Korean Job Discussion Forums

[esetters21]

I am coming to the Apgujeoung-Dangnam area of Seoul later this month and understand that this is an affluent area of the city. I have the standard offer as far as housing and the school is supposed to be within 5-10 minutes walking distance from the apartment. I am just curious as to what I can expect my monthly expenditures to be. I am not a miser that saves, saves, saves; but I would like to be able to put a good deal of money away. What is the average cost of living comfortably in Seoul? Thanks![/img]

[ttompatz]

[esetters21]

Allright. I thought that I could get away without going into too much detail, but obviously I was mistaken. I plan on immersing myself in the culture and enjoying the local cuisine. I do, however not plan on doing much cooking at home. Obviously, I will want the taste of "western" food often until I don't crave it. I do not plan on my stay focusing on every meal and western type entertainment that I am accustomed to though. I plan on experiencing as much as I can locally on a budget. Once again, I am not looking to save my whole paycheck. I want to have a good time without going overboard.

[Novernae]

Do a search and you'll find endless discussion on this. Some say you can't save anything unless you hole yourself up at home, others (and I agree with them) find it easy to save 1 million a month without trying and 1.5 if you are careful. Again though it all depends on lifestyle and what you like to spend your money on.

As a personal example:

My monthly bills were on average 130,000 for maintenance fees (I was in an upper middle class neighbourhood which tend to be higher, and this included electric so it was highest in the summer, some schools don't make you pay for maintenance) 5-10,000 for gas, 15,000 phone, no cable, 35,000 Internet. Total: just below 200,000.

Food is about the same as home in the grocery store, if not more expensive. (Fruit is really expensive). It's often just as cheap and sometimess cheaper to eat out. Beef is out of the question (6,000 for enough for two burgers.. a nice treat though), but chicken is incredible (about 1,500 for a lb of boneless skinless). I think I spent about 300,000 on food every month (including eating out)

Eating out is dirt cheap. You can get a full meal that you can't finish with 4-5 different sides, delivered for 3,500.

The subway and buses cost about 1-2,000 won per trip, and cabs are pretty cheap if you're not going far.

Other than that, the rest is up to you. If you like to go out, or you like to shop, factor that in.

[cwaddell]

Been here 2 months, I drink a lot, eat a lot, and do a lot of stuff each weekend......and I saved 1million both months. Korean restaurants are so cheap, as, of course....is soju.

[kangnam mafioso]

avoid eating at sizzlers every night and the sports massage places and you should do just fine. also, i wouldn't ALWAYS buy groceries downstairs at the Hyundae Dept Store.

live normal the first month and see how things go. then adjust, accordingly. pick up some extra classes and stay home more, if the need be.

[StAxX SOuL]

Where to start! It all depends what your poison is.

Starting with 2mill a month, my water / electric / gas work out at approx. 50,000 - 60,000W. Cellphone, which I use rather excessively, is approx. 50,000W a month and my home internet another 25,000W a month. Let�s say 130,000W a month. Subway is marvelously cheap too; if you live near school and use it purely to explore then 20,000W seems a reasonable estimate.

Food I�ll leave 5,000W a day for my dinner. I typically eat at Mom & Pops stores near me, and they serve a variety of Korean dishes ranging between 2,500W to 5,000W for the most expensive dish. I�m also privy to a fresh cream cake or two from the bakery opposite so 5,000W is a fair enough average. Of course if you fancy a little home cooked Korean cuisine then you�ll save money but eating out is so cheap and convenient I find it�s worth the extra. Call it 150,000W a month. I�ll do another 25,000W on general groceries per week. Just snack foods to have in my apartment and fruit, juices, water etc etc. [and not buying imports] I would say my appetite is a little above average too, but in my case anyway, 100,000W per month.

For the essentials, 400,000W a month could see you live if you�re the frugal type. It depends how greatly you indulge on luxuries however as to whether you�ve got any money spare at the end of it all. So let me introduce you to the extravagancies that will eat away at the 1.6Million Won chunk of change you�ve got sat in your bank.

Transport around the city is cheap, and the same goes for taxis too, but you may find yourself taking many more than you ever envisioned simply because of the low cost and convenience � but it will stack up. When I contemplate a 45 minute subway ride with 2 transfers from Munjeong to Itaewon, the 12,000W taxi fare wins out every time.

Partying is the biggest dent on my personal finances. It all depends on how much you drink, what you drink, and where you picture yourself drinking. Bars have no cover charge, and typically Korean brand beer (Cass, Hite & OB) is around the 3,000W mark. I�ve never been one for a serious allegiance to brands, my biggest factor is cost when I�m drinking beer and Cass & OB taste just fine to me. If you�re stuck on foreign beers or Guinness then you can pay up to 8,000W for a drink in the same bars. Clubs are a little more expensive and often have a 10,000 or 15,000W cover charge but that does include one drink to the value of 5,000W. Add 2,000 � 3,000W to the bar prices for drinks across the board. If you�re a little more extravagant then the ultimate night time expense, outside of the hostess bars at least, can be found at the Hyatt Hotel � a basic fare taxi ride from Itaewon. In my opinion the venue is great � its classy, has an eclectic mix of people, the option to sit by the pool outdoors, and plenty of richer Korean women (or men) for the picking once you�ve escaped the attention of the Korean men adverse to you hitting on their women. Drink prices here are in another league entirely with draft beer starting at 13,000W and Corona the cheapest bottle at 13,500W. If you get into buying bottles then prices enter a whole other realm, and whilst Champagne should be avoided at any bar [140,000W for a bottle of basic Moet & Chandon], you�d need even deeper pockets to drink it as the Hyatt. Of course, if you�re a female then drinking is made easy over here, especially by the availability of at least one ladies night where women drink free for the duration of the night. Sure, there�s a bunch of sleazy guys in there waiting in anticipation of the forthcoming clientele, but if you head along in a group its well worth it for stocking up on your alcohol. Apgujeong costs a little more than Itaewon in general, but the one down to Apgujeong unless you�re there with Korean friends is that you�ll find the people quite satisfied with their current company and much less eager to talk to a foreigner.

As a quick side note, if you�re into the hostess bar scene then it depends where you go. Your drink prices are inflated and the prices for the girls who�ll sit with you, even more so. You�ll pay 20,000W to 30,000W for their drinks and anything further is at the discretion of the girls and the money you�re willing to pay. To touch on it quickly, the infamous hooker hill will see you 100,000W or 200,000W for a girl.

Clothes can be expensive if you buy imports. If you like your imitations then you�ll be happy, but if you�re rather tall or have an allegiance to a particular clothing brand, especially European ones then you can pay 100,000W for a T-Shirt around 200,000W for some jeans at the more exclusive department stores in town. Then you�ve the electronics too which are very, very tempting. The latest PDP and HDTV sets ranging between 1 and 3 million Won. The note about imports also applies across the boards, so if you want to buy any foods from home, cosmetics etc. then you�ll be paying a premium.

Any further questions or specifics then feel free to ask.