South Korea vs Sweden - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Korea Sweden
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1134
$1728
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2805
$3883
🏠 One person rent
$487
$880
🏘️ Family rent
$821
$1477
🍽️ Food expenses
$443
$571
🚐 Transport expenses
$97.9
$127
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1998
$3340
💸 GDP per capita
$33121
$57723
😃 Human freedom index
8.23
8.8
❤️ Life expectancy
83.4
83.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
64
80
🌐 English speaking %
20%
89%
🎓 Higher education
87
95
😀 Quality of life
85
92
🏙️ Population
51.8M
10.6M

The average cost of living in South Korea ($1134) is 34% less expensive than in Sweden ($1728). South Korea ranked 74th vs 28th for Sweden in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.8 months in South Korea compared to 1.9 months in Sweden. Ranked 24th and 11th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in South Korea vs Sweden infographic

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Prices in South Korea vs Sweden

We calculate prices for South Korea and Sweden as a population-weighted mean of 87 and 60 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

South Korea Sweden
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$6.71
$14.2
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$35.2
$78.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.72
$11.2
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.29
$7.68
 Cappuccino
$3.56
$4.81
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.52
$2.81
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$483
$935
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$336
$709
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1135
$1714
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$721
$1271
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$101
$89.8
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$154
$138
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$20.6
$38
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.18%
4.32%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$10906
$6199
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6575
$4067
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.03
$3.76
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$44.6
$87.2
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.04
$24.2
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.15
$1.9
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.06
$1.67
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.83
$2.82
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.6
$3.53
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.1
$4.43
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$12.7
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.76
$12.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$22.7
$19.1
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.94
$3.23
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.14
$2.7
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.93
$3.08
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.15
$4.44
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.67
$1.73
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.63
$1.76
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.75
$1
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.23
$2.58
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$15.5
$11.9
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.88
$2.06
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.11
$7.73
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.39
$8.62
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.78
$3.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.51
$2.89
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.68
$2.36
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$48.3
$41.9
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$9.93
$17.2
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$54.5
$36.7
💇 Haircut, simple
$9.46
$28.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$60.7
$94.9
👟 Brand Sneakers
$71.4
$107
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$351
$159
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$15508
$6191

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in South Korea vs Sweden

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In South Korea

City Cost of living Population
Seoul
$1383
9.67M
Busan
$1108
3.45M
Incheon
$1088
2.94M
Daegu
$1062
2.38M
Gwangju
$1081
1.49M
Suwon
$1066
1.23M
Daejeon
$959
1.48M
Ulsan
$1076
1.13M
Seongnam
$1435
919K
Yongin
$1120
1.08M
Cheongju
$924
852K
Hwaseong
$1098
941K
Changwon
$1084
1.01M
Namyangju
$1138
732K
Gimhae
$975
534K
Siheung
$1307
520K
Pyeongtaek
$1141
590K
Pohang
$1024
504K
Goyang
$1097
1.06M
Cheonan
$1153
657K
Bucheon
$1175
772K
Jeju Island
$1100
678K
Uijeongbu
$918
463K
Ansan
$1049
623K
Jeju
$1069
492K
Gwangju
$1196
397K
Paju
$1065
498K
Gunsan
$1020
275K
Hanam
$1178
330K
Sejong
$1020
386K

In Sweden

City Cost of living Population
Stockholm
$2297
985K
Gothenburg
$1823
675K
Malmo
$1757
339K
Uppsala
$1650
175K
Vasteras
$1494
132K
Orebro
$1325
129K
Linkoping
$1530
117K
Helsingborg
$1485
116K
Taby
$1759
77.7K
Lund
$1619
98.3K
Norrkoping
$1390
98.2K
Solna
$1983
85.8K
Sollentuna
$1968
77.7K
Jonkoping
$1528
103K
Gavle
$1483
86.5K
Eskilstuna
$1446
70.6K
Umea
$1372
94.2K
Sodertalje
$1779
78.4K
Vaxjo
$1482
74.1K
Karlstad
$1460
69.6K
Sundsvall
$1396
70.9K
Lulea
$1522
49.6K
Boras
$1503
75.6K
Sigtuna
$1681
52.7K
Akersberga
$1940
37.7K
Halmstad
$1362
73K
Skovde
$1551
58K
Uddevalla
$1543
57K
Trollhattan
$1353
50.1K
Ostersund
$1522
54K