Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yantai and Seoul

For one person, living is cheaper in Yantai: $629 a month against $1,794 in Seoul, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Yantai
Learn more

Yantai Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
Learn more

Seoul Living Index

Jump to prices

Yantai

🇨🇳 China

$629

/mo nomad

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Yantai 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 Yantai and in Seoul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $629 per month in Yantai vs $1,794 in Seoul, rent included.

Yantai $629
Seoul $1,794

A couple spends around $926 per month in Yantai vs $2,863 in Seoul, rent included.

Yantai $926
Seoul $2,863

A family of three spends $1,223 per month in Yantai vs $3,931 in Seoul, rent included.

Yantai $1,223
Seoul $3,931

Yantai is about 65% cheaper than Seoul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Yantai sits 53% below the global median, while Seoul is 33% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.92 ¥19.55

$8.80 ₩11.7K

-66.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.14 ¥121

$68.4 ₩90.9K

-73.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.58 ¥30.65

$7.54 ₩10.0K

-39.26%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ¥18.78

$4.23 ₩5,624

-33.57%

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

$0.54 ¥3.58

$1.63 ₩2,167

-66.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ¥2.15

$0.74 ₩985

-56.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.05 ¥7.01

$3.64 ₩4,843

-71.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 ¥17.39

$6.15 ₩8,175

-57.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 ¥13.11

$2.01 ₩2,679

-2.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 ¥9.01

$3.13 ₩4,164

-56.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.58

$4.32 ₩5,744

-80.79%

Eggs

$1.35 ¥9.02

$3.61 ₩4,794

-62.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.32 ¥109

$17.83 ₩23.7K

-8.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 ¥21.94

$10.45 ₩13.9K

-68.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.89 ¥46.04

$25.80 ₩34.3K

-73.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.37 ¥9.19

$7.66 ₩10.2K

-82.11%

Banana (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.98

$3.38 ₩4,499

-73.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.16

$5.81 ₩7,723

-81.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$6.41 ₩8,520

-88.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ¥4.49

$3.75 ₩4,983

-82.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.78 ¥5.24

$2.54 ₩3,375

-69.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.91

$2.84 ₩3,782

-79.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ¥4.19

$1.11 ₩1,472

-43.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.65 ¥24.39

$3.35 ₩4,455

8.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.68 ¥78.1

$18.49 ₩24.6K

-36.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ¥5.25

$2.40 ₩3,185

-67.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 ¥6.88

$3.37 ₩4,480

-69.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 ¥1.40

$1.14 ₩1,521

-81.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.11 ₩61.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.36 ¥9.11

$3.49 ₩4,643

-61.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$0.63 ₩840

-53.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 ¥43.30

$8.86 ₩11.8K

-26.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 ¥8.20

$1.51 ₩2,005

-18.54%

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

$19.3K ¥129.0K

$29.3K ₩38.9M

-34.09%

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

$16.4K ¥109.8K

$28.2K ₩37.5M

-41.81%

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

$44.64 ¥298

$218 ₩289.2K

-79.48%

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

$6.79 ¥45.37

$35.15 ₩46.7K

-80.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.09 ¥40.75

$21.29 ₩28.3K

-71.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.60 ¥198

$58.1 ₩77.2K

-49.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.43 ¥49.69

$16.10 ₩21.4K

-53.85%

Cinema Ticket

$5.44 ¥36.37

$11.31 ₩15.0K

-51.90%

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

$363 ¥2,426

$1,948 ₩2.6M

-81.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ¥111.2K

$22.9K ₩30.4M

-27.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.97 ¥120

$57.0 ₩75.8K

-68.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 ¥152

$33.39 ₩44.4K

-31.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.7 ¥626

$71.5 ₩95.0K

31.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.2 ¥603

$82.5 ₩109.7K

9.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$223 ¥1,490

$901 ₩1.2M

-75.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$151 ¥1,010

$612 ₩813.5K

-75.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 ¥2,358

$2,526 ₩3.4M

-86.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 ¥982

$1,266 ₩1.7M

-88.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,056 ¥20.4K

$29.4K ₩39.1M

-89.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,096 ¥34.1K

$11.9K ₩15.8M

-57.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,063 ¥7,107

$3,650 ₩4.9M

-70.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.37

4.08

-17.40%

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

Last update for Yantai: October 12, 2026

Last update for Seoul: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Yantai

$191 30.3%

Seoul

$477 26.6% 150% $286

Accommodation & Living

Yantai

$151 24%

Seoul

$612 34.1% 305% $461

Clothing & Footwear

Yantai

$101 16.1%

Seoul

$110 6.1% 8.8% $8.9

Eating Out

Yantai

$85 13.5%

Seoul

$184 10.2% 117% $99

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yantai

$58 9.1%

Seoul

$274 15.3% 376% $216

Sport & Entertainment

Yantai

$40 6.4%

Seoul

$81 4.5% 99.3% $40

Getting Around

Yantai

$3.6 * 0.6%

Seoul

$57 3.2% 1475% $54

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $223 in Yantai versus $901 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 243% higher in Seoul, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $18.00 in Yantai versus $68.0 in Seoul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $191 vs $477 – making Yantai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Yantai

🇰🇷 Seoul

🕒 Local time

20:20 8:20 PM

21:20 9:20 PM

1 h ahead of Yantai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,871,000

9,509,458 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

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).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Yantai Seoul 490 km

From you

Yantai
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

Yantai vs Seoul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Seoul costs about 185% more than Yantai, 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 $944 per month in Yantai and $2,692 in Seoul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Yantai, 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 $629 in Yantai and $1,794 in Seoul. That's a gap of about 185%.

Kindergarten costs $363 per month in Yantai and $1,948 in Seoul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Yantai, where all-in costs run around $629, than in Seoul at $1,794. In Yantai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Seoul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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