Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Taipei and Kaohsiung

For one person, living is cheaper in Kaohsiung: $1,131 a month against $1,368 in Taipei, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Taipei
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Taipei Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Kaohsiung
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Kaohsiung Living Index

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Taipei

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,368

/mo nomad

Kaohsiung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Taipei and in Kaohsiung

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,368 in Taipei versus $1,131 in Kaohsiung.

Taipei $1,368
Kaohsiung $1,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,202 in Taipei versus $1,838 in Kaohsiung.

Taipei $2,202
Kaohsiung $1,838

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,036 in Taipei versus $2,544 in Kaohsiung.

Taipei $3,036
Kaohsiung $2,544

Living in Taipei is roughly 21% more expensive than in Kaohsiung, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Taipei is 1% above, Kaohsiung is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.60 NT$149

$5.63 NT$183

-18.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.13 NT$1,528

$31.36 NT$1,017

50.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.58 NT$181

$4.65 NT$151

20.00%

Cappuccino

$3.45 NT$112

$2.78 NT$90.1

24.10%

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

$0.94 NT$30.61

$1.08 NT$34.99

-12.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 NT$21.73

$0.66 NT$21.40

1.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.86 NT$92.7

$1.52 NT$49.14

88.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 NT$120

$2.49 NT$80.7

48.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.12 NT$101

$3.10 NT$100

0.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.97 NT$64.0

$2.18 NT$70.7

-9.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 NT$103

$2.94 NT$95.3

7.48%

Eggs

$2.68 NT$86.9

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.90 NT$645

$15.81 NT$513

25.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.85 NT$319

$8.12 NT$263

21.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.51 NT$698

$15.55 NT$504

38.33%

Apples (1kg)

$4.85 NT$157

$6.60 NT$214

-26.52%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 NT$105

$2.73 NT$88.5

19.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 NT$98.2

$2.54 NT$82.2

19.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.53 NT$147

$3.13 NT$102

44.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.79 NT$90.4

$2.78 NT$90.2

0.36%

Onion (1kg)

$2.34 NT$75.9

$2.00 NT$64.9

17.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 NT$54.5

$2.43 NT$78.7

-30.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 NT$35.62

$1.02 NT$33.12

7.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.80 NT$123

$4.45 NT$144

-14.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.17 NT$460

$15.54 NT$504

-8.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 NT$53.0

$1.57 NT$51.0

3.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 NT$74.3

$2.20 NT$71.5

4.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 NT$21.04

$0.71 NT$23.13

-8.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.88 NT$1,228

$12.65 NT$410

199.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.68 NT$86.8

$2.70 NT$87.6

-0.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 NT$26.55

$0.75 NT$24.34

9.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.17 NT$297

$5.48 NT$178

67.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$32.93

$1.05 NT$33.97

-2.86%

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

$32.8K NT$1.1M

$33.6K NT$1.1M

-2.45%

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

$24.5K NT$795.1K

$23.6K NT$765.3K

3.90%

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

$87.7 NT$2,843

$85.5 NT$2,773

2.55%

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

$17.28 NT$560

$17.29 NT$561

-0.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.38 NT$888

$26.39 NT$856

3.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.32 NT$1,308

$40.61 NT$1,317

-0.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.94 NT$517

$10.33 NT$335

54.31%

Cinema Ticket

$9.83 NT$319

$11.13 NT$361

-11.68%

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

$663 NT$21.5K

$473 NT$15.3K

40.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K NT$538.4K

$14.1K NT$456.9K

17.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 NT$2,025

$92.9 NT$3,013

-32.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.51 NT$1,281

$31.16 NT$1,011

26.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.5 NT$2,740

$88.0 NT$2,855

-4.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NT$3,424

$102 NT$3,310

3.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$999 NT$32.4K

$437 NT$14.2K

128.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$473 NT$15.3K

$301 NT$9,746

57.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 NT$50.8K

$1,005 NT$32.6K

55.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 NT$30.7K

$681 NT$22.1K

39.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.9K NT$385.6K

$4,523 NT$146.7K

162.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,306 NT$236.9K

$3,193 NT$103.5K

128.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,760 NT$57.1K

$1,471 NT$47.7K

19.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

2.56

-6.25%

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

Last update for Taipei: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kaohsiung: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Taipei

$473 34.6%

Kaohsiung

$301 26.6% 36.5% $173

Groceries & Markets

Taipei

$400 29.3%

Kaohsiung

$363 32.1% 9.4% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Taipei

$132 9.7%

Kaohsiung

$129 11.4% 2.4% $3.2

Clothing & Footwear

Taipei

$131 9.6%

Kaohsiung

$141 12.5% 7.6% $10

Eating Out

Taipei

$123 9%

Kaohsiung

$112 9.9% 9.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Taipei

$60 4.4%

Kaohsiung

$63 5.6% 4.8% $2.9

Getting Around

Taipei

$47 3.5%

Kaohsiung

$22 1.9% 53.5% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $999 in Taipei and $437 in Kaohsiung. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Taipei pays 20% 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: $47.00 in Taipei vs $31.00 in Kaohsiung for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $400 vs $363 per month, with Kaohsiung cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Taipei

🇹🇼 Kaohsiung

🕒 Local time

17:34 5:34 PM

Same time as Taipei

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,635,286 Capital

2,777,873

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Taipei vs Kaohsiung: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Taipei and Kaohsiung differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($1,368 vs $1,131 including rent). Kaohsiung is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 20% higher in Taipei, 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: $999 in Taipei versus $437 in Kaohsiung. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $663 in Taipei versus $473 in Kaohsiung. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Taipei. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,131 in Kaohsiung versus $1,368 in Taipei, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kaohsiung but tight or insufficient in Taipei. The gap between the two cities makes Kaohsiung 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, Taipei and Kaohsiung 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 Kaohsiung gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Taipei. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.