Korea Cost Planning (Singapore Students) 2026: How to Use the Official “Abroad Expenses” + “Living Expense” Pages
TL;DR
A source-first budgeting guide for Singapore students and parents: how to use the Korean government’s official Study in Korea cost pages (abroad expenses + living expenses), what those pages cover, and how to turn them into a realistic…
21 Jan 2026, 00:00 Z
Reviewed by
Marcus Pang·Managing Director (Maths)
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> **Q:** How do I build a realistic Korea budget without relying on “someone on TikTok said…”?
> \
> **A:** Start with Korea’s official Study in Korea cost pages, then replace “average” numbers with your university’s actual tuition and your housing plan. Your goal isn’t a perfect spreadsheet — it’s to avoid predictable budget shocks (deposits, insurance, one-time fees, and timing).
> **TL;DR (fast route)**
> - Tuition + study expense baseline (official): https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/plan/abroadExpenses.do
> - Monthly living expense baseline (official): https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/life/livingExpense.do
> - If you want a Japan vs Korea parent-friendly checklist too: https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/Japan-vs-Korea-Student-Budget-Singapore-Practical-Cost-Checklist-Guide-2026
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*Status:* Last reviewed 2026-01-21. Figures on official pages can change; treat ranges as a planning baseline and always verify current tuition on your target university page.
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## 1) What the official pages are good for (and what they can’t do)
The Study in Korea portal is useful because it gives a government-run baseline for:
* tuition/study expense context, and
* “typical” monthly living expense categories.
But it can’t tell you the two numbers that matter most:
* **your university’s actual tuition and fees**, and
* **your housing reality** (dorm vs off-campus, deposits, roommates, location).
So the right workflow is:
* use official pages for the baseline, then replace averages with your actual plan.
---
## 2) Step-by-step: use the official “Abroad Expenses” page
Open: https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/plan/abroadExpenses.do
Use it for two jobs:
### A) Get a baseline that’s more reliable than hearsay
The page explains that tuition can vary significantly and highlights differences between types of institutions.
Treat it as a “ballpark sanity check”, not a final quote.
### B) Turn it into your own “first-year cost” sheet
Write down (as bullets):
* your intended school type (degree vs language programme),
* your intended field/major,
* the tuition range you see on the official page (as a baseline),
* then replace it with your target university’s actual tuition once you confirm it.
Important: separate **one-time costs** vs **monthly costs**.
---
## 3) Step-by-step: use the official “Living Costs and Expenses” page
Open: https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/life/livingExpense.do
This page is unusually practical: it breaks monthly costs into buckets (housing, food, transport, other) and also includes saving tips.
For Singapore families, the best way to use it is:
* pick the “monthly buckets” you’ll track,
* choose conservative numbers within the official ranges,
* then adjust based on your city and housing plan.
The official page’s “Estimated Monthly Expenses” section includes example ranges (KRW) — use those as a starting point, then customise.
If you want more housing context (what deposits and living arrangements feel like), keep this official page open too:
* https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/life/livingAndHousing.do
---
## 4) Turn it into a Singapore-friendly budget (simple template)
Copy/paste this and fill in numbers later:
### One-time costs (before you arrive)
* application fees (if any)
* flights
* dorm deposit / housing deposit
* first-month rent (if off-campus)
* bedding/basic setup
* emergency buffer (parents: decide this upfront)
### Monthly costs (recurring)
* housing
* food
* transport
* phone/internet
* health insurance / medical buffer
* “other” (books, club fees, short trips, admin costs)
### Tuition and compulsory fees
* tuition (per semester / per year)
* compulsory student fees
* any required insurance fees (verify with the university)
If you want a cross-country checklist to compare Japan vs Korea without overthinking:
* https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/scholarships/Japan-vs-Korea-Student-Budget-Singapore-Practical-Cost-Checklist-Guide-2026
---
## 5) Next action (today)
Pick one:
* Open the two official Korea cost pages and write a 10-line budget draft (don’t aim for perfect):
- https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/plan/abroadExpenses.do
- https://www.studyinkorea.go.kr/en/life/livingExpense.do
* If you already have a target university, replace “average tuition” with the exact tuition published on your programme page.
* If you’re still deciding Japan vs Korea overall:
- https://eclatinstitute.sg/blog/Study-Abroad-Japan-vs-South-Korea-Checklist
