Cost of living comparison

Kingston, Jamaica

compared to

Seoul, South Korea

Seoul vs. Kingston Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 74.2% more expensive than Kingston.

Restaurants: pay 4.1% less in Seoul
Groceries: pay 19.9% more in Seoul
Transportation: pay 23.4% less in Seoul
Housing: pay 7.3% less in Seoul
Childcare: pay 5.8 times more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports: pay 21.3% less in Seoul
Clothing: pay 77.6% more in Seoul

The cost of childcare, clothing, and groceries in Seoul are more expensive than in Kingston. Expenses including transportation, entertainment and sports, housing, and restaurants are lower in Seoul. Notably, childcare and clothing are significantly more expensive in Seoul.

Seoul vs. Kingston Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Seoul instead of Kingston, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 4.1% less for restaurants

	Kingston	Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.52 JMD1,198.08	$7.88 ₩11,023	+4.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.62 JMD1,372.80	$6.09 ₩8,517	-29.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.41 JMD225.02	$1.59 ₩2,220	+12.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.88 JMD139.78	$0.84 ₩1,176	-4.2%
Average			-4.1%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of restaurants

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pay 19.9% more for groceries

	Kingston	Seoul
Bread 1 loaf	$3.54 JMD564.33	$3.10 ₩4,331	-12.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.58 JMD1,047.68	$6.52 ₩9,128	-0.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$15.26 JMD2,431.02	$8.06 ₩11,275	-47.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.27 JMD680.57	$3.06 ₩4,279	-28.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.97 JMD472.94	$4.74 ₩6,627	+59.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.70 JMD430.48	$3.30 ₩4,614	+22.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.39 JMD220.82	$1.55 ₩2,168	+11.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.82 JMD290.51	$2.44 ₩3,415	+33.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.59 JMD253.84	$2.68 ₩3,756	+68.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.04 JMD166.05	$1.73 ₩2,421	+66.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.95 JMD151.13	$1.39 ₩1,940	+46.2%
Average			+19.9%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of groceries

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pay 23.4% less for transportation

	Kingston	Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.83 JMD770.23	$4.59 ₩6,419	-5.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$37.59 JMD5,990.39	$44.40 ₩62,127	+18.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$42,920.30 JMD6,839,024.59	$27,023.07 ₩37,808,512	-37.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.32 JMD4,193.27	$8.02 ₩11,223	-69.5%
Average			-23.4%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of transportation

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pay 7.3% less for housing

	Kingston	Seoul
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$52.89 JMD8,427.28	$22.27 ₩31,164	-57.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$874.50 JMD139,345.10	$883.18 ₩1,235,674	+1.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$425.21 JMD67,753.37	$490.54 ₩686,323	+15.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$118.83 JMD18,934.32	$133.35 ₩186,577	+12.2%
Average			-7.3%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of housing

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pay 5.8 times more for childcare

	Kingston	Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$227.66 JMD36,275.12	$385.48 ₩539,334	+69.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,105.29 JMD335,461.64	$20,782.92 ₩29,077,795	+887.2%
Average			+478.2%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of childcare

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pay 21.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Kingston	Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.13 JMD499.20	$3.58 ₩5,010	+14.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.28 JMD682.45	$3.60 ₩5,040	-15.9%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.77 JMD1,397.76	$3.22 ₩4,509	-63.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$69.97 JMD11,148.77	$53.73 ₩75,173	-23.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.16 JMD2,096.64	$10.74 ₩15,031	-18.4%
Average			-21.3%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 77.6% more for clothing

	Kingston	Seoul
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$26.32 JMD4,193.27	$59.13 ₩82,727	+124.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$25.59 JMD4,076.79	$46.64 ₩65,261	+82.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$71.01 JMD11,315.17	$86.69 ₩121,294	+22.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$68.92 JMD10,982.38	$124.89 ₩174,737	+81.2%
Average			+77.6%

Kingston vs. Seoul - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: May 2025

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