Cost of Living in Korea

Cost of Living in Korea. If you are planning to visit or live in Korea this guide will help you to get an understanding of the cost of living in Korea. Prices will vary depending on your location. The cost of living in Korea is cheaper than Japan, America and most European countries. If you are working here as a English teacher it can be very easy to save money every month.

Shopping:
All prices from Supermarkets. With convenience stores you can add 1,000 won plus to every item.
Milk – 2,500 won per litre
Bread – 1,500 won
Butter – 5,000 won
Ham – 3,000 won for 10 slices
Eggs – 4,000 won for a dozen
Cheese slices – 4,000 upwards
Beer – 2,400 won for a 500ml can
Soju – 990 won per bottle
Noodles – 2,500 for 5 packs
Toilet Paper – 8,000 won for 12 rolls.
Coca Cola – 500ml 1,00 won
Cigarettes – 2,500 won a pack
Shampoo: 6,000
Toothpaste: 4,000
Gillette Mach 3 razors: 9,900 won for 4

To explore and find out the prices yourself visit the HomePlus Website. It is a supermarket owned by Tesco. The website is in Korean but you can click the pictures and it will show you the prices.

Transportation:
Bus: 1,000 won per ride
Train: 1,000 won for the first 10km
Taxi: Prices are very cheap and you can get from one side of the city to the other for 20,000 won

Accommodation:
Apartments: In Seoul apartments cost about 600,000 won monthly however a big deposit is needed. This deposit can be anywhere from 500,000 won to 10,000,000 won. 5,000,000 won is standard.
Hasuk: If you are a student and staying in a Hasuk Jip (private room shared toilet/kitchen) the price is about 400,000 won in the centre of Seoul. Usually breakfast and dinner is provided.
Hotels: About 100,000 won per night

A cell phone will costs about 30,000 a month and phone calls are 50 won per minute.

Eating Out:
If you stick to Korean food and Restaurants it can be cheap. 4,000 – 8,000 won.
Any western restaurants like Outback, TGIFs, Bennigans etc will set you back about 35,000 won.
Mcdonalds meal costs about 5 – 6,000 won
Beer in restaurants are about 5,000 won

Entertainment:
Books 10,000 – 20,000 won
DVDs – 20,000 won
Karaoke – 15,000 won per hour
Game centres – 500 won per game