Cost of Living · KR vs ES
🇰🇷 Seoul vs 🇪🇸 Barcelona: what everyday life costs
Monthly essentials: $1,390 in South Korea vs $1,382 in Spain — 0.58% cheaper.
Biggest differences
Much cheaper in Spain
- 💧 Water, 1.5L bottle: -0.71%
- 🏙️ Rent: 1-bedroom, city center: -0.66%
- 🏡 Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center: -0.66%
Closest to South Korea prices
- ⛽ Petrol/gasoline, 1L: 0%
- 🛣️ Taxi, per km: 0%
- 🥛 Milk, 1L: 0%
The full basket (32 items)
| Item | South Korea | Spain | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| 🏙️ Rent: 1-bedroom, city center | $937 | $931 (860 EUR) | -0.66% |
| 🏡 Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center | $750 | $745 (688 EUR) | -0.66% |
| 🏢 Rent: 3-bedroom, city center | $1,713 | $1,702 (1,573 EUR) | -0.66% |
| Food out | |||
| 🍜 Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $11.02 | $10.96 (10 EUR) | -0.54% |
| 🍽️ Dinner for two, mid-range | $45.90 | $45.67 (42 EUR) | -0.5% |
| 🍔 Fast-food combo meal | $7.04 | $7.01 (6 EUR) | -0.43% |
| Groceries | |||
| 🥛 Milk, 1L | $0.77 | $0.77 (1 EUR) | 0% |
| 🍞 Bread, fresh loaf 500g | $2.24 | $2.23 (2 EUR) | -0.45% |
| 🥚 Eggs, dozen | $2.38 | $2.37 (2 EUR) | -0.42% |
| 🍗 Chicken breast, 1kg | $7.00 | $6.97 (6 EUR) | -0.43% |
| 🍚 White rice, 1kg | $2.80 | $2.79 (3 EUR) | -0.36% |
| 🍎 Apples, 1kg | $3.36 | $3.35 (3 EUR) | -0.3% |
| 🧀 Local cheese, 1kg | $8.40 | $8.37 (8 EUR) | -0.36% |
| 💧 Water, 1.5L bottle | $1.40 | $1.39 (1 EUR) | -0.71% |
| Drinks | |||
| 🍺 Domestic beer, pint (draught) | $3.67 | $3.65 (3 EUR) | -0.54% |
| 🍻 Imported beer, 330ml bottle | $6.69 | $6.68 (6 EUR) | -0.15% |
| ☕ Cappuccino | $3.06 | $3.04 (3 EUR) | -0.65% |
| 🥤 Coke/Pepsi, 330ml | $1.61 | $1.60 (1 EUR) | -0.62% |
| Transport | |||
| 🚇 Public transport, monthly pass | $41.60 | $41.41 (38 EUR) | -0.46% |
| 🎫 Public transport, one-way | $1.76 | $1.75 (2 EUR) | -0.57% |
| 🚕 Taxi start (normal tariff) | $2.45 | $2.44 (2 EUR) | -0.41% |
| 🛣️ Taxi, per km | $1.10 | $1.10 (1 EUR) | 0% |
| ⛽ Petrol/gasoline, 1L | $0.79 | $0.79 (1 EUR) | 0% |
| Utilities & comms | |||
| 💡 Basic utilities, 85m² apartment | $128 | $127 (118 EUR) | -0.47% |
| 🌐 Internet, 60Mbps+ unlimited | $44.80 | $44.59 (41 EUR) | -0.47% |
| 📱 Mobile plan, 10GB+ data | $28.80 | $28.67 (26 EUR) | -0.45% |
| Lifestyle | |||
| 🏋️ Gym membership, month | $30.60 | $30.45 (28 EUR) | -0.49% |
| 🎬 Cinema seat | $8.57 | $8.52 (8 EUR) | -0.58% |
| 💈 Men's haircut | $18.36 | $18.27 (17 EUR) | -0.49% |
| 👖 Jeans (mid-range brand) | $46.01 | $45.92 (42 EUR) | -0.2% |
| 👟 Running shoes (brand) | $75.29 | $75.14 (69 EUR) | -0.2% |
| 💻 Coworking hot desk, month | $153 | $152 (141 EUR) | -0.52% |
Estimated from World Bank — Consumption price levels with per-item elasticity — model figures, not quotes. Compare any pair in the interactive tool.
Related
Frequently asked questions
- How much cheaper is Spain than South Korea?
- A single person's monthly essentials run about $1,382 in Spain versus $1,390 in South Korea — 0.58% less. Rents differ the most; world-priced goods like petrol and electronics the least.
- What does a beer cost in Spain?
- A domestic draught pint is roughly $3.65 in Spain (≈ 3.37 EUR), versus about $3.67 in South Korea.
- How much is rent in Spain compared to South Korea?
- A 1-bedroom city-center apartment is estimated at $931/month in Spain versus $937/month in South Korea (-0.66%). 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.