Cost of living comparison

 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
compared to
 Seoul, South Korea
Seoul vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 73.9% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur.

Restaurants
pay 63.2% more in Seoul
Groceries
pay 2.4 times more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 2.0 times more in Seoul
Housing
pay 62.9% more in Seoul
Childcare
pay 93.3% more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 27.0% more in Seoul
Clothing
pay 29.8% more in Seoul

The cost of groceries, transportation, childcare, restaurants, housing, and clothing in Seoul are more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur. Notably, groceries, transportation, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Seoul.

Seoul vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Seoul instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:

pay 63.2% more for restaurants

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $4.54
MYR20.16
$7.88
₩11,498
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$4.54
MYR20.16
$6.09
₩8,885
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.84
MYR3.74
$1.59
₩2,316

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pay 2.4 times more for groceries

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$0.95
MYR4.20
$3.10
₩4,517
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.58
MYR33.62
$6.52
₩9,522
Milk (1 gallon) $7.22
MYR32.02
$8.06
₩11,761

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pay 2.0 times more for transportation

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $1.77
MYR7.87
$4.59
₩6,696
Monthly public transit pass $11.36
MYR50.39
$44.40
₩64,809
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $37,478.71
MYR166,293.02
$27,023.07
₩39,440,435

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pay 62.9% more for housing

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$25.27
MYR112.10
$22.27
₩32,509
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $536.30
MYR2,379.54
$883.18
₩1,289,009
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $371.69
MYR1,649.19
$490.54
₩715,947

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pay 93.3% more for childcare

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $250.80
MYR1,112.82
$385.48
₩562,613
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $8,920.55
MYR39,580.49
$20,782.92
₩30,332,875

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pay 27.0% more for entertainment and sports

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.09
MYR18.14
$3.58
₩5,227
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.92
MYR12.95
$3.60
₩5,257
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$4.09
MYR18.14
$3.22
₩4,704

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pay 29.8% more for clothing

 
Kuala Lumpur
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$57.74
MYR256.18
$59.13
₩86,297
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$35.00
MYR155.30
$46.64
₩68,078
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$76.75
MYR340.55
$86.69
₩126,530

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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: April 2025
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