Where you live now
BusanSouth Korea
₩1,988,742
per month
Cost of living: Busan vs Seoul
Choose where you live now and another city. You'll see what a normal month costs in each: rent, food, transport, bills and going out.
Household
Rent
Popular:London vs New YorkLisbon vs LondonHong Kong vs SingaporeNew York vs TokyoBerlin vs LondonDubai vs London
Seoul is 31% more expensive than Busan.
Monthly cost for one person, renting in the city centre. Includes rent, food, transport, bills and going out.
City to compare
SeoulSouth Korea
₩2,597,669
per month
Monthly costs by category
Show amounts in
| Category | Busan | Seoul | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent | 861,134 | 1,324,821 | +54% |
| Groceries | 388,570 | 425,996 | +10% |
| Eating out | 266,554 | 316,010 | +19% |
| Getting around | 118,611 | 136,761 | +15% |
| Bills | 226,081 | 251,570 | +11% |
| Going out | 100,117 | 113,802 | +14% |
| Clothes | 27,676 | 28,709 | +4% |
| Total per month | 1,988,742 | 2,597,669 | +31% |
Seoul is 31% more expensive than Busan for one person renting in the city centre. The biggest gap is rent (+54%); clothes is the closest (+4%). Someone spending ₩1,988,742 a month in Busan would need about ₩2,597,669 in Seoul for the same lifestyle. Rent takes 51% of the monthly budget in Seoul and 43% in Busan.
Seoul: no reports yet, so these numbers are starting estimates from the city's overall price level.How this is calculated
Prices
Everyday prices in Seoul
The typical price people paid recently, and how it compares with Busan. "Estimated" means we don't have many reports yet.
Show amounts in
| Item | Typical price | What people paid | vs Busan | Reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cappuccino, regularEstimated | ₩4,372 | +19% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Meal at an inexpensive restaurantEstimated | ₩19,044 | +20% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Monthly public transport passEstimated | ₩114,253 | +15% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| 1-bedroom flat, city centreEstimated | ₩1,324,821 | +54% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| 1-bedroom flat, outside the centreEstimated | ₩953,871 | +54% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Milk, 1 LEstimated | ₩1,334 | +9% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Eggs, 12Estimated | ₩4,917 | +10% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Chicken fillets, 1 kgEstimated | ₩13,341 | +9% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Electricity, water, heating and cooling for 85 m²Estimated | ₩197,915 | +12% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Home internet, 60 Mbps or fasterEstimated | ₩63,924 | +10% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Mobile plan with calls and 10 GB+ dataEstimated | ₩59,008 | +10% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Gym membership, monthlyEstimated | ₩81,287 | +14% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Cinema ticketEstimated | ₩16,257 | +14% vs Busan | 0 reports | |
| Jeans, Levi's 501 or similarEstimated | ₩77,420 | +4% vs Busan | 0 reports |
Most reports (10th–90th percentile)
Middle half of reports
Same item in Busan
All prices in Seoul
Method
Where the numbers come from
People who live in each city share what they paid. Every price is checked before it counts.
People share prices
Anyone can add what they paid, in their own currency. No account needed. A quick automatic check keeps bots out.
We check every price
Typos, wrong currencies and impossible amounts are caught. An unusual price only counts after someone else reports something similar.
We work out the typical price
We use the middle price of recent reports. When a city has only a few reports, we estimate the rest and label it "Estimated".
No reports in the last 30 days yet. When they arrive, you'll see here how many were counted, held for a second opinion or turned down.
Rankings
Most and least expensive cities
Monthly cost for one person renting in the city centre, in South Korean won. Pick a city to compare it with Busan. See all 118 cities
Most expensive
Comparisons
Popular comparisons
Cities people often weigh up against each other. Monthly cost for one person, rent in the centre included.
- London vs New York₩5,490,231 → ₩7,539,822+37%
- Lisbon vs London₩2,969,679 → ₩5,490,231+85%
- Hong Kong vs Singapore₩4,371,062 → ₩5,645,168+29%
- New York vs Tokyo₩7,539,822 → ₩2,617,396−65%
- Berlin vs London₩3,072,763 → ₩5,490,231+79%
- Dubai vs London₩4,397,584 → ₩5,490,231+25%
- Amsterdam vs Berlin₩4,375,433 → ₩3,072,763−30%
- Barcelona vs Madrid₩2,949,767 → ₩2,849,876−3%
- Lisbon vs Porto₩2,969,679 → ₩2,437,869−18%
- Melbourne vs Sydney₩3,713,023 → ₩4,617,677+24%
- Toronto vs Vancouver₩3,977,987 → ₩4,110,469+3%
- Beijing vs Shanghai₩2,282,574 → ₩2,437,869+7%
- Osaka vs Tokyo₩2,085,878 → ₩2,617,396+25%
- Bangkok vs Singapore₩1,726,984 → ₩5,645,168+227%
- Mexico City vs New York₩2,225,262 → ₩7,539,822+239%
- Seoul vs Tokyo₩2,597,669 → ₩2,617,396+1%
- London vs Paris₩5,490,231 → ₩3,646,782−34%
- Dubai vs Singapore₩4,397,584 → ₩5,645,168+28%
- New York vs San Francisco₩7,539,822 → ₩6,425,634−15%
- Bangkok vs Chiang Mai₩1,726,984 → ₩1,189,358−31%
- Buenos Aires vs São Paulo₩1,743,332 → ₩1,750,0620%
- London vs Sydney₩5,490,231 → ₩4,617,677−16%
- Austin vs San Francisco₩4,087,749 → ₩6,425,634+57%
- Hong Kong vs Taipei₩4,371,062 → ₩1,887,155−57%
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FAQ
Busan vs Seoul: common questions
Is Seoul cheaper than Busan?
No. One person renting a 1-bedroom flat in the centre spends about ₩2,597,669 a month in Seoul, against ₩1,988,742 in Busan: 31% more.
How much is rent in Seoul compared with Busan?
A 1-bedroom flat in the centre of Seoul rents for about ₩1,324,821 a month, +54% compared with ₩861,134 in Busan. Outside the centre it's about ₩953,871 against ₩620,016.
How much money do I need to move from Busan to Seoul?
To keep the lifestyle that costs ₩1,988,742 a month in Busan, plan on about ₩2,597,669 in Seoul for one person. A family of four would need about ₩7,659,135, compared with ₩6,067,972 in Busan.
How much does eating out cost in Seoul vs Busan?
A meal at an inexpensive restaurant is about ₩19,044 in Seoul and ₩15,828 in Busan. A regular cappuccino is about ₩4,372 against ₩3,686.
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