Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Yiwu

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $550 in Yiwu, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. The total is higher in Yiwu despite lower rent and utilities.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index
27

Cost of Living Index in Yiwu
Learn more

Yiwu Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Yiwu

🇨🇳 China

$550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Yiwu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $550 in Yiwu.

Dhaka $406
Yiwu $550

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,286 in Yiwu.

Dhaka $687
Yiwu $1,286

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $2,022 in Yiwu.

Dhaka $969
Yiwu $2,022

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 26% less than in Yiwu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Yiwu 59% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳281

$2.92 ¥19.54

-21.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,517

$29.38 ¥196

-58.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳486

$5.13 ¥34.31

-23.00%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳551

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳508

Cappuccino

$2.28 ৳280

$3.29 ¥22.01

-30.70%

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

$0.33 ৳40.72

$0.62 ¥4.15

-46.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.78

$0.38 ¥2.55

-57.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ¥8.19

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ¥15.22

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.85 ¥12.40

-54.05%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.2

$1.96 ¥13.09

-69.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.0

$0.98 ¥6.58

-29.59%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.68 ¥11.26

-26.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,083

$17.54 ¥117

-49.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳410

$3.35 ¥22.38

-0.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳816

$13.14 ¥87.9

-49.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳351

$2.14 ¥14.29

33.18%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.75 ¥11.68

-48.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳288

$1.95 ¥13.05

20.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.1

$1.66 ¥11.08

-62.05%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.47

$0.82 ¥5.51

-70.73%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.0

$0.94 ¥6.28

-51.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.61

$0.62 ¥4.17

-43.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.09

$0.59 ¥3.96

-52.54%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,490

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳653

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳790

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.28 ৳403

$3.75 ¥25.10

-12.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.78 ¥72.1

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 ¥5.56

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.67

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.1

$0.43 ¥2.90

-2.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,760

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$1.30 ¥8.73

-8.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.51

$0.43 ¥2.89

-9.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳404

$8.89 ¥59.4

-63.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳135

$1.27 ¥8.49

-13.39%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$19.6K ¥130.9K

50.41%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$18.6K ¥124.3K

73.06%

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

$38.28 ৳4,710

$57.4 ¥384

-33.33%

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

$4.09 ৳504

$8.10 ¥54.2

-49.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,110

$10.41 ¥69.6

-13.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,681

$14.73 ¥98.5

-7.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,256

$11.34 ¥75.8

-9.96%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳506

$7.22 ¥48.25

-43.07%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$1,430 ¥9,566

-93.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳318.8K

$27.3K ¥182.5K

-90.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,099

$53.9 ¥361

-68.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,630

$37.73 ¥252

-43.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,329

$76.8 ¥514

-33.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,526

$73.5 ¥491

-49.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$446 ¥2,985

-70.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,008

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.4K

$1,053 ¥7,041

-64.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.7K

$733 ¥4,901

-73.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳199.5K

$11.8K ¥78.7K

-86.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.5K

$2,921 ¥19.5K

-73.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.3K

$748 ¥5,000

-67.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

3.36

211.90%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Yiwu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Yiwu

$238 43.2% 92.2% $114

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Yiwu

- * 0% 100%

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Yiwu

$93 16.9% 56.5% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Yiwu

$109 19.8% 91% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Yiwu

$76 13.8% 47.8% $25

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Yiwu

$5.2 * 1% 80.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Yiwu

$29 5.3% 33.2% $7.3

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $446 in Yiwu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Yiwu pays 204% 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: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $29.00 in Yiwu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $238 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇨🇳 Yiwu

🕒 Local time

14:51 2:51 PM

16:51 4:51 PM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

1,234,015

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.13 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.13 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dhaka Yiwu 3,010 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Yiwu

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

Dhaka vs Yiwu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 36% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 204% lower in Yiwu. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $133 in Dhaka versus $446 in Yiwu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $90.7 in Dhaka versus $1,430 in Yiwu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $12.00 versus $29.00 in Yiwu. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Yiwu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.