What can you buy at Korean pharmacies? Great choice of where you go and what to buy!
Korea is such a fascinating place of beauty and health. You can see the words “약국”(yaggug) here and there in the country. This is a Korean pharmacy. The stores are usually not that big and people from abroad might hesitate to go inside of there. But I’m sure you can enjoy it if you are interested in beauty and health!
Here’s one of the best choices of pharmacies and let me share what I bought with the reviews:)
*Some of the posts include affiliate links in the blog.
Great price and access! 보령약국(Boryeong Pharmacy), close to the biggest Korean traditional market
What is Boryeong Pharmacy?
Boryeong Pharmacy is one of the big pharmacies in Seoul, Jongro 5ga.
It’s like a wholesale and well-known pharmacy in Korea as they run commercials on TV.
There’s a street called “Pharmacy Street” from Jongro 5ga to Dongdaemun and you can find literally a lot of pharmacies.
The shop is also on this street but you might feel a little bit bigger than others.
This is how it looks!
Good deals with reasonable price
The best part of this place is their good price!
I didn’t have much time to compare the price with other pharmacies this time but my Korean friend told me the store is like wholesale and the price is reasonable overall.
If you don’t know where you should go, it will be one of the best options!
FYI, you can pay with your credit card.
I could use JCB card(Japanese credit card) there.
Access
It’s just by Exit 13 of Jongro 5ga station. (Metro Line1)
The digital clock on the signboard is the landmark.
You can see “광장시장(Gwangjang Sijang or Market), one of the most famous Korean traditional markets, on the opposite side. So you can go there before or after the shopping!
There are some entrances in Gwangjang Market. You can see the pharmacy on the opposite side of the entrance where the popular kkwabaegi(twisted Korean doughnut) store is in. (You might realize the store easily as there are lots of people lining!)
You can stop by when you go to Gwangjang Market:)
What can you buy? Share the purchases
Here are 3 items that I’ve been curious about and bought this time!
It seems they are used to communicating with foreign visitors as the store is bigger than others.
(But of course, it depends on the pharmacist.)
They asked me to show them the pictures of what I wanted to buy.
So it might be more convenient if you have pictures that you want beforehand.
You can show them the following photos if needed:)
The ever-popular ointment | Madecassol
This is an ointment and there are no people who don’t know this wound healing cream in Korea.
Centella Asiatica(CICA) is one of the features of the cream and it’s been almost half a century since the ointment was sold from “Dongkuk Pharm”. Their trusted brand was built with this ointment.
You can also have a powder type of Madecassol.
【The price】
It was KRW 6,200 for 10g when I bought it.
(as of May 2024)
The rough standard price is around KRW 8,000
Isn’t it a good deal?
Skin spots care cream | Melanosa cream
This is a cream for inconspicuous skin spots.
The feature of this cream is 4% of hydroquinone!
I was supposed to buy DOMINA, which has been sold in Korea for a long time, but I bought it instead as the price was cheaper and it also had 4% hydroquinone.
FYI, the approved concentration of the hydroquinone without description in Japan is up to 2%.
As a side note, you can buy 4% hydroquinone cream in Malaysia too.
It seems it’s also ok to use melasma.
(The laser treatments might make the melasma worse.)
But you need to avoid using it daytime.
The spots where you apply hydroquinone can be darker when they are exposed to UV rays.
You need to use it only at night, wash the applied spots carefully, and protect your skin from UV rays with sunscreen.
【The price】
It was KRW 15,000 for 30g when I bought it.
(as of May 2024)
The rough standard price is around KRW 20,000
I already love this place haha
FYI, DOMINA is around KRW 45,000 for 60g.
If you want to try hydroquinone for the least amount to begin with, Melanosa cream might be reasonable from the price and amount perspectives.
Moisturizing foot care cream | Kounbal cream
This is also a well-known long-seller foot care item in Korea!
This is used for dry protection and heel smoother.
There are 3 types of Kounbal creams and I bought a red cap one this time.
You can see yellow and green caps and each of them contains different ingredients.)
The packages look retro style and that tells me how they have been loved in Korea for so long time:)
This red cap cream contains emu oil which is called “sacred oil” by Australian Aboriginal people.
If you’re looking for the most moisturizing Kounbal cream, then the red one meets your request!
It is said that emu oil has a similar chemical composition with sebum and that’s why it is compatible with skin.
It also contains urea so it might be better not to use it for a long time but to balance use and not to use.
【The price】
It was KRW 5,000 for 100g when I bought it.
(as of May 2024)
The rough standard price is around KRW 55,000
I found some people who bought it for around KRW 4,000.
It might be different depending on the timing.
But it’s still not that bad.
When you have no idea where to go, give it a try Boryeong Pharmacy!
There are so many pharmacies in Korea. If you have no idea where you should go, then Boryeong Pharmacy is going to be one of the good options as their price and access are not bad:)
I’m sure lots of people go to OLIVE YOUNG for getting cosmetic items but there are also lots of things that are sold only at pharmacies.
Let’s give it a try!
I’ve also heard there’s another reasonable pharmacy in Namdaemun.
That’s my next destination:)