Cost of living comparison

 Quito, Ecuador
compared to
 Seoul, South Korea
Seoul vs. Quito Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 70.2% more expensive than Quito.

Restaurants
pay 25.1% more in Seoul
Groceries
pay 2.6 times more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 46.8% more in Seoul
Housing
pay 2.1 times more in Seoul
Childcare
pay 2.1 times more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 22.7% more in Seoul
Clothing
pay 19.7% more in Seoul

The cost of groceries, childcare, housing, transportation, restaurants, and entertainment and sports in Seoul are more expensive than in Quito. Notably, groceries, childcare, and housing are significantly more expensive in Seoul.

Seoul vs. Quito Cost Breakdown

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

pay 25.1% more for restaurants

 
Quito
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $5.00
 
$7.88
₩10,865
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$8.00
 
$6.09
₩8,396
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.08
 
$1.59
₩2,188

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pay 2.6 times more for groceries

 
Quito
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$1.58
 
$3.10
₩4,269
Local cheese (8 oz) $4.12
 
$6.52
₩8,998
Milk (1 gallon) $4.23
 
$8.06
₩11,114

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pay 46.8% more for transportation

 
Quito
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.69
 
$4.59
₩6,328
Monthly public transit pass $20.00
 
$44.40
₩61,241
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $20,000.00
 
$27,023.07
₩37,269,131

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

 
Quito
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$31.13
 
$22.27
₩30,719
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $451.67
 
$883.18
₩1,218,045
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $362.50
 
$490.54
₩676,532

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pay 2.1 times more for childcare

 
Quito
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $288.89
 
$385.48
₩531,639
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $7,190.00
 
$20,782.92
₩28,662,968

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pay 22.7% more for entertainment and sports

 
Quito
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.50
 
$3.58
₩4,939
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.78
 
$3.60
₩4,968
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$7.50
 
$3.22
₩4,445

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pay 19.7% more for clothing

 
Quito
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$43.89
 
$59.13
₩81,546
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$44.40
 
$46.64
₩64,330
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$97.73
 
$86.69
₩119,564

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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: July 2025
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