---
title: "Cost of Living: Chiang Mai vs Seoul — Geo-Parity"
description: "South Korea is 120% more expensive than Thailand for monthly essentials ($1,334 vs $608). Full 32-item price comparison: rent, pint, groceries, transport, gym."
canonical: "https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/south-korea-vs-thailand/"
json: "https://geo-parity.com/api/micro-costs.json?base=TH&target=KR"
generator: geo-parity markdown twin
---
Cost of Living · TH vs KR

# 🇹🇭 Chiang Mai vs 🇰🇷 Seoul: what everyday life costs

Monthly essentials: **$608** in Thailand vs **$1,334** in South Korea — 120% more expensive.

- **Essentials, Thailand**: $608/mo
- **Essentials, South Korea**: $1,334/mo
- **Difference**: +120%
- **1-bed city rent, South Korea**: $894/mo

## Biggest differences

Smallest premium in South Korea

- Imported beer, 330ml bottle: +30%
- Jeans (mid-range brand): +30%
- Running shoes (brand): +30%

Pricier in South Korea

- Rent: 3-bedroom, city center: +149%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center: +149%
- Rent: 1-bedroom, city center: +149%

## The full basket (32 items)

| Item | Thailand | South Korea | Diff |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Housing |  |  |  |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, city center | $360 | $894 (1,271,861 KRW) | +149% |
| Rent: 1-bedroom, outside center | $288 | $715 (1,017,486 KRW) | +149% |
| Rent: 3-bedroom, city center | $658 | $1,635 (2,325,691 KRW) | +149% |
| Food out |  |  |  |
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $5.19 | $10.62 (15,106 KRW) | +105% |
| Dinner for two, mid-range | $21.64 | $44.25 (62,943 KRW) | +104% |
| Fast-food combo meal | $3.55 | $6.81 (9,687 KRW) | +92% |
| Groceries |  |  |  |
| Milk, 1L | $0.45 | $0.75 (1,067 KRW) | +67% |
| Bread, fresh loaf 500g | $1.30 | $2.18 (3,101 KRW) | +68% |
| Eggs, dozen | $1.38 | $2.32 (3,300 KRW) | +68% |
| Chicken breast, 1kg | $4.05 | $6.81 (9,687 KRW) | +68% |
| White rice, 1kg | $1.62 | $2.73 (3,883 KRW) | +69% |
| Apples, 1kg | $1.94 | $3.27 (4,651 KRW) | +69% |
| Local cheese, 1kg | $4.86 | $8.18 (11,636 KRW) | +68% |
| Water, 1.5L bottle | $0.81 | $1.36 (1,935 KRW) | +68% |
| Drinks |  |  |  |
| Domestic beer, pint (draught) | $1.73 | $3.54 (5,035 KRW) | +105% |
| Imported beer, 330ml bottle | $5.09 | $6.60 (9,388 KRW) | +30% |
| Cappuccino | $1.44 | $2.95 (4,196 KRW) | +105% |
| Coke/Pepsi, 330ml | $0.93 | $1.57 (2,233 KRW) | +69% |
| Transport |  |  |  |
| Public transport, monthly pass | $21.00 | $40.24 (57,239 KRW) | +92% |
| Public transport, one-way | $0.89 | $1.70 (2,418 KRW) | +91% |
| Taxi start (normal tariff) | $1.15 | $2.36 (3,357 KRW) | +105% |
| Taxi, per km | $0.52 | $1.06 (1,508 KRW) | +104% |
| Petrol/gasoline, 1L | $0.60 | $0.78 (1,110 KRW) | +30% |
| Utilities & comms |  |  |  |
| Basic utilities, 85m² apartment | $64.60 | $124 (176,098 KRW) | +92% |
| Internet, 60Mbps+ unlimited | $22.61 | $43.33 (61,634 KRW) | +92% |
| Mobile plan, 10GB+ data | $14.54 | $27.86 (39,629 KRW) | +92% |
| Lifestyle |  |  |  |
| Gym membership, month | $14.42 | $29.50 (41,962 KRW) | +105% |
| Cinema seat | $4.04 | $8.26 (11,749 KRW) | +104% |
| Men's haircut | $8.65 | $17.70 (25,177 KRW) | +105% |
| Jeans (mid-range brand) | $35.00 | $45.40 (64,579 KRW) | +30% |
| Running shoes (brand) | $57.27 | $74.29 (105,673 KRW) | +30% |
| Coworking hot desk, month | $72.12 | $148 (209,810 KRW) | +105% |

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=TH&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 **3,413 km** apart as the crow flies.

| Measure | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 🇰🇷 South Korea |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Median local wage Monthly, USD. The local midpoint, not an average. | $403 | $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. | $32.00 | $1,058 |
| Doctors per 1,000 WHO. | 0.5 | 2.6 |
| Comfortable days a year 18-27 °C and dry. Measured at Chiang Mai and Seoul. | 19 | 76 |
| Rule of law World Bank WGI. A survey composite, so the band leads, not the decimal. | weak | strong |
| Country risk INFORM, 0-10. Lower is safer. | 5.1 (high) | 2 (very low) |
| Public holidays Observed nationwide; regional days are counted separately. | — | 18 |
| Air quality Mean annual PM2.5, µg/m³. WHO guideline is 5. Lower is better. | 25.1 | 19.2 |
| Life expectancy Years at birth — the outcome, not the spending. | 76.6 | 83.6 |
| Homicide rate Per 100,000 a year. A count, not a perception score. | — | 0.5 |
| Population online % using the internet. Reach, not speed — the row below is speed. | 90.9% | 97.9% |
| Internet download Measured median, Mbps. | 195 | 273.4 |

## The whole Thailand → 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 Thailand → South Korea report — £7](https://geo-parity.com/report/thailand-to-south-korea/) One-off. No subscription. Free preview first.

## Related

- [Reverse view: South Korea vs Thailand](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/south-korea-vs-thailand/)
- [Fair salary: Thailand → South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/salary/thailand-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

### Thailand compared with

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

### Moving to South Korea from

- [Malaysia vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/malaysia-vs-south-korea/)
- [Philippines vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/philippines-vs-south-korea/)
- [Vietnam vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/vietnam-vs-south-korea/)
- [Indonesia vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/indonesia-vs-south-korea/)
- [Colombia vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/colombia-vs-south-korea/)
- [Türkiye vs South Korea](https://geo-parity.com/cost-of-living/turkiye-vs-south-korea/)

## Frequently asked questions

- **How much more expensive is South Korea than Thailand?**: A single person's monthly essentials run about $1,334 in South Korea versus $608 in Thailand — 120% 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 $1.73 in Thailand.
- **How much is rent in South Korea compared to Thailand?**: A 1-bedroom city-center apartment is estimated at $894/month in South Korea versus $360/month in Thailand (+149%). 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=TH&target=KR.

---

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