Japan vs Korea Student Budget (Singapore) 2026: A Practical Cost Checklist (Tuition, Housing, Buffer)
TL;DR
A parent-friendly budgeting checklist for studying in Japan vs South Korea: how to think in cost buckets (tuition, housing deposits, insurance, transport, emergency buffer), and where to verify numbers on official portals.
20 Jan 2026, 00:00 Z
Reviewed by
Marcus Pang·Managing Director (Maths)
Planning a revision session? Use our study places near me map to find libraries, community study rooms, and late-night spots.
> **Q:** What do Singapore parents and students usually underestimate when budgeting for Japan or Korea?
> \
> **A:** The “non-tuition” costs — housing deposits, first-month setup costs, insurance/admin fees, and the emergency buffer. If you budget by buckets (not by vibes), you make better decisions earlier.
> **TL;DR (1 minute)**
> - Budget using **buckets** (one-time vs monthly), not just “tuition + rent”.
> - Use official portals as your baseline:
> - Japan cost of living (official): https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/life/cost-of-living/
> - Korea living & housing (official): https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/ko/life/livingAndHousing.do
> - Build an **emergency buffer** before you assume a best-case scholarship outcome.
<Image
src="/optimised/study-abroad-japan-korea-checklist-hero-20260119-d7fc4a55.avif"
alt="Students studying together in a library with books and laptops."
width={720}
height={480}
/>
*Status:* Last reviewed 2026-01-20. Costs change by city, housing type, exchange rates, and inflation. Treat this as a planning checklist and verify current numbers on official pages and your university’s accommodation pages.
If you’re still deciding Japan vs Korea at a high level:
* https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/Study-Abroad-Japan-vs-South-Korea-Checklist
---
## 1) The simplest budgeting model: “one-time vs monthly”
You don’t need a perfect spreadsheet to start. You just need to stop missing whole categories.
### A) One-time / start-up costs (the ones that surprise families)
Typical buckets to budget for:
* Visa/admin fees (verify on official pages)
* Flights and baggage
* Housing deposit + initial move-in costs
* First-week setup: SIM, transport card, basic household items
* Insurance/admin fees required by your school (verify)
### B) Monthly / recurring costs (the ones that quietly bleed you)
Typical buckets:
* Housing (rent/dorm)
* Utilities (if not included)
* Food
* Transport
* Mobile/internet
* Learning materials (depends on course)
---
## 2) Use official cost pages as your baseline (then sanity-check with the city/university)
### Japan (official)
Study in Japan has a cost of living page:
* https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/life/cost-of-living/
Use it to set a baseline, then verify with:
* your university’s accommodation info
* the actual city you’re in (Tokyo ≠ everywhere)
### South Korea (official)
Study in Korea has a living & housing page:
* https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/ko/life/livingAndHousing.do
Use it to understand categories, then verify numbers using:
* the university dorm pages (deposit, fees, meal plan)
* your city’s cost reality (Seoul vs outside Seoul)
---
## 3) The scholarship trap: “partial support” is common
Even for scholarship routes, don’t budget assuming everything will be covered.
Japan’s official scholarships overview explicitly frames many scholarships as partial support (plan your finances accordingly):
* https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarships/about-scholarships/
Practical implication:
* Plan a realistic “self-funded baseline” first.
* Then add scholarship scenarios on top (best case, likely case, worst case).
---
## 4) A parent-friendly “budget worksheet” (copy/paste)
Use this as a checklist you can fill in over 30 minutes:
### **One-time costs**
* **Flights + baggage:** ________
* **Visa/admin fees (verify):** ________
* **Housing deposit:** ________
* **Move-in essentials:** ________
* **Insurance/admin:** ________
* **Emergency buffer (minimum 2–3 months of monthly costs):** ________
### **Monthly costs**
* **Housing:** ________
* **Food:** ________
* **Transport:** ________
* **Mobile/internet:** ________
* **Utilities (if needed):** ________
* **Other:** ________
If you don’t know a number, write “unknown” — then assign it a next action (“check dorm page”, “email school”, “verify official visa page”).
---
## 5) Where this fits in your Japan/Korea planning
If you’re planning via scholarships:
* MEXT overview: https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/Japanese-Government-MEXT-Scholarship-2026-Profile
* GKS-U overview: https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/Global-Korea-Scholarship-GKS-Undergraduate-2026-Profile
* Singapore document pack playbook: https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/Singapore-Overseas-Scholarship-Document-Pack-Playbook
If you’re also comparing local Singapore scholarships:
* https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/matcher
