---
title: "Cost of Living: Shanghai vs Seoul — Geo-Parity"
description: "South Korea is 36% more expensive than China for monthly essentials ($1,334 vs $981). Full 32-item price comparison: rent, pint, groceries, transport, gym."
canonical: "https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-south-korea/"
json: "https://geo-parity.com/api/micro-costs.json?base=CN&target=KR"
generator: geo-parity markdown twin
---
Cost of Living · CN vs KR

# 🇨🇳 Shanghai vs 🇰🇷 Seoul: what everyday life costs

Monthly essentials: **$981** in China vs **$1,334** in South Korea — 36% more expensive.

- **Essentials, China**: $981/mo
- **Essentials, South Korea**: $1,334/mo
- **Difference**: +36%
- **1-bed city rent, South Korea**: $894/mo

## Biggest differences

Smallest premium in South Korea

- Petrol/gasoline, 1L: +9.9%
- Imported beer, 330ml bottle: +11%
- Jeans (mid-range brand): +11%

Pricier in South Korea

- Rent: 3-bedroom, city center: +42%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center: +42%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, city center: +42%

## The full basket (32 items)

| Item | China | South Korea | Diff |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Housing |  |  |  |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, city center | $628 | $894 (1,271,861 KRW) | +42% |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center | $502 | $715 (1,017,486 KRW) | +42% |
| Rent: 3-bedroom, city center | $1,149 | $1,635 (2,325,691 KRW) | +42% |
| Food out |  |  |  |
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $8.05 | $10.62 (15,106 KRW) | +32% |
| Dinner for two, mid-range | $33.53 | $44.25 (62,943 KRW) | +32% |
| Fast-food combo meal | $5.29 | $6.81 (9,687 KRW) | +29% |
| Groceries |  |  |  |
| Milk, 1L | $0.61 | $0.75 (1,067 KRW) | +23% |
| Bread, fresh loaf 500g | $1.78 | $2.18 (3,101 KRW) | +22% |
| Eggs, dozen | $1.89 | $2.32 (3,300 KRW) | +23% |
| Chicken breast, 1kg | $5.57 | $6.81 (9,687 KRW) | +22% |
| White rice, 1kg | $2.23 | $2.73 (3,883 KRW) | +22% |
| Apples, 1kg | $2.67 | $3.27 (4,651 KRW) | +22% |
| Local cheese, 1kg | $6.68 | $8.18 (11,636 KRW) | +22% |
| Water, 1.5L bottle | $1.11 | $1.36 (1,935 KRW) | +23% |
| Drinks |  |  |  |
| Domestic beer, pint (draught) | $2.68 | $3.54 (5,035 KRW) | +32% |
| Imported beer, 330ml bottle | $5.97 | $6.60 (9,388 KRW) | +11% |
| Cappuccino | $2.24 | $2.95 (4,196 KRW) | +32% |
| Coke/Pepsi, 330ml | $1.28 | $1.57 (2,233 KRW) | +23% |
| Transport |  |  |  |
| Public transport, monthly pass | $31.27 | $40.24 (57,239 KRW) | +29% |
| Public transport, one-way | $1.32 | $1.70 (2,418 KRW) | +29% |
| Taxi start (normal tariff) | $1.79 | $2.36 (3,357 KRW) | +32% |
| Taxi, per km | $0.80 | $1.06 (1,508 KRW) | +33% |
| Petrol/gasoline, 1L | $0.71 | $0.78 (1,110 KRW) | +9.9% |
| Utilities & comms |  |  |  |
| Basic utilities, 85m² apartment | $96.20 | $124 (176,098 KRW) | +29% |
| Internet, 60Mbps+ unlimited | $33.67 | $43.33 (61,634 KRW) | +29% |
| Mobile plan, 10GB+ data | $21.65 | $27.86 (39,629 KRW) | +29% |
| Lifestyle |  |  |  |
| Gym membership, month | $22.35 | $29.50 (41,962 KRW) | +32% |
| Cinema seat | $6.26 | $8.26 (11,749 KRW) | +32% |
| Men's haircut | $13.41 | $17.70 (25,177 KRW) | +32% |
| Jeans (mid-range brand) | $41.04 | $45.40 (64,579 KRW) | +11% |
| Running shoes (brand) | $67.16 | $74.29 (105,673 KRW) | +11% |
| Coworking hot desk, month | $112 | $148 (209,810 KRW) | +32% |

Estimated from World Bank — Consumption price levels with per-item elasticity — model figures, not quotes. Compare any pair in the [interactive tool](https://geo-parity.com/expenses/?tab=prices&base=CN&target=KR).

## Beyond prices

What each place pays, charges and offers — wages, rent, healthcare, climate, risk and time off. Figures come from the same engines behind the individual tools, so they match what those pages say. They sit about **1,485 km** apart as the crow flies.

| Measure | 🇨🇳 China | 🇰🇷 South Korea |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Median local wage Monthly, USD. The local midpoint, not an average. | $767 | $2,316 |
| Rent, modelled 1-bed Monthly, USD. | — | $797 |
| Rent as % of a local wage Are locals priced out? | — | 34.4% |
| Out-of-pocket healthcare Per person per year, USD. | $246 | $1,058 |
| Doctors per 1,000 WHO. | 3.1 | 2.6 |
| Comfortable days a year 18-27 °C and dry. Measured at Shanghai and Seoul. | 77 | 76 |
| Rule of law World Bank WGI. A survey composite, so the band leads, not the decimal. | middling | strong |
| Country risk INFORM, 0-10. Lower is safer. | 2.9 (low) | 2 (very low) |
| Public holidays Observed nationwide; regional days are counted separately. | 6 | 18 |
| Air quality Mean annual PM2.5, µg/m³. WHO guideline is 5. Lower is better. | 32.1 | 19.2 |
| Life expectancy Years at birth — the outcome, not the spending. | 78 | 83.6 |
| Homicide rate Per 100,000 a year. A count, not a perception score. | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Population online % using the internet. Reach, not speed — the row below is speed. | 91.6% | 97.9% |
| Internet download Measured median, Mbps. | 31.4 | 273.4 |

## The whole China → South Korea move, in one place

Everything above is free and always will be. The relocation report is the same engines run together for this one corridor: what you keep after rent, prices, healthcare and tax; the local wage ladder you would be earning against; which visas your income qualifies for; the day count that makes you tax-resident; and the months worth being there for.

[See the China → South Korea report — £7](https://geo-parity.com/report/china-to-south-korea/) One-off. No subscription. Free preview first.

## Related

- [Reverse view: South Korea vs China](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/south-korea-vs-china/)
- [Fair salary: China → South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/salary/china-to-south-korea/)
- [How much to retire in South Korea?](https://geo-parity.com/fire/south-korea/)
- [Cost of living in South Korea vs the US](https://geo-parity.com/ppp/south-korea/)

## More comparisons

### China compared with

- [China vs Portugal](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-portugal/)
- [China vs Singapore](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-singapore/)
- [China vs Greece](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-greece/)
- [China vs Japan](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-japan/)
- [China vs Czechia](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-czechia/)
- [China vs United Arab Emirates](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-united-arab-emirates/)

### Moving to South Korea from

- [Chile vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/chile-vs-south-korea/)
- [Saudi Arabia vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/saudi-arabia-vs-south-korea/)
- [Argentina vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/argentina-vs-south-korea/)
- [Brazil vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/brazil-vs-south-korea/)
- [Poland vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/poland-vs-south-korea/)
- [Hungary vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/hungary-vs-south-korea/)

## Frequently asked questions

- **How much more expensive is South Korea than China?**: A single person's monthly essentials run about $1,334 in South Korea versus $981 in China — 36% more. Rents differ the most; world-priced goods like petrol and electronics the least.
- **What does a beer cost in South Korea?**: A domestic draught pint is roughly $3.54 in South Korea (≈ 5035.44 KRW), versus about $2.68 in China.
- **How much is rent in South Korea compared to China?**: A 1-bedroom city-center apartment is estimated at $894/month in South Korea versus $628/month in China (+42%). Housing is the most locally-priced item in the basket.
- **How are these prices estimated?**: Curated US baseline prices scaled by each country's purchasing-power price level with per-item elasticities (housing 1.4, services 1.1, groceries 0.8, world-priced goods 0.4) — model estimates for orientation, not quotes.

Model estimates — verify locally. Agents: GET /api/micro-costs.json?base=CN&target=KR.

---

Source: Geo-Parity — https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/china-vs-south-korea/ · JSON: https://geo-parity.com/api/micro-costs.json?base=CN&target=KR