China vs India - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China India
🚶 Cost of living one person
$639
$424
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1733
$1001
🏠 One person rent
$264
$170
🏘️ Family rent
$443
$277
🍽️ Food expenses
$228
$166
🚐 Transport expenses
$69.6
$45.4
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$755
$334
💸 GDP per capita
$13303
$2697
😃 Human freedom index
4.93
6.26
❤️ Life expectancy
78
72
👮 Corruption perceptions index
43
38
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
15.8%
🎓 Higher education
90
73
😀 Quality of life
51
44
🏙️ Population
1.41B
1.45B

The average cost of living in China ($639) is 51% more expensive than in India ($424). China ranked 158th vs 191st for India in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.2 months in China compared to 0.8 months in India. Ranked 84th and 118th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in China vs India infographic

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Prices in China vs India

We calculate prices for China and India as a population-weighted mean of 544 and 220 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

China India
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.15
$3.21
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$21.8
$14.3
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5
$3.98
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.22
$2.11
 Cappuccino
$2.86
$1.88
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.49
$0.43
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$298
$185
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$198
$123
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$646
$494
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$408
$289
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$34.4
$26.8
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$52.8
$41.3
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$11.9
$7.85
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.84%
9.05%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4169
$1880
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2400
$979
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.35
$0.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$20
$10.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.03
$3.22
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.14
$1.15
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.78
$0.69
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.63
$0.5
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.97
$0.72
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.58
$0.97
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$5.41
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.31
$3.25
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$10.6
$5.92
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.7
$2.08
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.21
$0.72
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.42
$1.07
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.18
$0.51
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.74
$0.39
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.9
$0.45
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.37
$0.22
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.21
$1.02
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$11.4
$8.49
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.82
$1.88
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.35
$3.69
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.94
$1.66
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.59
$2.86
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.46
$1.63
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.66
$0.81
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.2
$17.2
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6
$3.59
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$33.2
$16.8
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.55
$2.64
👖 Brand Jeans
$46.6
$25.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$71.4
$45.9
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$386
$70.2
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$15860
$2014

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in China vs India

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In China

City Cost of living Population
Chongqing
$561
32.1M
Shanghai
$1128
24.9M
Chengdu
$635
20.9M
Shenzhen
$878
17.5M
Guangzhou
$758
18.7M
Beijing
$1029
21.9M
Suzhou
$771
12.7M
Tianjin
$646
13.9M
Wuhan
$639
12.3M
Baoding
$456
11.5M
Xi'an
$580
13M
Hangzhou
$826
11.9M
Nanjing
$753
9.31M
Hong Kong
$2718
7.41M
Qingdao
$626
10.1M
Changsha
$592
10M
Hefei
$643
9.37M
Harbin
$655
10M
Wuxi
$679
7.46M
Xuzhou
$499
9.08M
Dongguan
$662
10.5M
Quanzhou
$621
8.78M
Changchun
$557
9.07M
Linyi
$546
11M
Wenzhou
$753
9.57M
Nantong
$547
7.73M
Yantai
$697
7.1M
Jinan
$573
9.2M
Zhengzhou
$504
12.6M
Foshan
$589
9.5M

In India

City Cost of living Population
Delhi
$489
26.5M
Bangalore
$524
12.3M
Mumbai
$705
15.4M
Pune
$517
5.95M
Hyderabad
$470
9.31M
Ahmedabad
$442
7.65M
Chennai
$437
6.6M
Surat
$705
5.94M
Kolkata
$366
4.5M
Kanpur
$320
3.07M
Lucknow
$339
3.38M
Thane
$487
1.89M
Ghaziabad
$372
2.38M
Jaipur
$387
3.07M
Agra
$388
1.59M
Nashik
$350
1.49M
Kalyan
$399
1.25M
Faridabad
$383
1.4M
Navi Mumbai
$503
1.12M
Meerut
$350
1.31M
Vadodara
$374
2.07M
Nagpur
$545
2.41M
Mysore
$346
1.27M
Indore
$361
1.99M
Allahabad
$300
1.54M
Ludhiana
$421
1.62M
Vijayawada
$339
1.05M
Bhopal
$366
1.8M
Jodhpur
$322
1.7M
Aurangabad
$349
1.18M