Shanghai vs Sydney - Cost of Living Comparison

Shanghai Sydney
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1379
$2397
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4064
$5724
🏠 One person rent
$768
$1398
🏘️ Family rent
$1746
$2501
🍽️ Food expenses
$353
$528
🚐 Transport expenses
$110
$328
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1510
$4423
😷 Air quality
Moderate
Excellent
✈️ Airport proximity
13 km
9 km
🎓 Higher education
100
99
😀 Quality of life
78
99
🏙️ Population
24.9M
4.84M

The cost of living in Shanghai is 42% less expensive than in Sydney. Cities ranked 3152nd and 240th ($1379 vs $2397) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 5th and 1st in China and Australia, respectively. Check China vs Australia comparison.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.1 months in Shanghai compared to 1.8 months in Sydney. Shanghai ranked 4th best city to live in China vs Sydney ranked 1st in Australia, while ranked 484th and 2nd among best cities to live in the world.

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the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Shanghai vs Sydney infographic

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Prices in Shanghai vs Sydney

Prices for goods and services in Shanghai and Sydney are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

Shanghai Sydney
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$7.11
$13.2
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$42.7
$65.3
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$6.39
$9.75
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.55
$6.44
☕ Cappuccino
$4.81
$3.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$0.56
$2.35
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1079
$1651
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$611
$1155
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2636
$3209
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1416
$2081
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$44.2
$95.3
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$67.1
$146
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$18.9
$48.7
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.98%
4.19%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$18451
$14615
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$10024
$8814
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$0.59
$3.42
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$28.2
$128
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$6.86
$18.6
⛽ Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.25
$1.4
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$3.13
$1.39
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.47
$2.01
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.78
$1.78
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.83
$4.08
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$21.1
$10.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.56
$8.84
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.5
$14
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.49
$3.13
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.63
$2.52
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.11
$2.72
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.88
$5.66
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1
$2.47
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.14
$2.25
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.44
$1.04
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.49
$2.78
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$19.9
$12.1
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.93
$4.26
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.8
$28
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.61
$8.11
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$5.96
$3.36
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.67
$2.34
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.92
$2.61
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$75.2
$60.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$8.13
$15.3
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$108
$45.4
💇 Haircut, simple
$11.1
$19.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$81.1
$77.6
👟 Brand Sneakers
$90.4
$116
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$1380
$1731
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$27276
$16443

Cost of living in other countries

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Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near Shanghai

Distance City Cost of living
9.4 km or 5.8 mi Pudong
$754
47 km or 29 mi Taicang
$667
53 km or 33 mi Kunshan
$701
74 km or 46 mi Qidong
$677
82 km or 51 mi Suzhou
$1099
82 km or 51 mi Jiaxing
$726
85 km or 53 mi Haimen
$674
88 km or 55 mi Changshu
$693
106 km or 66 mi Nantong
$952
117 km or 73 mi Zhangjiagang
$690
121 km or 75 mi Wuxi
$852
135 km or 84 mi Huzhou
$776
141 km or 87 mi Jiangyin
$684
142 km or 88 mi Zhoushan
$680
144 km or 89 mi Ningbo
$882
148 km or 92 mi Jingjiang
$665
155 km or 96 mi Shaoxing
$726
158 km or 98 mi Yixing
$685
159 km or 99 mi Changzhou
$778
160 km or 100 mi Rugao
$683
161 km or 100 mi Hangzhou
$891
177 km or 110 mi Taixing
$681
179 km or 111 mi Hai'an
$673
191 km or 119 mi Liyang
$672
197 km or 122 mi Yangzhong
$652
198 km or 123 mi Guangde
$662
201 km or 125 mi Danyang
$674
208 km or 129 mi Taizhou
$689
217 km or 135 mi Dongtai
$674
223 km or 139 mi Zhenjiang
$573
235 km or 146 mi Yangzhou
$711
236 km or 146 mi Jurong
$666
244 km or 152 mi Ningguo
$655
246 km or 153 mi Yiwu
$650
250 km or 155 mi Xinghua
$681
250 km or 156 mi Yizheng
$664
259 km or 161 mi Linhai
$678
260 km or 161 mi Xuancheng
$729
262 km or 163 mi Gaoyou
$673
274 km or 170 mi Nanjing
$811

Cities near Sydney

Distance City Cost of living
15 km or 9.2 mi Dee Why
$2043
19 km or 12 mi Parramatta
$1873
29 km or 18 mi Kellyville
$1719
29 km or 18 mi Blacktown
$1562
69 km or 43 mi Wollongong
$1544
117 km or 73 mi Newcastle
$1778
158 km or 98 mi Bathurst
$1540
168 km or 104 mi Goulburn
$1607
205 km or 127 mi Orange
$1572
247 km or 154 mi Canberra
$2217
301 km or 187 mi Dubbo
$1502
314 km or 195 mi Port Macquarie
$1982
377 km or 234 mi Armidale
$1663
378 km or 235 mi Wagga Wagga
$1445
436 km or 271 mi Coffs Harbour
$1361
478 km or 297 mi Griffith
$1650
597 km or 371 mi Shepparton
$1381
624 km or 388 mi Byron Bay
$2193
638 km or 396 mi Traralgon
$1659
683 km or 425 mi Gold Coast
$2109
689 km or 428 mi Southport
$1652
695 km or 432 mi Pakenham
$1659
701 km or 436 mi Berwick
$1561
706 km or 439 mi Bendigo
$1105
706 km or 439 mi Toowoomba
$1621
707 km or 439 mi Dandenong
$1510
711 km or 442 mi Ipswich
$1695
711 km or 442 mi Cranbourne
$1598
713 km or 443 mi South Yarra
$1747
713 km or 443 mi Melbourne
$2154
716 km or 445 mi Sunbury
$1660
724 km or 450 mi Frankston
$1940
732 km or 455 mi Melton
$1654
733 km or 455 mi Brisbane
$2280
735 km or 457 mi Tarneit
$1613
736 km or 457 mi Hoppers Crossing
$1583
775 km or 481 mi Caboolture
$1661
778 km or 484 mi Geelong
$1764
779 km or 484 mi Ballarat
$1696
807 km or 502 mi Caloundra
$1663