806 £1,355

$1,967 ₩2.6M

-8.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.8K £17.1K

$22.8K ₩30.3M

0.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.6 £71.7

$57.5 ₩76.4K

66.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.97 £36.74

$33.08 ₩44.0K

48.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 £77.8

$70.1 ₩93.2K

47.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 £66.4

$84.3 ₩112.0K

5.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,366 £1,025

$878 ₩1.2M

55.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 £792

$624 ₩829.7K

69.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,104 £2,329

$2,513 ₩3.3M

23.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,743 £2,058

$1,287 ₩1.7M

113.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,137 £4,604

$30.4K ₩40.4M

-79.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,718 £2,039

$11.9K ₩15.8M

-77.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,397 £2,548

$3,599 ₩4.8M

-5.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.41

4.08

32.60%

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

Last update for St. Andrews: October 18, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. Andrews

$1.1K 46.2%

Seoul

$624 34.6% 40.9% $431

Eating Out

St. Andrews

$323 14.1%

Seoul

$185 10.3% 42.6% $138

Groceries & Markets

St. Andrews

$304 13.3%

Seoul

$480 26.6% 57.6% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Andrews

$298 13%

Seoul

$267 14.8% 10.4% $31

Clothing & Footwear

St. Andrews

$152 6.6%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 27.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

St. Andrews

$118 5.2%

Seoul

$80 4.5% 31.6% $37

Getting Around

St. Andrews

$35 * 1.6%

Seoul

$58 3.2% 63.6% $23

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,366 in St. Andrews versus $878 in Seoul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 6% higher in Seoul, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88.0 in St. Andrews versus $67.0 in Seoul. Groceries tell a different story – $304 in St. Andrews vs $480 in Seoul – so St. Andrews wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 St. Andrews

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

00:46 12:46 AM

08:46 8:46 AM

8 h ahead of St. Andrews

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,460

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 21, 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St. Andrews Seoul 8,550 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

St. Andrews
Seoul

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

St. Andrews vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

St. Andrews costs about 27% more than Seoul, 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 $3,428 per month in St. Andrews and $2,707 in Seoul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Seoul, 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 $2,285 in St. Andrews and $1,804 in Seoul. That's a gap of about 27%.

Kindergarten costs $1,806 per month in St. Andrews and $1,967 in Seoul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Seoul, where all-in costs run around $1,804, than in St. Andrews at $2,285. In Seoul it covers expenses comfortably, while in St. Andrews it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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