Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Carlton and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,244 a month against $2,287 in Carlton, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Carlton
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Carlton Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Carlton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,287

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Carlton 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 Carlton and in Shanghai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,287 in Carlton versus $1,244 in Shanghai.

Carlton $2,287
Shanghai $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,321 in Carlton versus $1,999 in Shanghai.

Carlton $3,321
Shanghai $1,999

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,355 in Carlton versus $2,755 in Shanghai.

Carlton $4,355
Shanghai $2,755

Living in Carlton is roughly 84% more expensive than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Carlton is 69% above, Shanghai is 8% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.71 A$25.48

$4.56 ¥30.47

288.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.7 A$98.9

$30.21 ¥202

127.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 A$14.34

$5.25 ¥35.13

89.71%

Cappuccino

$2.92 A$4.21

$3.28 ¥21.94

-10.98%

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

$2.63 A$3.78

$0.57 ¥3.84

361.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 A$3.06

$0.36 ¥2.39

491.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.76 A$9.73

$1.23 ¥8.23

449.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.54 A$9.41

$2.27 ¥15.18

188.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 A$1.90

$1.84 ¥12.30

-28.26%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 A$2.95

$1.96 ¥13.08

4.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 A$1.90

$1.03 ¥6.87

28.16%

Eggs

$3.20 A$4.60

$1.67 ¥11.16

91.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.28 A$14.79

$16.96 ¥113

-39.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.99 A$14.38

$3.19 ¥21.33

213.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.28 A$21.98

$12.90 ¥86.3

18.45%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.78

$2.24 ¥15.00

48.21%

Banana (1kg)

$2.81 A$4.05

$1.66 ¥11.13

69.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.20 A$4.60

$2.02 ¥13.54

58.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.48 A$6.44

$1.66 ¥11.08

169.88%

Potato (1kg)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.77 ¥5.17

219.48%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 A$3.19

$0.93 ¥6.21

138.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.13 A$3.07

$0.63 ¥4.19

238.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 A$1.29

$0.60 ¥3.99

50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$25.25 A$36.33

$3.80 ¥25.44

564.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.62 A$15.28

$10.87 ¥72.7

-2.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.74 A$8.26

$0.82 ¥5.51

600.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.12 A$7.37

$1.61 ¥10.76

218.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.05 A$4.38

$0.61 ¥4.11

400.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.9 A$116

$29.40 ¥197

175.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.72 A$5.36

$2.11 ¥14.11

76.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 A$1.82

$0.43 ¥2.87

193.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.18 A$37.68

$9.06 ¥60.6

188.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 A$1.95

$1.33 ¥8.89

2.26%

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

$18.4K A$26.5K

$19.0K ¥127.2K

-3.23%

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

$13.8K A$19.9K

$18.7K ¥125.1K

-26.08%

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

$89.5 A$129

$57.8 ¥387

54.87%

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

$27.31 A$39.31

$8.09 ¥54.1

237.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.80 A$65.9

$10.48 ¥70.0

337.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.60 A$45.47

$65.7 ¥439

-51.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.32 A$24.92

$17.82 ¥119

-2.81%

Cinema Ticket

$12.96 A$18.64

$8.95 ¥59.9

44.80%

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

$2,061 A$2,965

$1,414 ¥9,451

45.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K A$18.1K

$27.9K ¥186.2K

-54.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.1 A$114

$54.0 ¥361

46.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.37 A$71.1

$37.09 ¥248

33.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.0 A$101

$74.3 ¥496

-5.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$106 ¥706

26.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,391 A$2,001

$1,055 ¥7,056

31.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,204 A$1,732

$585 ¥3,910

105.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,150 A$3,093

$2,485 ¥16.6K

-13.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,829 A$2,631

$1,232 ¥8,240

48.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,647 A$8,126

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-59.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,209 A$7,496

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-16.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,717 A$8,227

$1,711 ¥11.4K

234.16%

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 Carlton: 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

Carlton

$1.2K 52.6%

Shanghai

$585 47% 51.4% $619

Groceries & Markets

Carlton

$338 14.8%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 30.6% $104

Eating Out

Carlton

$273 11.9%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 61.1% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Carlton

$163 7.1%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 53% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Carlton

$150 6.5%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 18.5% $28

Getting Around

Carlton

$103 4.5%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 65% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Carlton

$58 2.5%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 45.4% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,391 in Carlton and $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Carlton pays 234% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $69.0 in Carlton vs $30.00 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $338 vs $235 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Carlton

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

06:00 6:00 AM

03:00 3:00 AM

3 h behind Carlton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,001

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 →

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Between locations

Carlton Shanghai 8,050 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Carlton
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

Carlton vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Carlton and Shanghai differ by about 84% in total monthly costs ($2,287 vs $1,244 including rent). Shanghai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 234% higher in Carlton, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,391 in Carlton versus $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,061 in Carlton versus $1,414 in Shanghai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Carlton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,244 in Shanghai versus $2,287 in Carlton, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shanghai but tight or insufficient in Carlton. The gap between the two cities makes Shanghai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Carlton and Shanghai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Shanghai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 84% less than in Carlton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.