How Expensive is Seoul as compared to Singapore, China, Japan and Hong Kong

Posted date: June 27, 2012 | comment : 1

As per Mercer’s Worldwide cost of living ranking 2012, Seoul is at the 22nd spot on the list of the most expensive cities in the world.

Mercer releases its Cost of Living rankings annually and measures the comparative cost of living for expatriates in 214 major cities. They compare the cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. They use New York City as the base city for the rankings and the US dollar as the base currency.

If you are wondering which city tops the list then its Tokyo, which has emerged as the most expensive city for expatriates both in Asia and globally. The top 31 most expensive cities in this list has 10 from the Asia Pacific region including Tokyo at number 1, followed by Osaka at number 3, Singapore at number 6, Hong Kong at 9. Nagoya (Japan) at 10, Shanghai at 16, Beijing at 17, Seoul at 22, Shenzhen (China) at 30 and Guangzhou (China) at 31.

How Expensive is Seoul - Cost of Living rankings for Seoul

Sunset at Seoul – by Sunjin Kim Photography

As per Cost of Living index calculated by Expatistan the cost of living in Seoul is 55% cheaper than in Tokyo, 45% cheaper than in London, 43% cheaper than in Singapore, 42% cheaper than in New York, 41% cheaper than in Hong Kong, 32% cheaper than in San Francisco, 29% cheaper than in Toronto, 1% cheaper than in Shanghai. On the other hand cost of living in Seoul is 12% expensive than in Beijing and Kuala Lumpur, 23% expensive than in Bangkok, 27% expensive than in Manila, 82% expensive than in Mumbai, 135% expensive than in Bangalore

So comparatively moving to Seoul would work out to be far more affordable than cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

You can read our detailed post on Cost of Living in Seoul 2012, which gives you a detailed breakup on expected monthly expenses in Seoul for students, bachelors, couples and married couple with kids.

To know more the worldwide cost of living rankings visit Mercer’s Cost of Living and Expatistan for details.