China vs Japan - Cost of Living Comparison

China Japan
🚶 Cost of living one person
$754
$1200
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1982
$3051
🏠 One person rent
$339
$546
🏘️ Family rent
$583
$1049
🍽️ Food expenses
$255
$407
🚐 Transport expenses
$75.2
$144
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$834
$2447
💸 GDP per capita
$12556
$39313
😃 Human freedom index
5.22
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
78.1
84.6
👮 Corruption perceptions index
45
73
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
15%
🎓 Higher education
89
99
😀 Quality of life
49
93
🏙️ Population
1.44B
125M

The average cost of living in China ($754) is 37% less expensive than in Japan ($1200). China ranked 116th vs 44th 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 1.1 months in China compared to 2 months in Japan. Ranked 84th and 11th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in China vs Japan infographic

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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
$4.25
$6.71
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$22.9
$34.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.12
$5.4
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.76
$3.41
 Cappuccino
$3.6
$3.09
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.53
$1.11
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$385
$532
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$263
$376
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$705
$1146
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$462
$782
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$38
$104
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$58.5
$159
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$14.1
$35
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
5.23%
1.46%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4528
$4231
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2769
$2886
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.39
$1.9
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$20.4
$65.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.77
$26.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.2
$1.21
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.89
$1.43
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.51
$1.54
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.13
$3.36
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.8
$1.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$12.6
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.13
$7.01
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12
$18.7
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.83
$4.94
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$2.59
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.7
$4.27
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.33
$4.38
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.86
$2.92
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.94
$2.34
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.45
$0.61
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.31
$1.61
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12.7
$9.22
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.91
$2.05
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.34
$4.14
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.31
$11.7
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.55
$3.77
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.56
$1.55
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.67
$1.87
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$37.2
$55.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.34
$12.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$32.4
$35.2
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.48
$16.8
👖 Brand Jeans
$57.3
$46.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$84.4
$61.2
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$430
$347
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$14879
$12476

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
Shanghai
$1379
24.9M
Beijing
$1254
21.9M
Shenzhen
$1079
17.5M
Guangzhou
$863
18.7M
Hong Kong
$2884
7.5M
Chengdu
$759
20.9M
Tianjin
$786
13.9M
Hangzhou
$891
11.9M
Wuhan
$665
12.3M
Xi'an
$592
13M
Changchun
$612
9.07M
Suzhou
$1099
12.7M
Nanjing
$811
9.31M
Qingdao
$676
10.1M
Quanzhou
$783
8.78M
Hefei
$675
9.37M
Nanyang
$745
9.71M
Jieyang
$760
6.09M
Ningbo
$882
9.4M
Kunming
$631
8.46M
Handan
$794
9.41M
Weifang
$722
9.39M
Changsha
$785
10M
Ganzhou
$788
8.97M
Foshan
$648
9.5M
Zhoukou
$786
9.03M
Dongguan
$762
10.5M
Heze
$1512
8.8M
Shenyang
$614
9.07M
Nantong
$952
7.73M

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1778
14M
Yokohama
$1555
3.76M
Osaka
$1296
2.75M
Nagoya
$1379
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1105
1.54M
Kobe
$1322
1.52M
Sapporo
$1143
1.96M
Hiroshima
$1212
1.2M
Sendai
$1128
1.06M
Kyoto
$1226
1.46M
Fukuoka
$1316
1.6M
Saitama
$1133
1.33M
Kitakyushu
$1125
935K
Sakai
$1201
824K
Chiba
$1389
975K
Yokosuka
$1154
390K
Kumamoto
$1064
738K
Sagamihara
$1178
726K
Kagoshima
$1178
594K
Funabashi
$1238
641K
Kawaguchi
$1084
593K
Kashiwa
$1090
428K
Okayama
$1113
720K
Hachioji
$1245
576K
Amagasaki
$1217
451K
Utsunomiya
$1153
518K
Niigata
$1070
791K
Shizuoka
$1121
686K
Hamamatsu
$1203
788K
Himeji
$1213
528K