Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Changshu and Sydney

For one person, living is cheaper in Changshu: $707 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $29,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Changshu
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Changshu Living Index
155

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index

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Changshu

🇨🇳 China

$707

/mo nomad

Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Changshu and in Sydney

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $707 in Changshu versus $3,182 in Sydney.

Changshu $707
Sydney $3,182

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,120 in Changshu versus $4,696 in Sydney.

Changshu $1,120
Sydney $4,696

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,532 in Changshu versus $6,210 in Sydney.

Changshu $1,532
Sydney $6,210

Living in Changshu costs roughly 78% less than in Sydney, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Changshu is 47% below, Sydney is 137% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.71 ¥18.12

$17.66 A$25.38

-84.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.35 ¥143

$97.1 A$140

-78.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.98 ¥33.30

$11.94 A$17.16

-58.29%

Cappuccino

$3.09 ¥20.67

$4.00 A$5.75

-22.75%

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

$0.43 ¥2.88

$2.84 A$4.07

-84.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$2.27 A$3.26

-88.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.94 ¥6.27

$7.89 A$11.34

-88.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.78

$7.13 A$10.24

-71.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 ¥12.49

$1.66 A$2.39

12.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 ¥10.44

$2.79 A$4.01

-44.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.03

$2.32 A$3.34

-61.21%

Eggs

$1.54 ¥10.31

$5.53 A$7.95

-72.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.88 ¥86.1

$12.08 A$17.36

6.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.17 ¥21.16

$9.84 A$14.15

-67.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.11 ¥67.5

$16.61 A$23.88

-39.13%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ¥12.19

$4.02 A$5.78

-54.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 ¥8.33

$3.15 A$4.53

-60.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ¥10.29

$3.50 A$5.04

-56.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ¥7.64

$4.47 A$6.42

-74.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ¥4.60

$3.32 A$4.78

-79.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.98

$2.30 A$3.31

-61.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 ¥3.76

$2.34 A$3.37

-76.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ¥3.37

$1.15 A$1.66

-56.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ¥20.35

$45.02 A$64.7

-93.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.65 ¥71.2

$13.96 A$20.06

-23.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.97

$3.98 A$5.72

-81.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ¥10.91

$4.07 A$5.84

-59.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 ¥1.78

$3.16 A$4.54

-91.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.85 ¥113

$150 A$216

-88.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.37 ¥9.16

$3.45 A$4.96

-60.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 ¥2.35

$1.63 A$2.34

-78.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.82 ¥45.56

$39.98 A$57.5

-82.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 ¥7.61

$1.40 A$2.01

-18.57%

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

$19.4K ¥129.4K

$28.4K A$40.8K

-31.90%

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

$16.9K ¥113.2K

$29.4K A$42.3K

-42.41%

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

$44.92 ¥300

$220 A$316

-79.57%

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

$9.95 ¥66.5

$27.70 A$39.81

-64.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.63 ¥77.7

$55.5 A$79.8

-79.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.26 ¥282

$74.3 A$107

-43.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.67 ¥91.3

$23.95 A$34.42

-42.92%

Cinema Ticket

$5.88 ¥39.29

$17.73 A$25.48

-66.84%

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

$340 ¥2,272

$2,157 A$3,100

-84.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ¥114.4K

$28.3K A$40.7K

-39.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 ¥290

$78.4 A$113

-44.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.09 ¥201

$70.5 A$101

-57.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.8 ¥473

$111 A$160

-36.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ¥490

$132 A$189

-44.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$277 ¥1,853

$2,514 A$3,613

-88.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ¥1,281

$1,732 A$2,489

-88.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 ¥3,986

$4,889 A$7,025

-87.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$355 ¥2,370

$3,039 A$4,367

-88.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,056 ¥20.4K

$13.2K A$19.0K

-76.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 ¥13.4K

$8,117 A$11.7K

-75.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,082 A$5,867

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

5.84

-33.39%

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

Last update for Changshu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Changshu

$198 27.7%

Sydney

$380 12% 92.3% $183

Accommodation & Living

Changshu

$192 26.8%

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5% 803% $1.5K

Clothing & Footwear

Changshu

$98 13.7%

Sydney

$176 5.6% 80.2% $79

Eating Out

Changshu

$85 12%

Sydney

$299 9.4% 251% $214

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Changshu

$67 9.3%

Sydney

$303 9.6% 356% $237

Sport & Entertainment

Changshu

$54 7.6%

Sydney

$110 3.5% 103% $56

Getting Around

Changshu

$21 3%

Sydney

$174 5.5% 728% $153

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $277 in Changshu and $2,514 in Sydney. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $21.00 in Changshu vs $97.0 in Sydney for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $198 vs $380 per month, with Changshu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Changshu

🇦🇺 Sydney

🕒 Local time

15:43 3:43 PM

18:43 6:43 PM

3 h ahead of Changshu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,677,050

4,840,600

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

1 AUD = 0.696 USD

1 AUD = 0.621 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.696 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.621 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Changshu Sydney 7,950 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Changshu
Sydney

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

Changshu vs Sydney: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Changshu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 350% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,061 in Changshu and $4,774 in Sydney to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $277 in Changshu versus $2,514 in Sydney. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Changshu – a meal for two runs $21.00 versus $97.0 in Sydney. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $707 per month in Changshu versus $3,182 in Sydney – a 350% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $707 in Changshu versus $3,182 in Sydney, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Changshu but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Changshu 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, Changshu and Sydney 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 Changshu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 350% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.