Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Delhi and Beijing (Pekin)

For one person, living is cheaper in Delhi: $520 a month against $1,178 in Beijing (Pekin), rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Delhi
Learn more

Delhi Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Beijing (Pekin)
Learn more

Beijing (Pekin) Living Index

Jump to prices

Delhi

🇮🇳 India

$520

/mo nomad

Beijing (Pekin)

🇨🇳 China

$1,178

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Delhi and in Beijing (Pekin)

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

A single person spends $520 per month in Delhi vs $1,178 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Delhi $520
Beijing (Pekin) $1,178

A couple spends around $858 per month in Delhi vs $1,895 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Delhi $858
Beijing (Pekin) $1,895

A family of three spends $1,195 per month in Delhi vs $2,612 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Delhi $1,195
Beijing (Pekin) $2,612

Delhi is about 56% cheaper than Beijing (Pekin), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Delhi and Beijing (Pekin) are more affordable than the global median – Delhi 61% lower, Beijing (Pekin) 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.67 ₹355

$4.54 ¥30.34

-19.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.95 ₹2,027

$29.25 ¥196

-28.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.74 ₹362

$5.32 ¥35.54

-29.70%

Cappuccino

$2.33 ₹226

$3.52 ¥23.53

-33.81%

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

$0.37 ₹35.82

$0.53 ¥3.56

-30.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.20 ₹18.91

$0.28 ¥1.87

-28.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.02 ₹195

$1.22 ¥8.17

65.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 ₹308

$1.67 ¥11.13

91.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.68 ₹65.9

$1.67 ¥11.14

-59.28%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 ₹50.2

$1.77 ¥11.80

-70.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.83 ₹80.0

$1.29 ¥8.61

-35.66%

Eggs

$1.07 ₹104

$2.04 ¥13.65

-47.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.43 ₹428

$14.52 ¥97.0

-69.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.37 ₹326

$3.21 ¥21.43

4.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.23 ¥75.1

Apples (1kg)

$1.99 ₹192

$2.09 ¥13.94

-4.78%

Banana (1kg)

$0.72 ₹70.1

$1.72 ¥11.50

-58.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.02 ₹98.4

$2.01 ¥13.42

-49.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.52 ₹50.1

$1.55 ¥10.36

-66.45%

Potato (1kg)

$0.27 ₹25.96

$0.67 ¥4.51

-59.70%

Onion (1kg)

$0.37 ₹35.42

$0.85 ¥5.69

-56.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 ₹41.64

$0.74 ¥4.96

-41.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₹30.39

$0.62 ¥4.13

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.92 ₹476

$4.42 ¥29.52

11.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.34 ₹808

$13.84 ¥92.5

-39.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₹159

$1.03 ¥6.87

59.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 ₹261

$1.81 ¥12.09

49.17%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.15 ₹596

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 ₹44.04

$0.64 ¥4.30

-28.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.29 ₹1,480

$34.88 ¥233

-56.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.03 ₹99.8

$1.98 ¥13.23

-47.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.27 ₹26.38

$0.35 ¥2.34

-22.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.53 ₹148

$7.65 ¥51.1

-80.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ₹102

$1.27 ¥8.50

-17.32%

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

$10.5K ₹1.0M

$19.6K ¥130.9K

-46.59%

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

$18.4K ₹1.8M

$18.1K ¥121.2K

1.30%

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

$42.67 ₹4,129

$59.0 ¥394

-27.68%

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

$4.04 ₹391

$8.94 ¥59.8

-54.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.75 ₹653

$14.15 ¥94.6

-52.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.40 ₹1,878

$40.77 ¥272

-52.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.06 ₹780

$24.56 ¥164

-67.18%

Cinema Ticket

$5.08 ₹492

$7.38 ¥49.29

-31.17%

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

$100 ₹9,696

$650 ¥4,346

-84.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,268 ₹219.5K

$24.5K ¥163.5K

-90.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.14 ₹2,336

$70.4 ¥471

-65.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.38 ₹2,747

$40.51 ¥271

-29.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$53.3 ₹5,160

$87.6 ¥585

-39.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.13 ₹4,271

$124 ¥829

-64.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$264 ₹25.5K

$933 ¥6,236

-71.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$154 ₹14.9K

$518 ¥3,463

-70.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$736 ₹71.2K

$2,387 ¥16.0K

-69.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$397 ₹38.5K

$1,143 ¥7,642

-65.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,494 ₹241.4K

$12.6K ¥84.0K

-80.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,017 ₹98.4K

$6,393 ¥42.7K

-84.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$585 ₹56.7K

$1,710 ¥11.4K

-65.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.33

3.21

159.50%

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

Last update for Delhi: October 6, 2026

Last update for Beijing (Pekin): October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Delhi

$154 29.7%

Beijing (Pekin)

$518 44% 236% $364

Groceries & Markets

Delhi

$108 20.8%

Beijing (Pekin)

$228 19.4% 111% $120

Eating Out

Delhi

$87 16.8%

Beijing (Pekin)

$107 9.1% 22.8% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Delhi

$67 13%

Beijing (Pekin)

$145 12.3% 115% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Delhi

$53 10.3%

Beijing (Pekin)

$82 7% 53.6% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Delhi

$30 5.7%

Beijing (Pekin)

$56 4.7% 87.8% $26

Getting Around

Delhi

$20 3.8%

Beijing (Pekin)

$41 3.5% 111% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $264 in Delhi versus $933 in Beijing (Pekin). 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 192% higher in Beijing (Pekin), 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 $21.00 in Delhi versus $29.00 in Beijing (Pekin). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $108 vs $228 – making Delhi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Delhi

🇨🇳 Beijing (Pekin)

🕒 Local time

09:11 9:11 AM

11:41 11:41 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Delhi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,787,941 Capital

21,893,095 Capital

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.33 USD

1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 96.78 INR (100 INR = 1.03 USD). 1 EUR = 109 INR (1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Delhi Beijing (Pekin) 3,780 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Delhi
Beijing (Pekin)

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

Delhi vs Beijing (Pekin): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Beijing (Pekin) is pricier by about 127%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $780 per month in Delhi and $1,768 in Beijing (Pekin). That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Delhi, 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 $21.00 in Delhi and $29.00 in Beijing (Pekin). That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $520 in Delhi and $1,178 in Beijing (Pekin). That's a gap of about 127%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Delhi, where all-in costs run around $520, than in Beijing (Pekin) at $1,178. In Delhi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Beijing (Pekin) it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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