China vs Japan - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China Japan
🚶 Cost of living one person
$686
$1160
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1939
$2959
🏠 One person rent
$292
$528
🏘️ Family rent
$561
$1024
🍽️ Food expenses
$239
$394
🚐 Transport expenses
$73.6
$136
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$864
$2197
💸 GDP per capita
$12614
$33834
😃 Human freedom index
5.15
8.4
❤️ Life expectancy
78.6
84
👮 Corruption perceptions index
42
73
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
15%
🎓 Higher education
91
98
😀 Quality of life
48
89
🏙️ Population
1.44B
125M

The average cost of living in China ($686) is 41% less expensive than in Japan ($1160). China ranked 144th vs 65th 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 1.9 months in Japan. Ranked 84th and 16th 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

Share this infographic!

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
$3.44
$6.89
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$22.8
$36.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.19
$5.23
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.31
$3.26
 Cappuccino
$3.2
$3.06
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.51
$1.07
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$331
$531
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$222
$359
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$676
$1193
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$449
$747
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$35.3
$100
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$54.3
$154
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$12.6
$34
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.4%
1.83%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4645
$5404
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2808
$3197
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.37
$1.83
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$21.7
$60.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.18
$26.3
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.18
$1.18
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.86
$1.49
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.58
$1.56
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.03
$3.15
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.68
$2.23
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.9
$12.7
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.5
$6.34
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.8
$16.8
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.7
$4.83
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.32
$2.36
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.57
$3.86
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.24
$4.55
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.8
$2.72
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.94
$2.57
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.38
$0.58
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.22
$1.48
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12.1
$8.16
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.82
$1.97
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.38
$4.19
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.91
$10.4
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.61
$3.78
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.47
$1.41
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.67
$1.69
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.7
$57
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.15
$12.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$34
$33.3
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.59
$17.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$54.2
$45.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$77.5
$60.2
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$461
$350
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$17526
$11669

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
$1136
24.9M
Beijing
$1067
21.9M
Hong Kong
$2753
7.41M
Shenzhen
$958
17.7M
Chongqing
$662
32.1M
Guangzhou
$763
18.7M
Chengdu
$660
20.9M
Tianjin
$710
13.9M
Hangzhou
$843
11.9M
Suzhou
$1020
12.7M
Xi'an
$594
13M
Wuhan
$692
12.3M
Baoding
$482
11.5M
Nantong
$620
7.73M
Wuxi
$686
7.46M
Pudong
$1028
5.68M
Bijie
$612
6.9M
Zhengzhou
$522
12.6M
Nanjing
$774
9.31M
Hefei
$727
9.37M
Qingdao
$681
10.1M
Changchun
$601
9.07M
Ganzhou
$813
8.97M
Guiyang
$576
5.99M
Foshan
$602
9.5M
Yantai
$740
7.1M
Jieyang
$691
5.58M
Changsha
$582
10M
Wenzhou
$776
9.57M
Xuzhou
$528
9.08M

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1641
14.3M
Yokohama
$1385
3.76M
Osaka
$1212
2.75M
Nagoya
$1248
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1187
1.54M
Sapporo
$1268
1.96M
Kyoto
$1210
1.46M
Kobe
$1119
1.52M
Sendai
$1111
1.06M
Saitama
$1038
1.33M
Fukuoka
$1162
1.6M
Sakai
$1174
824K
Hiroshima
$1003
1.2M
Yokosuka
$1153
390K
Sagamihara
$1060
726K
Chiba
$1244
975K
Kitakyushu
$1044
935K
Kagoshima
$1092
594K
Hachioji
$1252
576K
Kumamoto
$970
738K
Wakayama
$1226
353K
Amagasaki
$1132
456K
Kawaguchi
$1056
594K
Utsunomiya
$1048
518K
Niigata
$1108
791K
Shizuoka
$991
686K
Hamamatsu
$1046
788K
Funabashi
$1145
641K
Himeji
$1212
528K
Kurashiki
$1103
475K