The Value of Money, in Ramen
All scenes › Chapter 1 Wages stay the same?
Counting in coins
One pack: 1 coin → 9 coins
View in 3DWhat changed was the price of ramen
Let's count the price of a pack in 100-won coins. In 1983, it was 100 won — one coin was enough. In 2025, it is about 830 won, which takes 9 coins. What changed was not the 10,000 won, but the price of ramen. So why did the price go up?
Why?These are recorded shop prices: 1963 10 won, 1970 20 won, 1983 100 won, 1993 230 won, 2003 470 won, 2013 634 won, 2023 820 won. Years in between are joined with straight lines.
Learn moreThe 1963 and 1970 prices come from the National Archives of Korea and news reports; from 1983, they are 120 g prices collected by the Korea Price Research Center. Sources disagree on the 1978–1981 price (50 or 100 won), so this documentary uses 1983, when the record is clear.
- Price of one pack of ramen, 2025
- 830 won
- One pack, 1983
- 100 won
- One pack, 2025
- about 830 won
calculated from Bank of Korea ECOS data and recorded ramen prices
View this scene in 3D →Read more
Newsis (2023-10-16) · Ramen that cost 100 won in 1983 rose eightfold (in Korean) · National Archives of Korea · ramen (in Korean)
More in the series
Prices, money, income, wages and interest rates come from the Bank of Korea Economic Statistics System (ECOS); ramen prices come from the National Archives of Korea and the Korea Price Research Center (as reported). All income and wage figures are averages. The banknote and ramen packs in the 3D view are sample drawings, not real designs or brands.