This query is addressed to all foreigners working in Taiwan who have sone equivalent experience in other similar countries (compare apple with apples, i .e. teaching ESL. in capital cities of both).
My concern is not quality of life (with this post anyway) but one factor only.
After you pay your rent, buy your groceries, pay for the bus etc
Do you save more in Taiwan than Korea, China etc. Or less? Care to venture a percentage?
Why are you concerned? You said elsewhere you don’t meet the basic requirements to teach ESL in Taiwan so you are never likely to have to worry about cost of living in the capital.
You can probably survive and thrive on less than NT$30,000 if you make the right lifestyle decisions. Don’t go partying, eat cheap, walk instead of taking public transportation, rent a crappy apartment, etc.
It’s not fun, but it’s certainly doable. I was earning only a little more than that each month and did OK, but I didn’t end up saving much.
Thank you for constructive contributions. I am particularly interested in comparisons. With enough economic data a mathematician could create a formula, for example Taipei vs. Seoul is 1.23 (In Seoul living the same standard of living at an equivalent school and number of hours, one can save 23% more (or less - I have zero and dotal evidence let alone data)
You will save more in Korea. The pay/hr is close to the same but the benefits are better (like a free apt). Additionally most jobs offers salaries for 25-30 hrs and it can be difficult to get that many hours in Taiwan at one place.
But the elephant in the room is that you don’t have a university degree and won’t be able to get a legal teaching job in either country.