Is it Expensive Living in Korea?

What's the cost of living in Korea? Is stuff more expensive in South Korea, or is it cheaper than stuff in North America? We talk about some of the basic price differences we've noticed, but we also mention some more in our blog post, so check that out!
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[@jargonstarcraft9157]

I'd be more interested in learning how much the average person makes in Korea. Like, what are the average annual salaries of a barista, a technician, an engineer, or a just your average businessman? I've found that most countries have similar living expenses (food, rent, utilities), but what really varies from country to country is taxes and wages. I know a google search would give me a rough idea, but it's nice hearing from people who actually live there :)

[@Rayden440]

I live in Toronto, and the subway here is god-aweful! THREE LINES! What a fucking joke when compared to other cities like New York, Paris, London and Seoul. The stations looks like they've received minimum maintenance since their creation 60 years ago. The carts are usually very dirty with a pungent smell to go with it.

[@bonamanaification]

I'm from Glasgow in Scotland. We have one line, that literally goes round in a circle 😂

[@CM_CM_]

Rayden440 But in london day passes are: for a child 12 and up - $6.35 (Canadian Dollar) (free if >11) for an adult 16 and up - $15.69 compared to your $11.50 for a day pass D: The lines in central london are normally good, but thats because extra effort is put in for the tourists, once you leave everything is pretty eh >.

[@Jmoul14]

I once was a korean but then i could not afford it anymore so now i live in the pacific ocean on the back of a lapras

[@skinnylegendariee1804]

This is one of the reasons I'm going to Korea

[@JF098]

But like.. the job market..

[@Alexis-km8us]

Is the other reason because Suga is there XD

[@JF098]

+MK S Working from home does not mean you will always have a job or clients to work on. You have to be pretty well known to do that or join a good company that allows it (which is hard to get into in the first place). The job market is still shit.

[@boyeonrhee336]

Seriously come to korea , best country in the world istg

[@ottomattiks3644]

how did it work out

[@MizfitBitch]

The fact that produce is expensive is sad. I'm vegetarian transitioning to plant-based (vegan as far as diet). I'd hate to have to break bank over food.

[@saltyman7888]

Angelica Concepcion Korean produce is a lot cheaper, and fish and seafood is a lot healthier than red meat.

[@MizfitBitch]

Hollus Elsfik really? And I don't eat any meat now. Not even fish or seafood.

[@haso3616]

+Angelica Concepcion You will not survive as a vegetarian in Korea.

[@andrewjackson7476]

+Angelica Concepcion You can live in a rural area and grow your own produce. Everybody in Korea is like a wanna be so they all dream to live in the hippest part of the city. As result it's very cheap to live in the country side.

[@elnino9193]

+Angelica Concepcion As Korean myself I'm saying, it's gonna be hard to survive :( I love fruits and vegetables but they're expensive so I don't eat really often. My friend once tried to be vegetarian for a while but she gave up because there's almost nothing you can eat without meat in it if you're buying meal outside.

[@wilz9388]

wow, made me realise how expensive sydney is

[@EMSpdx]

Late to this party. A) I live i Portland, Oregon metro area, which is located in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Prices will reflect where I live: 1) I am renting a 1 bed/1 bath apartment somewhat older with an in unit washer/dryer/dishwasher/stove/microwave oven for 825/month in Beaverton, Oregon. There is a pool and hot tub on premises, a small exercise room, it's right across the street from two bus lines and across the street from a good clean super market. A large park is nearby, so is a library, a gym, a dry cleaners, a brewpub, two bakeries and a couple of cafes.I used a guarantor service instead of putting down a deposit on my apartment. 2) Eating Out: Mid priced, 'fast casual meals are about $7-10 during lunch and about $15 for dinner, assuming you don't drink any wine or beer. With that, it's significantly more . A lot of people do Happy Hour where you can get wine, beer or a cocktail and a starter or snack for about $7-10 dollars. Sit down dinners can be mid priced to very expensive. On the cheap end, we have food trucks, where for $3-$10 you can get some amazing food- sandwiches of every sort, Thai and Viet food, Mexican and Central American food, juices and smoothies, waffles, pizza, french fries, even ice cream! Example: I went out today with a colleague for lunch. I had a Cobb Salad with crab bisque soup for lunch, with a roll and butter. I had an iced coffee after. This was all about $11. 3) Groceries, as everywhere else, depends on socio-economic status and access. With that being said, groceries are cheap in the United States, and cheaper still in the West Coast, where veggies, fruit and meat are CHEAP AS HELL, even for organic when compared ANYWHERE ELSE. Bread is cheap, rice is cheap, potatoes are cheap, butter is cheap, milk is cheap, cheese is cheap (even fancy cheese). As I said, fruit and veggies are EXTREMELY CHEAP. And given the inputs to raise animals, beef, pork, chicken and farmed fish is VERY CHEAP. In fact, if you are part of the working to upper class in America, good solid food is almost TOO CHEAP in some ways. Example: I bought 4 avocados for $5, 1 lb of of cut pine apple and melon for $3/package, mixed spring salad green- 1 lb- for $3.75 and a block of tofu for $1.25.I bought beef for friends for a BBQ and it was 3 lbs for $12. 4) Clothing- both cheap and expensive, with poor to excellent quality- and it does not really matter the price point! There is no sales tax in Oregon, so you can spend a bit more than in other places in the West Coast.

[@name-bearbeiten]

Edith Spencer thanks for sharing, i've always looked for those real-life experiences! greetings from northern germany!

[@EMSpdx]

Name Bearbeiten *waves* Come visit, if you can! Condor flys direct to Portland two days a week. :-)

[@IAdoreU17Seventeen]

Edith Spencer I was born in portland!! but grew up in salem :)

[@EMSpdx]

JIMIN Pls Stop I like Salem a lot. It's a small city, but it's very pretty, very affordable and the river runs in the middle of town! :-)

[@IAdoreU17Seventeen]

Edith Spencer it's pretty nice here~^^

[@_blondesaber]

Fruits are SO CHEAP in tropical countries. They sell high quality fruits everywhere and anytime. Even on the side of the road :D

[@jennyluna6450]

That's awesome !:D hah

[@czarofhalloween]

I’ve noticed this in Florida too fruits are cheaper and better quality compared to most other places

[@MsJabbaTheHutt]

I'm from Toronto (Etobicoke)!! I'm actually moving to Korea in February so your videos have been super helpful. Thanks guys :)

[@HylianRezzi]

Both Seoul and Toronto's transportation prices sound cheaper than here in England... X_X

[@reehji]

Thomas Lee it costs me about $80 to go 3 hours round-trip on train here, southern CA...but then, most people here owns a car so....

[@reehji]

reehji oh, and roughly $1.75 for a single bus ride T_T luckily students get them for free in Santa Barbara,, SoCal

[@HylianRezzi]

omg only $1.75 for a single?! Over here it's £1.90....

[@Bakaramas]

HylianRezzi £1.90 that's so cheap, in Cambridge its £3.00

[@HylianRezzi]

Oh I know! The times I go up there I just walk to the Grand Arcade for shopping. I really feel for you :/

[@nalaumma]

When I visited korea, I got tons of nice clothes from $1~ $15 the most. HEEHEHHEHE

[@marias1591]

omg. would you care to tell me where you did your shopping, i'm planning to visit there next month :D

[@nalaumma]

Maria S Dong De Moon has a lot of shopping centers and outdoor sellers on the streets. I usually shop at the Hyundai Mall, Lotte Mall :) and you'll find a lot of random good finds in the middle of the streets :) try Chong Dam Dong, they have good high end small shops. Good luck, and Im jealous of you!!! Oh, if your not korean, good luck dealing with "no personal space" Im korean and I get so upset when people shove and push you around cause its so crowded..

[@nameisamine]

SERIOUSLY. Seoul should be one of the new fashion capitals of the world. I got so much stuff and I would look at the prices and say "HOW MUCH"? IT WAS SO CHEAP. I'm from London where a nice shirt is like $100, Korea its like $40 and its designer quality, Im flying there once a year now to buy clothes lol!

[@ChiiXxTohru]

Could you do a vlog about vegetarianism/veganism in Korea =) like vegetarian/vegan restaurants in Korea. Vegetarian/vegan snacks/sweets/lollies

[@whydiddiscodie94]

in kansas, rent for a nice 2 bedroom house is anywhere from around 600$ to 800$. my family spends about 200$ a month for food. a full tank of gas is anywhere from 20 to 70$.

[@Zinngoz]

+Kelsey Atwill in Bay Area, a 2 bedroom house is about $1k00~1k4 T_T

[@AlecBaldwin5816]

It cost me 600 dollars of alcohol each month, and I only eat at the restaurant. I have to work like a fucking pig for it through.

[@faithbockarie3714]

Tbh that is very cheap compared to Australia

[@shysnow8]

I live in Kansas too

[@hamham7318]

Lol try living in newyork

[@yjs7]

As a Korean living In NYC, the subway/bus fee is $2.75 once you swipe in, and if you get off the right stop to transfer, then you don't have to pay again. Also, if you transfer from the bus to the subway and vice versa within 2 hours, it's free. You also have to tip here, and of course tax applies. Groceries are generally pretty cheap unless it's organic. Some housing is cheaper than others, but they are basically worse living condition-wise. I'd say there are plenty more cheap cute clothing shops in Korea than in NYC.

[@CharlyeHebert]

I'm SO glad I found this channel. I'm moving to Korea for 6 months for work and you guys are answering almost all of my questions 😊😊😊😊

[@Cesia1008]

Am I the only one who got distracted with the kitty?... 2:27

[@EllaMuersofNerdfighteria]

Not gonna lie I spent the entire video Meemers spotting xD

[@ArielVolovik]

Here in montreal it isn't expensive most people get Opus cards and they pay like 50$ a month for UNLIMITED usage - you can sit there all day if you want. but if you do just buy 1 pass it means that you can go in swich stops how much you want (the lines) and they won't charge anything - the moment you get out though it costs to come back in. Very cheap but only 3 lines and 1 line with like 3 stops others have like 20-30!

[@stream4win560]

+Ariel Volovik It's only $50 if you're a student, otherwise it's $82, and one pass is $3.25.

[@mintedog]

Bangkok: The MOST that you will EVER have to pay for the metro (Which is called BTS) here, is only about 60 Baht (2$-ish), but that's literally from one station at an end of the city to the other station at the other end of the city; which is probably about 35 KM. Taxi's start out at 35 Baht (1 $) and go up at 6 Baht increments every kilometer; I travel 30 KM to my school by taxi sometimes, and the grand total is about 300-350 Baht (8-9$). Yeah, it's pretty cheap in Bangkok in terms of transportation.

[@MKMonsterr]

One thing I like about the NYC subway is that you can swipe once and get on a bunch of different trains without paying again. One of my most recent experience being that I got from Penn Station to the Met in around 30 minutes with two (or three) different trains and I swiped once. And buses by me are $1.25 for a student and a transfer is $0.25.

[@jampark92]

I'm planning to visit Korea for the first time in 10 years after living in Australia and this video has given me a great insight to how much I will be spending in Korea! thanks!

[@CaptainTingo]

How was it!

[@CassieFrancis-TheAlmostAdult]

In Britain it costs almost £7 to go 30 miles (that is a single)

[@allensun2657]

Hey Simon and Martina! I have question! Is Korea safe? I heard that korea is really really safe, safer than most countries! Can you do a TL;DR video on it? thanks!

[@evilending2627]

The most depressing part of this video is i thought the American prices were cheap... England is so expensive

[@phone7x7]

The ticket one way reference is awesome. I totally did not know it when I first watched this video.

[@VirtualWonderBoy]

In Sydney, Australia a ticket costs $5.80 for an adult and around $2.50 for students/children. Such an expensive service for constant delays and track work.

[@senpaitama8778]

+Gary Tee haha Same in Melbourne. It sucks everything is expensive! lel The food in Korea is sooo cheap, here in Melbourne it's like $7 for like a junk filled Zinger Burger.

[@crystalyeo912]

Agree 😭 everything is so expensive in aus ugh 🙄

[@MeAlejandroIgnacio]

The Mango story ! SO FUN HAHAHAHAHA

[@Xyronium]

What about housing and real estate prices? How much does apartments cost in Seoul? The price per square foot must be super high since korea is such an owercrowded place.

[@infires_man_jayliu2851]

I reaaaaaaalllly wanna move to South Korea when I get older lol

[@Baxinthebuilding]

Sameeeeeee, lets go together hahaha

[@stephanie064wooz7]

meeeeeeeee tooo

[@kingnoctis8092]

Infires_man_ Jayliu can you live in korea forever even if you are a foreigner ?

[@Antaury97]

Same here, I want to finish college then go

[@ellavarga7610]

King Noctis no. You have to apply for a residency visa. You need to be fluent in Korean to get the visa. Or marry a native Korean

[@AmoebaCulture]

Transportation: Public transportation is generally expensive in North America because it is a rare commodity. Public transportation tends to be less expensive in larger cities where it is generally accessible. For instance, a cab ride in NYC within Manhattan would cost around 20 bucks. Cabs in NYC are cheaper than other US cities. A cab ride in Seoul will cost anywhere between 5 to 20 bucks, on most nights out (unless you’re getting ripped off, which is usually the case after midnight).

[@kelpeater34]

As an Australian born Singaporean-Malaysian I can definitely see where you are coming from! Having just spent two months majorly in Singapore you tend to notice that areas like Singapore, Korea and Japan have a cheaper lifestyle. As you said, I wouldn't expect to get a good meal for under ten dollars (it's almost tear-worthy if you do). The idea behind produce, and I only state this from my experience in Singapore, is that they don't have the resources within their own country and therefore outsource the responsibilty to able countries they have trade alliances with and that's why it may sometimes be more expensive. Also, as I was visiting, due to the floods occurring in Malaysia, one kind of crop could not be available and would significantly change the relations between Singapore and Malaysia as well as for the people of Singapore whom, if lucky enough would get it at an inflated prices.

[@jinkies2609]

As of today, 1000 won is .84 American dollars.

[@idajonsson330]

Sure max

[@jinkies2609]

+Ida Jonsson no problem?

[@joessmax]

What about supermarkets? Are cheaper or more expensive than grocery or shops?

[@riyku]

Thanks for the help! I'm moving there to teach English ASAP So I was really wondering costs!

[@shizuma2007]

When I am in Daegu, I found that the two different "unique" taxis available are the Silver cabs and the Black cabs. The silver cabs have dents and dings, they drive fast and blow through stop lights, (Car Sick!) The black cabs are like being driven in a limo, the drivers usually have white gloves, help you load/unload your bags, clean smelling cars, etc etc. but they cost a little more, but totally worth driving in.

[@paulham9018]

Philadelphia's subway system is similar. Just 2 lines cutting thru the center of the city, one north-south and one east-west. The east-west line does turn into an above ground train and connect to Northeast Philly. And there are railway and highspeed rail that connect to all the surrounding suburbs.

[@madelaineg5032]

come in london everithing is so f expensive here, it u go out u ned at least 30£ to buy a decent meal at a decent restaurant, transport is veryyyy expensive like 5£ one way to go in the city, ...omg, i wish to live in this countryes where i can buy everithing so cheap.... ;(

[@jeremyk5310]

Gherca Marina I think living in London forced me to learn to cook better. London surprisingly has a lot of good produce even in their supermarkets (if you live in zone 2 or further obviously). As for transit, TFL is still waaay better than the sorry excuse for transit in Toronto. My god. I'm in Mississauga right now (around zone 3 distance for equivalence) and it costs me $9 to go into Toronto (one way), which is around 7 quid?

[@madelaineg5032]

Yes the TFL is better than the other transits that's the reason why is so expensive, they are always upgrading something, and the food is realy good, always fresh ( in the suppermarkets i mean ) but stil compared to the other contryes it is expensive, London is not cheap, the other cityes are normal lol.

[@MayerlinCastro]

Here, where I live you can even take free mangoes on streets, there are lots of trees everywhere, what irony!

[@lisanne3275]

Korean food looks so delicious 😍👏🏻

[@Latitude631]

Especially Kimchi XD

[@alonzo9772]

Koreans make the best boneless fried chicken. I used to be an exchange student there, and I had a friend who would have fried chicken delivered to our dorm room once-a-week.

[@Latitude631]

alonzo9772 wow! I was thinking about going to Korea for college.

[@royceleo]

no

[@Minyu07]

oh i love korean subway clothes! they're soo cheap but fashionable. you can definitely find good quality clothes for cheap price if you know what part of Seoul to go to. I bought 5 summer dresses for $10 two years ago and I still wear them every summer. Seriously, Korean fashion tastes are really good and the prices are amazing.

[@mariadr7321]

In Greece bus and metro tickets (one for all public transportation) are 1.20 or 1.60 euro and it lasts for about an 1hour and 40 min and you can go as far as you want and use as many buses or the metro in that time limit. We dont charge distance's. Then you got the monthly cards for all public transportation, if you are a university student it is 15 euro a month if you are not it is 30 euro a month, and you have limitless access to everything for a month.

[@AA-ij5hp]

Im wondering how much does a person get paid in Korea on average and if you have ever experienced any racism or other typea of stereotyping oh oh and umm would people with darker skin(eg. Brown, Im brown) get any racism, stereotyping, or would they ever get asked out on dates or make friends easily. THANKS i love you channel and your cat is FREAKING ADORABLE.

[@metasaman]

I want to know that, too O_O

[@annieasmr2933]

Raida A Koreans don't understand racism because they don't get racist comments like we do in America. Their culture is different which they stay true to. They respect elders which Americans mostly don't do. With that being said it's a different world. They are very nice, low crime. They don't understand apology though. From learning Korean they don't understand why American say sorry so much.

[@rurihoshino313]

So watermelon is crazy expensive in Korea just like it is in Japan. Well at least meat is cheap there.

[@xaisthoj]

I need to get in on the mango import business in Korea.

[@Kevchung11]

Hey Simon and Martina, I lived in Toronto before as well, and honestly,after comparing the costs of life in Seoul with those in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto, South Korea(even Seoul) is still cheaper than North America. Of course, I would say that their subway system is just so much cheaper at 900won per trip compared to many other cities, not to mention that it covers a lot of areas!

[@BeepBeepHong]

I agree, living in Toronto is very expensive :( I live in the GTA but go to school downtown. Commuting there and back per day costs me about $20. One bus fair ranges from $3.75 - $4.00. The subway system isn't that great either, as it doesn't reach a lot of areas? But it is expanding closer to my area which is great. Plus, they're creating a "downtown Vaughan" (vaughan, where i live in the GTA) and house prices are skyrocketing. When i moved here 10 years ago, i bought my house for roughly $400,000 now it's worth about $850,000 - $1,000,000. One combo meal from McDonalds costs $10+, but i usually buy Happy meals for $4 LOL Eating healthy is VERY EXPENSIVE. A salad costs $7, turkey sandwich/ club = $6, rice bowl or ramen and such.. range from $7-$12. (This is all based on my personal experiences and what i've seen). Being a college student, all i ever eat at school is a slice of pizza or Tim Hortons every single day 4 days a week. I try to make healthy choices but the "healthy" food selection is very small, and very pricey. UGH I should move to Korea too haha

[@SooperBeez]

Tipping is the most ripoff shit ever, I never tip idgaf if i look like an ass.

[@deblibra6884]

I always tip even if it is expensive. Don't blame the server blame the system. If you don't tip those people don't make a real living wage. If it's lousy service I let them know why they didn't get a tip but I usually tip 20% of the cost.

[@reehji]

Deb Libra for expensive stuff, I'd tip roughly 10-15%. For inexpensive meals like $7-$10, maybe 2 dollars and whatever the loose change is. But i'm a student so...I can't tip much :3

[@SeriousCupOfTea]

I admit that I totally regret living in Korea. Koreans will never accept me because I'm a Korean who grew up in Canada. Korea is still a backward country no matter what people say otherwise. I prefer being a proud subject to my sovereign, the Queen of Canada, Elizabeth II. It's better than being a Korean. :)

[@ArualCrisp]

Aw :c I'd love to visit South Korea once but Im Lithuanian and they will probably get me wrong and think Im an American lol :c

[@ScarletFierce]

That really sucks. How is Canada tho? I've always lived in Florida.

[@ScarletFierce]

Well they have their Kpop and kdramas. its not as popular as anime but it has a large fanbase. As for "Seriouscupoftea" i'm sorry that your experience there was negative. I think if i got there they would judge me very differently because i'm hispanic. But my skin is very white and i have curly hair. I know they are into the white skin over there lol

[@JJK1]

i'm guessing you can't speak korean? they don't care if you grew up outside of korea, but they find it weird if you're korean but can't speak korean. i'm korean-american with near fluent korean and i get treated normally over there

[@JJK1]

also its not just korea. my italian friend's grandparents wanted to disown him because he doesn't know italian its hard to get "accepted" into any society if you don't know the language or the culture

[@ThatAsianOverThere]

In Austin, it takes about 17 bucks just for 4 miles, with no traffic. Buses are cheap too, but kind of dirty (But as a University student, it's free for me, so I still use it happily). My sister visited SK last year and said the transportation there was awesome, clean, cheap and all that good stuff. I think I might visit SK just to see it and be in awe lol

[@AbbbezOlsson]

Here in Sweden you pay roughly 2,2 $ and then you get a ticket that enables you to board a bus/tram withing 1 hour. So you can switch to different bus/trams under that time.

[@morganthompson833]

In Adelaide, Australia an adult metro ticket costs around $4.90 for 2 1/2 hours of travel. You can buy a day pass for around $9.00 that lasts an entire day. You can also get a Multi trip ticket that has around 10 single trips for about $17-25.Taxi's are pretty expensive though. It's about $80-90 for a 35-40 minute ride, depending on the time of day. Although, as you guys found out recently, everything is expensive in Australia.

[@AmoebaCulture]

Consumer Prices: The CPI in the US is generally higher than South Korea but this has to do with adjusting currency rates. If we were to adjust for currency fluctuation, I think daily consumer prices would be generally equal. As mentioned in the video, groceries are more expensive in Seoul, than in the US. I can’t imagine cooking at home in Seoul everyday - probably explains why there are so many restaurants.

[@Suh6727]

Yes. Shoes above a woman's size 8 usually isn't sold and if you ask, they might even laugh. As for the clothing, they are usually just in small or medium which typically run smaller than the sizes in western countries.

[@AmishGramish]

I just went grocery shopping yesterday. I was used to paying a lot for some produce in Japan, but at these prices, it's pretty much cheaper for me just to eat at restaurants and dine on the free rice and kimchi in my goshiwon. I typically spend $100 a week in the U.S. and Japan on food and bars, so on my budget (which focuses on exploring the food of the area), this seems to work fine.

[@AmoebaCulture]

Clothing: On equal quality, clothing is much more expensive in South Korea than in the US. This is due to import duties (we’ll see how the KOR-US FTA and the KOR-EU FTA changes this) and the fact that Seoul seems to be the main hub for luxury shopping for high-income individuals from China and Japan, further driving up prices. You can buy cheap clothing but for those wanting to buy a quality product, I say shop in the USA or wherever you are from.

[@Manyhx3]

A one-way bus ticket for Adults in Norway cost like $5-6, and they add $3-4 on distance. Taxis are even more expensive, similar to what you guys have in Canada.

[@lilithabunni]

I love your glasses so much in this video I could shed tears.

[@HotaruKara]

In Bucharest one subway ticket where you use it twice is 4 lei, which is 1.20 dollars. They don't charge by how long the distance you travel is, like they do in Korea. The ticket where you use it 10 times is 4.51 dollars. The monthly ticket for adults where you use it 62 times is 15.06 dollars, for Romanian students is cheaper, costs 7.53 dollars. The monthly ticket with unlimited numbers you can use is 18.07, for Romanian students is 9.03 dollars. Quite convenient if you're a Romanian student in Bucharest ^^

[@thumper7149]

In San Francisco, for under 18 is 0.75$ and if ur older than that is 2 dollars, for seniors and children is free. the distance does not matter, as long as you pay, you can ride as long as you want. from the first stop to last stop

[@lesleymartinez5300]

In Chicago, trains and buses are $2.25 (normal price). For a bus transfer (if you have a ventra which is pretty much a bus pass) it's $0.25, if not then you pay $2.25 again. Students are given student ventras which would charge them $0.75 and $0.15 to transfer (student passes are given to high schoolers and college students). You can pay with cash on buses but bus passes are needed for train. If you take a train and miss your stop you can just go to the other side and get on the train going in the opposite direction free of charge. If you take the train to the loop you can transfer to another train route free of charge as well. (THIS IS JUST FOR CTA ventras work with Pace buses but I'm not sure how much they or metra trains cost)

[@aiishg_]

oh India is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy cheaper.... you get to ride buses in kolkata for 5Rs, which is 0.083 US Dollar!!!! and the fares in the subway in kolkata starts from 10Rs and its upto 15Rs max... its a hell lot cheaper than N.America or S.KOrea...!!!! And about the street food and even the restaurants are very much affordale.. in a 4 star restaurant in kolkata you can have a huge(literally huge, i went with 14 people so imagine) and it cost 3000Rs which is 49.636 US Dollar...!! :)

[@brainsfallinout26]

In New York City, it costs $2.50 to get on the subway or to take a bus, but there is no additional cost for distance: you can go all the way from Queens/Brooklyn to Manhattan. I think the T (the bizarre hybrid trolley/train public transportation system) in Boston is $2, and you aren't charged for distance either, just an entry fee to get on the trolley/train.

[@ezrac9183]

I live in Toronto and the subway system isn't like that anymore. You just pay once and, as long as you don't exit the system, you can go anywhere you want no matter how far it is.

[@AmoebaCulture]

Food: The example used in this video is that Kimbap place but not many people in the US would resort to eating at Burger King every day. Comparing fast food (Big Mac theory), a Big Mac in Seoul is most likely more expensive than their counterparts in the US. Fine dining is usually much more expensive than most US cities.

[@cynthiadepz]

Living in South Korea was an amazing experience for me, but to think about living expense, Indonesia is so much cheaper :) for $1.5 you can already get a proper meal plus drink, not just snacks. And when you live in a big city like Seoul, the cheapest rent accomodation you can get is around $350-$500/month while in Indonesia you can get a very good and well furnished room for that amount. But we are a developing nation whilst SK is developed already, so fair enough tho!

[@Komiopa]

In Korea, we use our bank card instead of monthly pass. It charges you every time when you use public transportation. Also you can use it for Taxi so you don't have to bring cash, debit card, opus card all together. I remember I paid around $60~70 per month. Now I'm in Montreal and buy monthly pass every month! lol

[@fairydustcryptid]

NY Subway - $2.50, as far as you need to go as long as you stay under ground. One stop, 50 stops and a transfer, it's the same. NJ Buses - $1.50 for 'one zone'(~2mi), $2.35 for 'two zones' (~4mi), not sure 3-5 zones. $4.50 to go 3 zones out of state (i don't take the bus to nyc often no..) Transfers are $0.70. All prices are one way

[@kkilldecide4myself]

Where I live in San Francisco Bay Area, it's $1.85 just to go one station on the train line (BART, Bay Area Rapid Transit). To go from one end of the line to the other can cost like $7.50 based on distance. (For example going from Millbrae to Pittsburg Bay Point). Basically it's really expensive and I think it's a lot more economical to take the bus.

[@larynthify]

In the Philippines, for fastfoods, it can cost Php50-200 ($1.00-4.50, ish, very rough conversion). Cheap eateries can go from Php10-60, which is less than a dollar to a bit more than a dollar. Traveling, by jeep, costs sometimes Php7.00-20.00, vans/buses for around Php12-60, more if you're going somewhere really far! Clothes can get expensive if you're buying still from the mall, and from proper stores.

[@theguythatcoment]

People in My city (mexico city) protested during two months because the subway ticket raised from 22 USD cents to 30 USD cents. And the line covers over 200Km and 200 stations

[@suh3271]

lool I'm Korean, and I lived in Jakarta for ten years and I moved two years ago... You're TOTALLY right about the traffic! It's so bad, and seriously the only thing you can see is red lights in the roads!! Oh yeah, and plus when it floods it's even worse, right??!! The water gets everywhere and one time my car actually got too deep in the water and it wouldn't go anywhere.. :D

[@sofiafreitas4563]

by the way: i was in seoul in 1996 and it was relatively cheaper than portugal - and that meant i could go out to eat more often and in good restaurants, and moroever live a more leisured life - going drinking in bar louges, using a cab, and so on. now a days i have no idea if it still is that cheap.

[@Gleowyn]

If I remember right, you can get a monthly ticket in Helsinki Finland and charge it for about 30 euros, and it allows you to ride all forms or public transportation without additional costs.

[@Agscgoh]

Taxis in Singapore is generally cheap depending of what type you take it will charge you $3.20 - $3.40 when you get on it and it will be a increase of $0.22 per 100m or 45secs of waiting at peak period it will charge you an extra 25% off your total bill and it's more expensive in city areas and airport.

[@lone6718]

Public transit is okay here, but I live in a medium sized college town. We have a small bus line for most of the residential areas, and then there are some taxis (they charge by distance I think). When I lived in Ecuador the public transit was super cheap and really awesome. But if you wanted to take a taxi as a foreigner you needed to know the cost it usually was from point a->b or you would get way over charged.

[@sylee7349]

In Boston, if you have a card its about $2 (less) but if youre a student and the school has student cards then its only 80 cents. If youre super lucky and manage to get your hands on an M5 or M7 (Idk what M means but the numbers stand for the days in a week so MON-FRI=5 while SAT-SUN=7) then its completely free if you live 1 or 2 miles (I forgot the limit) away from your school. But once you pay, you dont have to unless you transfer buses or get out of the subway thing where you pay/exit. Its pretty cheap here for students.

[@tokyogaijinrahman6616]

I am from Canada but originally Bangladesh after finishing my college I would love to go to Korea for studying in the university.

[@MistwalkerMayakii]

Second week down, staying here for at least 2 years. What can I say - cheaper than in my country, but some stuff ... oh my. I'm not a fan of sea food, so I gotta be bit more picky on what I buy. Also, yesterday, after a long search, we found out that a simple 20L trash bag costs ~0.850₩ . Like WTF D: But yeah, other than that, transportation is cheap, food is cheaper and proportions are bigger. The variety is also waaaay bigger than what I'm used to!

[@alonzo9772]

The cost of living is right between China and Japan. It's far from being a cheap country, but I was surprised at how low-cost meals are there. In Yonsei, a big plate of food would only cost me about 3,000 won. With that, they also include vegetable side dishes.

[@Komiopa]

I've been here for 2 years, I like Montreal. More calm and less people. I don't know many people here, but even I sometimes meet people in downtown by accident. It gives me some feeling that it's like my hometown where I grown up from when I was a baby. September in Korea is nice, but still will be very hot there so be prepared for that. I used to like going to cafe in 홍대(Hong-dae) area. It's cool.

[@AmoebaCulture]

Taxes: South Korea, in general has a lower income (and residency/state) tax bracket vs. the US. However, this shouldn’t be a factor as international taxation agreements between most countries and Korea does not require double taxation. That is, you pay your taxes to the Korean government - you are omit from paying taxes to the US (although income still must be reported). However, this is quite a grey area and it really depends on your income bracket on your respective nation of residency.

[@furchterlichabscheulich8747]

In Chicago, you are also charged by distance, if you take the Metra train from the suburbs into the city. (Traffic is very bad here!) From my area, it costs $7 dollars one way into the city, and $150 for a month pass. It can cost up to $300 for a month pass if you live in the farthest service area from Chicago. I feel it's too expensive here, but when you try to drive into town and have to pay for parking on top of that, it ends up being cheaper and less of a headache. The trains in the city are another fee that I'm not familiar with, but I think you have to buy another pass that can cost up to $100.

[@paytonvandy8140]

I would love to become an English teacher in Korea. Once I'm certified, I am off. Thank you so much for these great videos, Simon and Martina! There's so much great advice here

[@CaptainTingo]

And did you 😃?

[@heycrystalwong]

When transportation is a dollar in South Korea compared to New York City where you have to pay $2.50 and to go into the city is $6.00 More of the reason why I want to move to Korea. Ty for the video :3

[@wh0athatsretr0]

The train in Southern California (Metrolink) costs almost $9 one way! It's a bit cheaper if you're a student though, only $7.50! Busses will take you a couple of miles at most, and those are around 1.25 each way. It's no wonder everyone drives around here..

[@altair_6225]

Vancouver transit is actually pretty expensive, especially with the 2013 price hikes. D: An adult fare for 1-zone (which is essentially within a region of Metro Vancouver (Tri-Cities, Downtown, Richmond/Surrey, etc.) is $2.75. 2-zones is $4, and 3-zones (which is what I would be spending x2 daily if I didn't have a UPass) is $5.50, and ALL of these passes only last you 1.5 hours. Problem is, 3 zones usually = 2+ hours. OTL Then there's discount student prices, which are only slightly cheaper.

[@xthatwhiteguyx]

Southern California has tons of food options for you to purchase under $2. $2 can get you 2-3 pretty loaded street tacos at many local Mexican Restaurants, a basket of strawberries or various other fruits, or even 2 mcdoubles at McDonald's. I have survived on 2 mcdouble dinners every day when I was saving money; they are pretty good.

[@AmoebaCulture]

Gas: In West Coast USA, it’s usually about 4 dollars per gallon. In Seoul, gas is usually around 2 dollars per liter. Nearly 4 liters to a gallon. Everyone can do their own math.

[@isabelalvarado9829]

In LA if you use the metrolink, its like 10$ as a student, for a round trip and if you use a bus the ticket has a EZ stamp on it which means yiu showw it to the bus driver and you dont pay for a bus all day, however the ticket has a timelimit. It can have about 3hrs or it can expire until midnight. This is my personal expirience.

[@AnnieFangg]

Vancouver Transit (Adult): $2.75, and you can use it as much as you want, transfer from subway to bus or whatever, in Vancouver for an hour and a half. If you want to go to another "zone" aka leave Vancouver to go to a suburb city you have to add little money, but it's still an hour and a half. The transit system is one unified system throughout the lower mainland (Vancouver and a lot of it's neighbouring cities are in the lower mainland). Its easy to get around. :)

[@bonachang6377]

simonandmartinabonus Hi. I really liked your video, especially the section about transportation. But, I disagree with your later section about meat and clothing. Meat is very expensive in Korea. Whenever we come to the U.S. we always eat a ton of beef and pork because we can never eat a lot of it in Korea. Also, N.A. clothing like Levis are expensive but actually, because of continental transport, European goods (French brands, German brands) are actually cheaper in Korea than they are in the U.S. I bought a 30,000W pair of namebrand French rainboots in a Korean department store (Shinsegae) that cost over $100 in the U.S.

[@chillinaturdadshouse]

In Washington DC the subway has 2 different prices peak/non-peak and the price per stop changes depending on rush hour! It's roughly 6-12 dollars U.S. for a round trip ticket!

[@xechs88]

My younger brother taught in korea, and when I bought him his car I notice insurance and gas was very expensive especially when you consider you are paying similar or more then you would in Canada. Gas was like $2 a liter, that's almost as bad as europe and hong kong levels of expensive except you are getting korean wages which is really expensive comparatively.

[@MissSilk]

Oh....and on top of that since some transit places have parking garages and parking lots, it's $1 per day and $50+ for a monthly pass. So....add the regular transit for just people and people who need to park because there is no bus nearby to get them to where they need to go TT

[@stormbornes]

Everytime my mom and I go to Korea we always go to the HUGE underground subway mall claled Banpo and its so CHEAP! Like Martina said there are shirts for 1-5 Bucks! There are also like headband/accesories stores and one of their 1 dollar headbands lasted me like 3 YEARS!

[@ANite-vx1vk]

I live in New York (so, even in rural area's everything is ridiculous in taxes, regulations, all that) but I happen to live in an area between two massive tourist destinations, so things can be heart-stoppingly expensive depending on what area you go to. (Fun fact, Lake Geroge isn't all that great people. It's 4x-10x the price, the people are rude, and the only kind of cool thing is Fort William Henry.)

[@Paiinx]

In Chile we have cards to pay both buses and subway and you have to pay $610 on the bus and up to $670 chilean pesos depending on the hour on the subway. Which is a little more than a dollar I think, but once you are in, you can go any distance you want in any direction through all lines (1,2,4,4a and 5, there's no 3 why? because we can (k' ignore that)) and you can do up to 3 combinations between buses and the subway and there'll be just a $20 extra charge :D also students pay just $160 pesos.

[@PandaMan1992]

In the bay area the BART cost from $1.75 up to $5 or $6 depending on how far you travel and I've lived in metro seoul out in seongdong-gu so the subway and buses are SOOO much cheaper than in the US, however i noticed that transfers are much less convenient in Seoul than in the bay at least, since with BART theres one platform that all trains to that station service. with KoRail ITX, and Seoul Metro you have to walk a good distance to get to different line platforms since the stations are huge!

[@quailchow]

Thats definitely holds some truth. I've heard stories from my korean friends who work at restaurants that some places will take the half eaten banchan and mix it in with the rest.. so REMEMBER when you are finished with your banchan, mix it up with other stuff so they can't reuse it!!

[@aznlily95]

I live in NYC and I feel really jealous about the transportation system. ~A one way Metrocard swipe is $2.25 if you're refilling, but $2.50 if you're buying a temporary only-valid-within-2-hours-of-buying-it. There are unlimited metros for a certain time, such as the $104 monthly one. Expensive :( ~Taxis: I usually never bother with taxis but they're pretty expensive and traffic in some places are super awful. ~Food: I love food but hate paying a lot for it. The cheapest place I've been to is

[@aznlily95]

from Chinatown (Manhattan's or 8th Ave's), from their bakeries. Some restaurants have really cheap rice and soup items ($4~$7) that are relatively healthy. But, there's sometime's tax, and always tip (unless you're stingy and mean). Produce-wise, once again, Chinatown's fruit stalls are pretty cheap, and sometimes really good quality, if you know where to go. But supermarket's often have expensive produce (berries and avocados and such). I CAN'T comprehend the $48 mango. That's crazy!