Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bendigo and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,244 a month against $2,012 in Bendigo, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

97

Cost of Living Index in Bendigo
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Bendigo Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Bendigo

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,012

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bendigo and in Shanghai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bendigo and in Shanghai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,012 per month in Bendigo vs $1,244 in Shanghai, rent included.

Bendigo $2,012
Shanghai $1,244

A couple spends around $2,956 per month in Bendigo vs $1,999 in Shanghai, rent included.

Bendigo $2,956
Shanghai $1,999

A family of three spends $3,900 per month in Bendigo vs $2,755 in Shanghai, rent included.

Bendigo $3,900
Shanghai $2,755

Bendigo costs about 62% more than Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bendigo sits 49% above the global median, while Shanghai is 8% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.10 A$24.60

$4.56 ¥30.47

275.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.8 A$109

$30.21 ¥202

150.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.47 A$17.94

$5.25 ¥35.13

137.52%

Cappuccino

$3.95 A$5.68

$3.28 ¥21.94

20.43%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 A$4.50

$0.57 ¥3.84

447.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 A$3.56

$0.36 ¥2.39

586.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.83 A$14.15

$1.23 ¥8.23

699.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.47 A$12.19

$2.27 ¥15.18

273.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 A$1.86

$1.84 ¥12.30

-29.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.96 A$4.26

$1.96 ¥13.08

51.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 A$3.64

$1.03 ¥6.87

145.63%

Eggs

$4.71 A$6.77

$1.67 ¥11.16

182.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.27 A$14.78

$16.96 ¥113

-39.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.70 A$13.96

$3.19 ¥21.33

204.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.28 A$14.79

$12.90 ¥86.3

-20.31%

Apples (1kg)

$3.45 A$4.97

$2.24 ¥15.00

54.02%

Banana (1kg)

$3.07 A$4.42

$1.66 ¥11.13

84.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.11 A$4.48

$2.02 ¥13.54

53.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.85 A$6.98

$1.66 ¥11.08

192.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.74 A$3.94

$0.77 ¥5.17

255.84%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 A$3.72

$0.93 ¥6.21

177.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.37 A$3.41

$0.63 ¥4.19

276.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 A$2.29

$0.60 ¥3.99

165.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.74 A$62.9

$3.80 ¥25.44

1051.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.25 A$14.75

$10.87 ¥72.7

-5.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.25 A$7.56

$0.82 ¥5.51

540.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.67

$1.61 ¥10.76

231.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.43 A$4.93

$0.61 ¥4.11

462.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.4 A$84.0

$29.40 ¥197

98.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.14 A$5.96

$2.11 ¥14.11

96.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 A$1.97

$0.43 ¥2.87

218.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.20 A$20.43

$9.06 ¥60.6

56.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 A$1.76

$1.33 ¥8.89

-8.27%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.3K A$39.3K

$19.0K ¥127.2K

43.68%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$19.1K A$27.5K

$18.7K ¥125.1K

2.18%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$140 A$201

$57.8 ¥387

141.71%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$28.06 A$40.37

$8.09 ¥54.1

246.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.2 A$82.3

$10.48 ¥70.0

445.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.7 ¥439

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.55 A$28.14

$17.82 ¥119

9.71%

Cinema Ticket

$12.47 A$17.94

$8.95 ¥59.9

39.33%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,108 A$3,033

$1,414 ¥9,451

49.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.7K A$42.7K

$27.9K ¥186.2K

6.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.6 A$113

$54.0 ¥361

45.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.88 A$70.3

$37.09 ¥248

31.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$74.3 ¥496

62.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$106 ¥706

25.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,127 A$1,621

$1,055 ¥7,056

6.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$845 A$1,215

$585 ¥3,910

44.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,353 A$1,946

$2,485 ¥16.6K

-45.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,236 A$1,778

$1,232 ¥8,240

0.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,398 A$6,328

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-68.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,852 A$5,543

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-38.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,038 A$4,371

$1,711 ¥11.4K

77.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.36

75.60%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Bendigo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Bendigo

$845 42%

Shanghai

$585 47% 30.8% $260

Groceries & Markets

Bendigo

$353 17.6%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 33.6% $119

Eating Out

Bendigo

$310 15.4%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 65.8% $204

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bendigo

$225 11.2%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 66.1% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Bendigo

$171 8.5%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 28.8% $49

Getting Around

Bendigo

$83 4.1%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 56.5% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Bendigo

$25 * 1.2%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 235% $59

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,127 in Bendigo versus $1,055 in Shanghai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 78% higher in Bendigo, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $76.0 in Bendigo versus $30.00 in Shanghai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $353 vs $235 – making Shanghai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Bendigo

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

05:00 5:00 AM

02:00 2:00 AM

3 h behind Bendigo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,649

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bendigo Shanghai 7,920 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Bendigo
Shanghai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Bendigo vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Bendigo is pricier by about 62%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,018 per month in Bendigo and $1,865 in Shanghai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shanghai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $76.0 in Bendigo and $30.00 in Shanghai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,012 in Bendigo and $1,244 in Shanghai. That's a gap of about 62%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Shanghai, where all-in costs run around $1,244, than in Bendigo at $2,012. In Shanghai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bendigo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shanghai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Shanghai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bendigo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.