Gwangju vs Raleigh - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated: June 21, 2026

	Gwangju	Raleigh
🚶 Cost of living one person	$957	$2265
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family	$2393	$5273
🏠 One person rent	$392	$1374
🏘️ Family rent	$667	$2201
🍽️ Food expenses	$372	$624
🚐 Transport expenses	$119	$89.7
💳 Monthly salary after tax	$2492	$4362
😷 Air quality	Moderate	Excellent
✈️ Airport proximity	11 km	14 km
🎓 Higher education	58	82
😀 Quality of life	73	89
🏙️ Population	1.41M	468K

The cost of living in Gwangju is 58% less expensive than in Raleigh. Cities ranked 5869th and 1363rd ($957 vs $2265) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 56th and 1143rd in South Korea and the United States, respectively. Check South Korea vs the United States comparison.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 2.6 months in Gwangju compared to 1.9 months in Raleigh. Gwangju ranked 24th best city to live in South Korea vs Raleigh ranked 54th in the United States, while ranked 2497th and 219th among best cities to live in the world.

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the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in Gwangju vs Raleigh

Prices for goods and services in Gwangju and Raleigh are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

	Gwangju	Raleigh
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu	$5.53	$18.3
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2	$29.5	$69.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's	$4.87	$10.4
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz	$2.48	$5.64
☕ Cappuccino	$2.93	$6.08
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz	$1.38	$2.82
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2	$356	$1531
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2	$254	$1084
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2	$627	$2619
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2	$462	$1754
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.	$99.3	$138
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.	$155	$211
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited	$17.7	$63.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years	3.58%	6.17%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2	$7004	$3898
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2	$5539	$2197
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket	$0.92	$1.42
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport	$72.8	$47.7
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi	$7.21	$16.4
⛽ Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal	$1.05	$0.81
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt	$1.57	$0.94
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb	$2.08	$3.23
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$2.17	$2.67
🥚 Eggs, x12	$2.51	$4.61
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$8.02	$14.6
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$6.6	$10.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$10.8	$17.3
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$6.05	$5.38
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$2.64	$1.25
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$5.07	$4.7
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$4.49	$5.76
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$3.03	$3.01
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb	$1.94	$3.55
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt	$0.77	$1.53
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz	$1.55	$2.65
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle	$13.2	$15.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz	$1.26	$2.96
🚬 Cigarette pack	$2.66	$9.18
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week	$6.91	$12.2
🧴 Hair Shampoo	$3.2	$4.45
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls	$2.98	$3.97
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube	$1.27	$2.95
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month	$33.1	$42.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person	$8.42	$15
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit	$31.9	$127
💇 Haircut, simple	$6.34	$28.8
👖 Brand Jeans	$40.5	$52.7
👟 Brand Sneakers	$57.1	$101
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month	$294	$1475
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year	$14457	$24243

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near Gwangju

Distance	City	Cost of living
24 km or 15 mi	Naju	$909
45 km or 28 mi	Jeongeup	$922
50 km or 31 mi	Namwon	$930
57 km or 36 mi	Suncheon	$973
64 km or 39 mi	Mokpo	$942
71 km or 44 mi	Gimje	$923
76 km or 47 mi	Gwangyang	$955
76 km or 47 mi	Jeonju	$771
82 km or 51 mi	Yeosu	$954
86 km or 54 mi	Iksan	$938
92 km or 57 mi	Gunsan	$964
106 km or 66 mi	Jinju	$1051
116 km or 72 mi	Nonsan	$990
127 km or 79 mi	Gyeryong	$933
131 km or 81 mi	Sacheon	$974
132 km or 82 mi	Asan	$997
133 km or 82 mi	Boryeong	$1012
138 km or 86 mi	Daejeon	$905
142 km or 88 mi	Tongyeong	$982
145 km or 90 mi	Gongju	$1009
148 km or 92 mi	Masan	$992
150 km or 93 mi	Sejong	$971
151 km or 94 mi	Gimcheon	$887
156 km or 97 mi	Geoje	$946
158 km or 98 mi	Changwon	$1013
170 km or 106 mi	Miryang	$1023
171 km or 106 mi	Daegu	$992
171 km or 107 mi	Cheongju	$865
174 km or 108 mi	Gumi	$914
179 km or 111 mi	Sangju	$919
179 km or 111 mi	Gimhae	$1014
180 km or 112 mi	Gyeongsan	$943
184 km or 114 mi	Cheonan	$1128
184 km or 115 mi	Seosan	$917
188 km or 117 mi	Jeju	$1020
193 km or 120 mi	Busan	$1084
194 km or 120 mi	Yangsan	$1044
194 km or 120 mi	Dangjin	$952
196 km or 122 mi	Mungyeong	$931
203 km or 126 mi	Jeju Island	$1037

Cities near Raleigh

Distance	City	Cost of living
12 km or 7.6 mi	Garner	$2229
15 km or 9.1 mi	Cary	$2483
17 km or 10 mi	Morrisville	$1850
21 km or 13 mi	Wake Forest	$2169
21 km or 13 mi	Apex	$2280
25 km or 16 mi	Holly Springs	$2300
28 km or 18 mi	Fuquay-Varina	$2241
30 km or 19 mi	Durham	$2063
38 km or 23 mi	Chapel Hill	$2133
60 km or 37 mi	Henderson	$2116
61 km or 38 mi	Sanford	$1842
65 km or 41 mi	Wilson	$2016
77 km or 48 mi	Rocky Mount	$1803
77 km or 48 mi	Goldsboro	$1766
78 km or 49 mi	Burlington	$2089
87 km or 54 mi	Fayetteville	$2212
106 km or 66 mi	Asheboro	$2059
109 km or 68 mi	Danville	$1775
110 km or 68 mi	Greensboro	$2027
114 km or 71 mi	Roanoke Rapids	$2055
114 km or 71 mi	Kinston	$2073
117 km or 73 mi	Greenville	$2045
123 km or 76 mi	High Point	$1909
129 km or 80 mi	Thomasville	$2007
133 km or 83 mi	Kernersville	$2200
137 km or 85 mi	Lumberton	$1863
141 km or 87 mi	Rockingham	$2070
149 km or 92 mi	Winston-Salem	$2105
163 km or 101 mi	Jacksonville	$2007
165 km or 103 mi	New Bern	$1849
166 km or 103 mi	Salisbury	$2075
182 km or 113 mi	Kannapolis	$2031
182 km or 113 mi	Lynchburg	$1851
183 km or 114 mi	Concord	$1904
189 km or 117 mi	Havelock	$2003
190 km or 118 mi	Wilmington	$2295
191 km or 119 mi	Petersburg	$2375
196 km or 122 mi	Monroe	$2129
196 km or 122 mi	Mint Hill	$2204
198 km or 123 mi	Roanoke	$1729