China vs Japan - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China Japan
🚶 Cost of living one person
$663
$1109
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1807
$2719
🏠 One person rent
$276
$500
🏘️ Family rent
$463
$826
🍽️ Food expenses
$235
$383
🚐 Transport expenses
$72.4
$129
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$868
$1914
💸 GDP per capita
$13303
$32487
😃 Human freedom index
4.93
8.6
❤️ Life expectancy
78
84
👮 Corruption perceptions index
43
71
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
28%
🎓 Higher education
88
98
😀 Quality of life
52
90
🏙️ Population
1.41B
124M

The average cost of living in China ($663) is 40% less expensive than in Japan ($1109). China ranked 158th vs 81st for Japan in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.3 months in China compared to 1.7 months in Japan. Ranked 85th and 18th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Share this picture

Prices in China vs Japan

We calculate prices for China and Japan as a population-weighted mean of 544 and 907 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 Japan
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.15
$6.36
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$21.8
$33.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.04
$4.84
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.32
$3.07
 Cappuccino
$2.84
$2.99
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.51
$1.16
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$316
$528
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$209
$347
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$687
$1147
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$419
$693
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$35.8
$90.7
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$55.1
$140
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$11
$30.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.45%
1.98%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4148
$5087
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2286
$2842
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.37
$1.59
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$20.7
$59.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.21
$23.9
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.19
$1.05
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.78
$1.4
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.68
$1.4
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.01
$4.22
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.59
$2.01
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.2
$11.3
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.58
$6.17
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11
$20
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.81
$4.53
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.25
$2.33
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.49
$3.67
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.27
$4.68
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.76
$2.55
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.92
$2.59
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$0.55
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.27
$1.34
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12
$8.67
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.86
$1.84
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.51
$3.74
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.2
$9.68
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.85
$3.41
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.53
$1.29
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.74
$1.53
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.7
$51.5
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.26
$11.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$34.5
$34.1
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.76
$15.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$46.5
$45
👟 Brand Sneakers
$73.8
$56
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$479
$448
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$17696
$13117

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in China vs Japan

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In China

City Cost of living Population
Chongqing
$631
32.1M
Shanghai
$1147
24.9M
Chengdu
$688
20.9M
Guangzhou
$785
18.7M
Suzhou
$798
12.7M
Beijing
$1108
21.9M
Shenzhen
$995
17.5M
Tianjin
$682
13.9M
Wuhan
$657
12.3M
Baoding
$480
11.5M
Xi'an
$594
13M
Nanjing
$789
9.31M
Zhengzhou
$523
12.6M
Qingdao
$649
10.1M
Ningbo
$660
9.4M
Hangzhou
$899
11.9M
Changsha
$622
10M
Nantong
$581
7.73M
Shenyang
$612
9.07M
Hefei
$670
9.37M
Jinan
$546
9.2M
Harbin
$713
10M
Linyi
$523
11M
Dongguan
$694
10.5M
Shijiazhuang
$521
10.6M
Changchun
$607
9.07M
Xuzhou
$531
9.08M
Fuzhou
$679
8.29M
Dalian
$737
7.45M
Wenzhou
$774
9.57M

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1679
14.3M
Yokohama
$1326
3.76M
Osaka
$1254
2.75M
Nagoya
$1141
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1358
1.54M
Sapporo
$1137
1.96M
Hiroshima
$842
1.2M
Kyoto
$1100
1.46M
Kobe
$1185
1.52M
Fukuoka
$1018
1.6M
Saitama
$1055
1.33M
Sagamihara
$978
726K
Sakai
$1099
824K
Hachioji
$1318
576K
Chiba
$1232
975K
Shizuoka
$895
686K
Kitakyushu
$1041
935K
Amagasaki
$1059
456K
Funabashi
$1119
641K
Sendai
$1007
1.06M
Yokosuka
$1120
390K
Kumamoto
$922
738K
Kawaguchi
$1045
594K
Machida
$1047
434K
Kagoshima
$951
594K
Himeji
$976
528K
Kashiwa
$1108
428K
Utsunomiya
$1063
518K
Niigata
$1018
791K
Hamamatsu
$995
788K