China vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

China United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$678
$2434
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$1849
$5606
🏠 One person rent
$293
$1567
🏘️ Family rent
$541
$2757
🍽️ Food expenses
$235
$606
🚐 Transport expenses
$69.3
$106
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$813
$4759
💸 GDP per capita
$12720
$76399
😃 Human freedom index
5.22
8.23
❤️ Life expectancy
78.2
76.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
45
69
🌐 English speaking %
0.7%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
90
100
😀 Quality of life
50
86
🏙️ Population
1.44B
331M

The average cost of living in China ($678) is 72% less expensive than in the United States ($2434). China ranked 135th vs 6th for the United States 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 2 months in the United States. Ranked 80th and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in China vs United States infographic

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Prices in China vs the United States

We calculate prices for China and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 544 and 2202 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 United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$3.63
$18.1
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$21.2
$71.5
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.89
$9.83
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.42
$5.91
 Cappuccino
$3.26
$4.85
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.47
$2.41
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$323
$1626
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$225
$1308
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$659
$2940
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$427
$2379
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$35.9
$125
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$55.2
$193
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$12.1
$70
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.77%
6.52%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4688
$5279
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2774
$3887
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.34
$2.3
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$19.7
$70.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$4.11
$18.7
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.13
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.8
$1.08
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.49
$3.4
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.03
$4.41
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.67
$4.26
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.5
$12.9
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.68
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.7
$15.7
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.65
$4.97
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.26
$1.73
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.47
$4.46
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.17
$4.44
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.77
$2.79
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$0.86
$2.7
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.4
$1.39
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.2
$2.45
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$12.8
$13.7
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.85
$2.25
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.22
$9.57
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$4.83
$9.17
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.49
$5.6
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.46
$4.13
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.62
$2.07
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$36.9
$48.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$5.92
$13.1
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$34.9
$116
💇 Haircut, simple
$5.54
$20
👖 Brand Jeans
$53.4
$51.5
👟 Brand Sneakers
$75.8
$85.6
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$407
$1279
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$14240
$15858

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in China vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In China

City Cost of living Population
Beijing
$1116
21.9M
Shanghai
$1165
24.9M
Shenzhen
$995
17.5M
Hong Kong
$2733
7.41M
Chongqing
$753
32.1M
Guangzhou
$755
18.7M
Chengdu
$656
20.9M
Tianjin
$718
13.9M
Xi'an
$550
13M
Suzhou
$1144
12.7M
Hangzhou
$827
11.9M
Nantong
$785
7.73M
Baoding
$474
11.5M
Wuhan
$637
12.3M
Wuxi
$714
7.46M
Foshan
$600
9.5M
Nanjing
$736
9.31M
Quanzhou
$776
8.78M
Hefei
$647
9.37M
Shijiazhuang
$489
10.6M
Dongguan
$621
10.5M
Bijie
$612
6.9M
Changchun
$588
9.07M
Jieyang
$932
6.09M
Qingdao
$648
10.1M
Ganzhou
$811
8.97M
Ningbo
$810
9.4M
Guiyang
$569
5.99M
Yantai
$568
7.1M
Zhengzhou
$495
12.6M

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4030
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3274
3.9M
Chicago
$2791
2.75M
Houston
$2655
2.3M
San Diego
$3451
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2571
1.6M
Phoenix
$2566
1.61M
San Jose
$3650
1.01M
Dallas
$2641
1.3M
San Francisco
$3840
874K
San Antonio
$2247
1.43M
Austin
$2674
962K
Seattle
$3194
737K
Washington
$3227
690K
Fort Worth
$2214
919K
Charlotte
$3011
875K
Jacksonville
$2394
950K
Hempstead
$2649
793K
Boston
$3279
676K
Indianapolis
$2228
888K
Denver
$2760
716K
Columbus
$2182
906K
Nashville
$3313
689K
Portland
$2606
653K
Louisville
$1795
633K
El Paso
$1408
679K
Baltimore
$2273
586K
Detroit
$1932
639K
Atlanta
$2771
499K
Memphis
$1782
633K