Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wonju and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Wonju: $1,526 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Wonju
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Wonju Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Wonju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,526

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Wonju and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,526 in Wonju versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

Wonju $1,526
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,418 in Wonju versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

Wonju $2,418
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,309 in Wonju versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

Wonju $3,309
Melbourne $5,650

Living in Wonju costs roughly 46% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Wonju 13% above, Melbourne 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.45 ₩9,900

$17.43 A$25.08

-57.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.19 ₩64.1K

$84.6 A$122

-43.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.69 ₩8,892

$12.46 A$17.92

-46.31%

Cappuccino

$3.65 ₩4,859

$4.11 A$5.91

-11.19%

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

$1.79 ₩2,381

$3.06 A$4.40

-41.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 ₩1,923

$2.52 A$3.62

-42.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 ₩4,926

$9.80 A$14.10

-62.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.32 ₩5,740

$8.57 A$12.33

-49.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 ₩2,998

$1.48 A$2.14

52.03%

White Bread (500g)

$3.20 ₩4,252

$2.94 A$4.23

8.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.08 ₩4,095

$2.66 A$3.82

15.79%

Eggs

$2.69 ₩3,579

$5.54 A$7.97

-51.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.93 ₩14.5K

$10.51 A$15.13

4.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.41 ₩13.8K

$9.65 A$13.89

7.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.90 ₩33.1K

$15.22 A$21.91

63.60%

Apples (1kg)

$11.04 ₩14.7K

$3.99 A$5.75

176.69%

Banana (1kg)

$3.54 ₩4,712

$3.02 A$4.34

17.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.98 ₩10.6K

$3.10 A$4.46

157.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.04 ₩8,034

$4.82 A$6.93

25.31%

Potato (1kg)

$5.80 ₩7,718

$3.03 A$4.36

91.42%

Onion (1kg)

$3.40 ₩4,527

$2.44 A$3.52

39.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.86 ₩3,807

$2.46 A$3.54

16.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 ₩1,711

$1.63 A$2.34

-20.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.42 ₩4,550

$44.07 A$63.4

-92.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.38 ₩24.4K

$12.70 A$18.28

44.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 ₩3,131

$5.54 A$7.97

-57.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 ₩4,513

$5.23 A$7.52

-35.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 ₩1,467

$3.74 A$5.38

-70.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.63 ₩4,825

$4.51 A$6.50

-19.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 ₩950

$1.36 A$1.96

-47.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.85 ₩22.4K

$30.45 A$43.81

-44.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ₩1,656

$1.47 A$2.12

-14.97%

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

$29.4K ₩39.1M

$29.0K A$41.7K

1.44%

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

$33.6K ₩44.7M

$26.5K A$38.1K

27.03%

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

$196 ₩260.7K

$234 A$336

-16.09%

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

$35.94 ₩47.8K

$27.93 A$40.19

28.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.92 ₩35.8K

$55.7 A$80.2

-51.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.6 ₩69.9K

$49.40 A$71.1

6.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.15 ₩16.2K

$21.48 A$30.91

-43.44%

Cinema Ticket

$11.79 ₩15.7K

$15.09 A$21.72

-21.87%

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

$491 ₩652.3K

$2,371 A$3,412

-79.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.9K ₩29.1M

$30.2K A$43.5K

-27.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₩138.1K

$80.0 A$115

29.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.1 ₩85.2K

$50.7 A$73.0

26.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₩122.5K

$121 A$174

-23.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 ₩171.3K

$130 A$188

-1.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 ₩657.0K

$1,759 A$2,531

-71.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$359 ₩477.3K

$1,390 A$2,000

-74.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 ₩1.6M

$3,494 A$5,027

-66.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$744 ₩988.6K

$2,493 A$3,588

-70.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,157 ₩9.5M

$6,926 A$9,967

3.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,494 ₩7.3M

$6,445 A$9,274

-14.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

5.9

-28.47%

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

Last update for Wonju: October 13, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Wonju

$482 31.6%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 20.4% $98

Accommodation & Living

Wonju

$359 23.5%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 287% $1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wonju

$259 17%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 22.6% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Wonju

$175 11.5%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 1.9% $3.3

Eating Out

Wonju

$164 10.7%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 92.3% $151

Sport & Entertainment

Wonju

$76 5%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 4.5% $3.4

Getting Around

Wonju

$12 * 0.8%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 1311% $152

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $494 in Wonju and $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $48.00 in Wonju vs $85.0 in Melbourne. Groceries flip the comparison at $482 vs $384, with Melbourne cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Wonju

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

11:22 11:22 AM

13:22 1:22 PM

2 h ahead of Wonju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

340,196

5,031,195

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Wonju Melbourne 8,540 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Wonju
Melbourne

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

Wonju vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wonju and Melbourne differ by about 85% in total monthly costs ($1,526 vs $2,821 including rent). Wonju is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,290 in Wonju and $4,231 in Melbourne to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $494 in Wonju versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Melbourne pay roughly 26% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,526 per month in Wonju versus $2,821 in Melbourne – a 85% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,526 in Wonju versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Wonju but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Wonju 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, Wonju and Melbourne 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 Wonju gentler on the wallet – expenses run 85% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.