Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Thessaloniki and Ulsan

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulsan: $1,339 a month against $1,649 in Thessaloniki, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Thessaloniki
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Thessaloniki Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Ulsan
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Ulsan Living Index

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Thessaloniki

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,649

/mo nomad

Ulsan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,339

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Thessaloniki and in Ulsan

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

A single person spends $1,649 per month in Thessaloniki vs $1,339 in Ulsan, rent included.

Thessaloniki $1,649
Ulsan $1,339

A couple spends around $2,537 per month in Thessaloniki vs $2,185 in Ulsan, rent included.

Thessaloniki $2,537
Ulsan $2,185

A family of three spends $3,425 per month in Thessaloniki vs $3,030 in Ulsan, rent included.

Thessaloniki $3,425
Ulsan $3,030

Thessaloniki costs about 23% more than Ulsan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Thessaloniki sits 22% above the global median, while Ulsan is 1% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.01 €15.13

$7.62 ₩10.1K

123.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.2 €59.8

$44.63 ₩59.3K

50.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.20 €9.96

$5.93 ₩7,882

88.87%

Cappuccino

$4.29 €3.82

$3.32 ₩4,410

29.22%

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

$2.90 €2.58

$0.88 ₩1,175

229.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.67

$0.47 ₩619

61.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.01 ₩4,006

81.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 €5.81

$4.38 ₩5,826

49.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 €1.51

$2.36 ₩3,139

-27.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.78 €1.58

$3.25 ₩4,315

-45.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.71 €3.30

$3.16 ₩4,207

17.41%

Eggs

$5.50 €4.89

$2.73 ₩3,634

101.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.29 €12.71

$10.88 ₩14.5K

31.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.48 €10.21

$10.63 ₩14.1K

8.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.35 €16.32

$24.54 ₩32.6K

-25.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$11.39 ₩15.1K

-77.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 €2.00

$3.74 ₩4,975

-39.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$8.09 ₩10.8K

-73.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.79 €2.48

$6.05 ₩8,048

-53.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 €1.15

$6.01 ₩7,992

-78.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 €1.09

$3.26 ₩4,328

-62.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.60 €1.42

$2.89 ₩3,844

-44.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.28 ₩1,707

-26.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.74 €5.11

$3.12 ₩4,154

83.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.93 €8.83

$18.52 ₩24.6K

-46.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.45 ₩3,264

-15.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 €2.79

$3.44 ₩4,577

-8.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 €0.57

$1.14 ₩1,511

-42.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.07 €16.07

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.07 €3.62

$2.89 ₩3,849

40.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 €1.01

$0.78 ₩1,040

44.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.79 €14.93

$16.96 ₩22.6K

-1.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.43 ₩1,899

57.34%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$30.0K ₩39.9M

-6.80%

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

$31.0K €27.6K

$34.1K ₩45.4M

-9.13%

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

$215 €191

$197 ₩261.8K

9.02%

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

$23.24 €20.67

$37.06 ₩49.3K

-37.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.60 €27.22

$27.21 ₩36.2K

12.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.1 €46.32

$60.4 ₩80.3K

-13.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.27 €14.47

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 €9.22

$10.30 ₩13.7K

0.58%

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

$469 €417

$263 ₩349.3K

78.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,075 €8,073

$22.0K ₩29.3M

-58.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.7 €84.2

$51.5 ₩68.5K

83.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.40 €39.50

$45.56 ₩60.6K

-2.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 €111

$61.0 ₩81.2K

104.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$75.0 ₩99.7K

72.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$622 €554

$373 ₩495.3K

67.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$489 €435

$244 ₩324.7K

100.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 €962

$761 ₩1.0M

42.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$838 €745

$648 ₩861.8K

29.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,679 €3,273

$4,483 ₩6.0M

-17.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,799 €2,490

$2,479 ₩3.3M

12.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,177 €1,047

$2,331 ₩3.1M

-49.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.34

4.22

26.54%

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

Last update for Thessaloniki: October 13, 2026

Last update for Ulsan: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Thessaloniki

$489 29.6%

Ulsan

$244 18.2% 50% $245

Groceries & Markets

Thessaloniki

$336 20.4%

Ulsan

$489 36.5% 45.5% $153

Eating Out

Thessaloniki

$276 16.7%

Ulsan

$148 11% 46.5% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Thessaloniki

$268 16.3%

Ulsan

$261 19.5% 2.7% $7.3

Clothing & Footwear

Thessaloniki

$177 10.7%

Ulsan

$105 7.8% 40.7% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Thessaloniki

$73 4.4%

Ulsan

$81 6.1% 11.3% $8.2

Getting Around

Thessaloniki

$30 1.8%

Ulsan

$11 * 0.9% 62.7% $19

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $622 in Thessaloniki versus $373 in Ulsan. 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 98% higher in Ulsan, 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 $67.0 in Thessaloniki versus $45.00 in Ulsan. Groceries tell a different story – $336 in Thessaloniki vs $489 in Ulsan – so Thessaloniki wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Thessaloniki

🇰🇷 Ulsan

🕒 Local time

23:30 11:30 PM

05:30 5:30 AM

6 h ahead of Thessaloniki

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

790,824

1,129,827

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Thessaloniki Ulsan 8,700 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Thessaloniki
Ulsan

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

Thessaloniki vs Ulsan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,649 in Thessaloniki, $1,339 in Ulsan – roughly 23% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,474 per month in Thessaloniki and $2,009 in Ulsan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ulsan, 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 $1,649 in Thessaloniki and $1,339 in Ulsan. That's a gap of about 23%.

Kindergarten costs $469 per month in Thessaloniki and $263 in Ulsan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ulsan, where all-in costs run around $1,339, than in Thessaloniki at $1,649. In Ulsan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Thessaloniki it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Thessaloniki has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,339 in Ulsan to $1,649 in Thessaloniki. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Ulsan. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Thessaloniki makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.