China vs Spain - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China Spain
🚶 Cost of living one person
$686
$1480
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1939
$3313
🏠 One person rent
$292
$850
🏘️ Family rent
$561
$1358
🍽️ Food expenses
$239
$415
🚐 Transport expenses
$73.6
$89.1
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$864
$1891
💸 GDP per capita
$12614
$32677
😃 Human freedom index
5.15
8.03
❤️ Life expectancy
78.6
83.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
42
60
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
22%
🎓 Higher education
91
90
😀 Quality of life
48
79
🏙️ Population
1.44B
47.4M

The average cost of living in China ($686) is 54% less expensive than in Spain ($1480). China ranked 144th vs 36th for Spain 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 1.3 months in Spain. Ranked 84th and 29th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in China vs Spain infographic

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Prices in China vs Spain

We calculate prices for China and Spain as a population-weighted mean of 544 and 153 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 Spain
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.44
$14.3
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$22.8
$49.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.19
$10
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.31
$3.4
 Cappuccino
$3.2
$2.3
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.51
$2.27
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$331
$892
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$222
$689
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$676
$1500
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$449
$1115
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$35.3
$86.8
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$54.3
$134
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$12.6
$33.2
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.4%
3.55%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4645
$4084
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2808
$2641
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.37
$1.75
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$21.7
$36
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.18
$15.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.18
$1.77
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.86
$1.14
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.58
$1.39
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.03
$1.5
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.68
$2.92
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.9
$14
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.5
$8.06
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.8
$15
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.7
$2.28
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.32
$1.9
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.57
$1.99
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.24
$2.45
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.8
$1.68
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.94
$1.86
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.38
$0.5
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.22
$2.13
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12.1
$6.27
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.82
$1.22
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.38
$5.88
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.91
$8.18
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.61
$3.39
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.47
$1.97
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.67
$2.26
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.7
$44.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$6.15
$9.21
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$34
$68.5
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.59
$15.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$54.2
$79.1
👟 Brand Sneakers
$77.5
$85.8
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$461
$455
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$17526
$8656

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in China vs Spain

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 Spain

City Cost of living Population
Madrid
$1889
3.33M
Barcelona
$1887
1.66M
Valencia
$1581
808K
Seville
$1358
684K
Tenerife
$1707
932K
Zaragoza
$1330
683K
Malaga
$1519
586K
Murcia
$1192
673K
Bilbao
$1522
346K
Palma de Mallorca
$1783
423K
Las Palmas
$1353
378K
Alicante
$1360
349K
Cordoba
$1165
324K
Vigo
$1282
294K
Terrassa
$1491
225K
Valladolid
$1262
297K
Pamplona
$1464
206K
Gijon
$1269
268K
Vitoria-Gasteiz
$1600
256K
Sabadell
$1577
218K
L'Hospitalet de Llobregat
$1635
274K
San Sebastian
$1623
189K
Badalona
$1914
226K
A Coruna
$1259
247K
Granada
$1288
231K
Oviedo
$1158
186K
Jerez de la Frontera
$936
213K
Cartagena
$1136
218K
Elche
$1192
238K
Burgos
$1220
174K