South Korea vs Sweden - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

South Korea Sweden
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1118
$1578
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3093
$3550
🏠 One person rent
$471
$827
🏘️ Family rent
$1095
$1432
🍽️ Food expenses
$454
$507
🚐 Transport expenses
$98.5
$116
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2392
$2823
💸 GDP per capita
$32423
$56374
😃 Human freedom index
8.12
8.75
❤️ Life expectancy
83.5
83.2
👮 Corruption perceptions index
63
82
🌐 English speaking %
20%
89%
🎓 Higher education
87
95
😀 Quality of life
87
92
🏙️ Population
51.5M
10.4M

The average cost of living in South Korea ($1118) is 29% less expensive than in Sweden ($1578). South Korea ranked 62nd 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 2.1 months in South Korea compared to 1.8 months in Sweden. Ranked 20th 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
$6.47
$12
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$35
$66.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.62
$9.74
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.31
$7.14
 Cappuccino
$3.63
$4.05
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.46
$2.2
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$466
$936
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$323
$680
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1256
$1639
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$839
$1216
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$99.4
$68.1
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$153
$105
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$20.9
$30.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.46%
4.59%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$10104
$5722
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6925
$3563
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.06
$3.32
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$44.3
$76.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$9.06
$22.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.24
$1.9
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.07
$1.58
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.86
$2.68
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.19
$3.22
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.26
$4.05
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.8
$11.1
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.08
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$31.2
$17.1
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.08
$2.87
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.32
$2.59
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.58
$2.95
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.12
$4.21
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.6
$1.52
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.97
$1.71
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.68
$0.94
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.53
$2.13
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$15.3
$10.2
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.1
$1.99
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.35
$6.54
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.94
$7.18
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$5.38
$3.43
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.37
$2.71
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.13
$1.99
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$51.9
$38.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$9.9
$14.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$28.1
$29.9
💇 Haircut, simple
$8.02
$24.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$62.1
$81.7
👟 Brand Sneakers
$78
$89
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$385
$128
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$17694
$5136

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
$1444
9.67M
Busan
$1029
3.45M
Incheon
$1020
2.94M
Daegu
$1113
2.44M
Daejeon
$924
1.48M
Gwangju
$1147
1.49M
Suwon
$987
1.23M
Ulsan
$1078
1.15M
Seongnam
$1121
949K
Changwon
$1073
1.05M
Cheongju
$903
849K
Yongin
$1256
971K
Jeju Island
$1056
678K
Goyang
$1144
1.06M
Hwaseong
$1088
904K
Namyangju
$1106
713K
Bucheon
$1152
793K
Gimhae
$907
534K
Jeju
$1003
435K
Cheonan
$940
652K
Ansan
$1127
653K
Siheung
$1081
425K
Uijeongbu
$986
463K
Anyang
$1097
548K
Gunsan
$975
275K
Pohang
$989
504K
Masan
$1006
430K
Jeonju
$787
653K
Pyeongtaek
$924
458K
Paju
$1072
415K

In Sweden

City Cost of living Population
Stockholm
$1981
979K
Gothenburg
$1690
608K
Malmo
$1566
325K
Uppsala
$1512
167K
Helsingborg
$1392
114K
Vasteras
$1263
129K
Linkoping
$1342
116K
Orebro
$1276
127K
Lund
$1480
94.4K
Solna
$1727
85.3K
Jonkoping
$1411
101K
Eskilstuna
$1271
69.9K
Umea
$1210
91.9K
Sodertalje
$1650
76.3K
Taby
$1810
75.4K
Norrkoping
$1228
98.1K
Sollentuna
$2032
76.2K
Halmstad
$1318
71.4K
Karlstad
$1246
67.1K
Lulea
$1114
49.1K
Trollhattan
$1299
50.5K
Uddevalla
$1428
57.3K
Gavle
$1420
79K
Boras
$1250
74K
Sundsvall
$1296
58.8K
Vaxjo
$1382
71.3K
Tumba
$1699
46K
Lidingo
$1742
44.1K
Sigtuna
$1659
52.2K
Skovde
$1465
57.5K