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MONEY & PROOF OF FUNDSPosted by Sofia 🇦🇷 Argentina · 1 month ago
How much money do I need for the first month specifically?
not the visa amount, the actual cash for arriving. deposit, first rent, phone, transport card, food before my card works.
what did that first month cost you
what did that first month cost you
9 comments
OFFICIAL ANSWER
KyaALLO TEAM
Founder & Head Consultant · Seoul
Budget 2,500,000 to 4,500,000 won accessible for the first month, depending on your housing choice. Here is the itemised version.
If you take a goshiwon or dormitory (no large deposit):
- Housing: 450,000 to 700,000 for the month, no deposit
- Prepaid SIM: 40,000 to 60,000
- T-money card and first top-up: 30,000
- Bedding, toiletries, basic supplies: 150,000 to 250,000
- Food for the month: 450,000 to 600,000
- Textbooks: 40,000 to 70,000
- Buffer for the unexpected: 300,000
Total: roughly 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 won, plus tuition if you have not already paid it.
If you take a one-room with a deposit, add 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 for the deposit and 300,000 to 800,000 for agency fees and setup. This is why most students do not do this in month one.
The part that catches people out is the gap before your Korean bank card works. Realistically:
- Days 1 to 5: no Korean account, so you are on your foreign card and cash.
- Days 5 to 14: account opened but the debit card takes a few days to arrive, and some accounts are restricted for foreigners initially — daily transfer limits until you show more documents.
- Foreign cards are widely accepted in Seoul, but not by landlords, not by many goshiwons, and not by small restaurants.
So: land with 1,500 to 2,000 USD in cash or accessible on a foreign card, and make sure that card has no foreign transaction fee and a high enough daily withdrawal limit. Tell your home bank you are travelling so the card is not blocked on day one — this is the most common preventable disaster.
And keep about 500,000 won untouched as a buffer. Something always comes up in month one: a deposit you did not expect, a document you have to courier, a doctor's visit.
If you take a goshiwon or dormitory (no large deposit):
- Housing: 450,000 to 700,000 for the month, no deposit
- Prepaid SIM: 40,000 to 60,000
- T-money card and first top-up: 30,000
- Bedding, toiletries, basic supplies: 150,000 to 250,000
- Food for the month: 450,000 to 600,000
- Textbooks: 40,000 to 70,000
- Buffer for the unexpected: 300,000
Total: roughly 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 won, plus tuition if you have not already paid it.
If you take a one-room with a deposit, add 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 for the deposit and 300,000 to 800,000 for agency fees and setup. This is why most students do not do this in month one.
The part that catches people out is the gap before your Korean bank card works. Realistically:
- Days 1 to 5: no Korean account, so you are on your foreign card and cash.
- Days 5 to 14: account opened but the debit card takes a few days to arrive, and some accounts are restricted for foreigners initially — daily transfer limits until you show more documents.
- Foreign cards are widely accepted in Seoul, but not by landlords, not by many goshiwons, and not by small restaurants.
So: land with 1,500 to 2,000 USD in cash or accessible on a foreign card, and make sure that card has no foreign transaction fee and a high enough daily withdrawal limit. Tell your home bank you are travelling so the card is not blocked on day one — this is the most common preventable disaster.
And keep about 500,000 won untouched as a buffer. Something always comes up in month one: a deposit you did not expect, a document you have to courier, a doctor's visit.
Was this helpful?Updated 1 month ago
9 comments
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You can still post anonymously after signing in.tell your bank you're travelling BEFORE you fly. mine froze my card on day one for suspicious activity and i had 30,000 won cash. worst 48 hours of the whole year
24
adding this to the top of my list
8
bring a second card from a different bank too. redundancy costs nothing
6
the gap between opening the account and the card arriving is about a week and nobody warns you. budget cash for that week specifically
16
and there are daily transfer limits on foreigner accounts at first. couldn't pay my rent from the app in month one
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goshiwon month one is the answer purely because there's no deposit. it removes 5 million won from the problem
13
landlords and small restaurants are cash. i assumed korea was fully cashless like the articles say and that's only true for big places
10
traditional markets too. always keep some cash on you
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my first month was ~1.8m won total including a goshiwon. the buffer is what saved me, i used all of it
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