Cost of Living Comparison Between China and Japan Cost of Living Comparison Between China and Japan

Name: Japan
Address: JP

🙂 Solo nomad: China is 39.5% cheaper than Japan without rent, and 44.8% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: China is 40.6% cheaper than Japan without rent, and 39.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.77 ¥19.31

$6.86 ¥1,086

-59.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.14 ¥169

$34.10 ¥5,394

-29.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.75 ¥33.15

$5.45 ¥862

-12.84%

Cappuccino

$3.02 ¥21.06

$3.41 ¥539

-11.44%

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

$0.44 ¥3.06

$1.12 ¥177

-60.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.87

$0.84 ¥132

-67.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.96 ¥6.67

$3.52 ¥556

-72.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 ¥14.21

$4.11 ¥649

-50.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 ¥12.21

$1.50 ¥238

16.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 ¥11.79

$1.52 ¥240

11.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ¥6.85

$4.55 ¥720

-78.46%

Eggs

$1.60 ¥11.19

$2.17 ¥343

-26.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.34 ¥93.1

$12.14 ¥1,920

9.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.27 ¥22.82

$6.65 ¥1,052

-50.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.63 ¥74.2

$19.16 ¥3,030

-44.52%

Apples (1kg)

$1.74 ¥12.16

$5.24 ¥829

-66.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ¥8.76

$2.62 ¥414

-51.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ¥10.13

$4.72 ¥746

-69.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 ¥8.28

$4.76 ¥753

-75.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 ¥5.08

$2.85 ¥450

-74.39%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 ¥5.99

$2.71 ¥428

-68.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.30

$1.41 ¥222

-56.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ¥3.71

$0.88 ¥139

-39.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.44 ¥24.03

$4.10 ¥648

-16.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.63 ¥81.2

$8.39 ¥1,326

38.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥5.88

$2.18 ¥345

-61.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 ¥11.30

$2.88 ¥455

-43.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 ¥3.07

$1.56 ¥247

-71.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 ¥145

$58.9 ¥9,309

-64.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ¥9.91

$4.07 ¥644

-65.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ¥2.27

$2.99 ¥472

-88.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.51 ¥45.42

$23.31 ¥3,687

-72.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ¥8.19

$1.19 ¥188

-1.68%

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

$19.2K ¥133.9K

$22.8K ¥3.6M

-15.99%

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

$16.6K ¥116.1K

$17.6K ¥2.8M

-5.25%

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

$51.4 ¥359

$176 ¥27.9K

-70.81%

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

$9.63 ¥67.2

$27.10 ¥4,286

-64.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.22 ¥78.3

$34.53 ¥5,460

-67.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.09 ¥273

$58.3 ¥9,214

-32.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.70 ¥103

$15.77 ¥2,494

-6.79%

Cinema Ticket

$6.14 ¥42.89

$13.19 ¥2,086

-53.45%

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

$416 ¥2,905

$343 ¥54.3K

21.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.9K ¥125.0K

$13.5K ¥2.1M

32.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.24 ¥316

$49.18 ¥7,778

-8.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.59 ¥228

$32.11 ¥5,078

1.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.0 ¥509

$61.7 ¥9,756

18.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.8 ¥508

$86.1 ¥13.6K

-15.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$432 ¥3,018

$606 ¥95.8K

-28.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$253 ¥1,767

$425 ¥67.2K

-40.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$923 ¥6,441

$1,399 ¥221.2K

-34.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$546 ¥3,811

$836 ¥132.2K

-34.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,324 ¥37.2K

$5,928 ¥937.5K

-10.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,784 ¥19.4K

$3,061 ¥484.1K

-9.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,037 ¥7,240

$1,973 ¥312.0K

-47.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

1.82

123.08%

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

Last update for China: January 11, 2026

Last update for Japan: January 13, 2026

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living Comparison Between China and Japan Cost of Living Comparison Between China and Japan

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