Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamamatsu and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamamatsu: $775 a month against $1,244 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Shanghai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

38

Cost of Living Index in Hamamatsu
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Hamamatsu Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Hamamatsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$775

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $775 in Hamamatsu versus $1,244 in Shanghai.

Hamamatsu $775
Shanghai $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,251 in Hamamatsu versus $1,999 in Shanghai.

Hamamatsu $1,251
Shanghai $1,999

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,727 in Hamamatsu versus $2,755 in Shanghai.

Hamamatsu $1,727
Shanghai $2,755

Living in Hamamatsu costs roughly 38% less than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Hamamatsu 43% lower, Shanghai 8% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.86 ¥610

$4.56 ¥30.47

-15.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.71 ¥6,432

$30.21 ¥202

34.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.07 ¥801

$5.25 ¥35.13

-3.43%

Cappuccino

$3.34 ¥528

$3.28 ¥21.94

1.83%

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

$1.04 ¥165

$0.57 ¥3.84

82.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 ¥118

$0.36 ¥2.39

108.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.49 ¥393

$1.23 ¥8.23

102.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 ¥508

$2.27 ¥15.18

41.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 ¥160

$1.84 ¥12.30

-45.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 ¥260

$1.96 ¥13.08

-16.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.65 ¥577

$1.03 ¥6.87

254.37%

Eggs

$1.60 ¥253

$1.67 ¥11.16

-4.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.37 ¥1,638

$16.96 ¥113

-38.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.92 ¥935

$3.19 ¥21.33

85.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 ¥2,282

$12.90 ¥86.3

11.94%

Apples (1kg)

$5.69 ¥899

$2.24 ¥15.00

154.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.80 ¥443

$1.66 ¥11.13

68.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 ¥467

$2.02 ¥13.54

46.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.14 ¥654

$1.66 ¥11.08

149.40%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 ¥415

$0.77 ¥5.17

241.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.54 ¥401

$0.93 ¥6.21

173.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ¥196

$0.63 ¥4.19

96.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 ¥102

$0.60 ¥3.99

8.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.86 ¥610

$3.80 ¥25.44

1.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.19 ¥977

$10.87 ¥72.7

-43.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ¥278

$0.82 ¥5.51

114.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 ¥333

$1.61 ¥10.76

31.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 ¥4.11

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.8 ¥8,017

$29.40 ¥197

72.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.21 ¥507

$2.11 ¥14.11

52.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.74 ¥433

$0.43 ¥2.87

537.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.75 ¥3,278

$9.06 ¥60.6

129.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ¥173

$1.33 ¥8.89

-17.29%

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

$21.0K ¥3.3M

$19.0K ¥127.2K

10.20%

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

$18.1K ¥2.9M

$18.7K ¥125.1K

-3.51%

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

$131 ¥20.7K

$57.8 ¥387

126.33%

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

$8.51 ¥1,345

$8.09 ¥54.1

5.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.52 ¥5,137

$10.48 ¥70.0

210.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.7 ¥439

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.81 ¥2,655

$17.82 ¥119

-5.67%

Cinema Ticket

$12.81 ¥2,024

$8.95 ¥59.9

43.13%

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

$643 ¥101.5K

$1,414 ¥9,451

-54.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.9K ¥2.4M

$27.9K ¥186.2K

-46.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.5 ¥9,712

$54.0 ¥361

13.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.85 ¥5,822

$37.09 ¥248

-0.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.0 ¥9,639

$74.3 ¥496

-17.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.1K

$106 ¥706

-3.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 ¥7,056

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 ¥3,910

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,485 ¥16.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,232 ¥8,240

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,748 ¥1.2M

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-44.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,222 ¥825.0K

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-16.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,580 ¥249.7K

$1,711 ¥11.4K

-7.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.64

3.36

-21.43%

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

Last update for Hamamatsu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Hamamatsu

$280 36.2%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 16.3% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamamatsu

$172 22.2%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 55.6% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Hamamatsu

$118 15.2%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 3.6% $4.3

Eating Out

Hamamatsu

$112 14.5%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 5.5% $6.2

Getting Around

Hamamatsu

$68 * 8.7%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 46.6% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Hamamatsu

$26 * 3.3%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 226% $58

Accommodation & Living

Hamamatsu

- * 0%

Shanghai

$585 47%

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

Cost Breakdown

Shanghai pays 8% 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: $41.00 in Hamamatsu vs $30.00 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $280 vs $235 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Hamamatsu

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

17:27 5:27 PM

16:27 4:27 PM

1 h behind Hamamatsu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

797,033

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hamamatsu Shanghai 1,560 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Hamamatsu
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

Hamamatsu vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hamamatsu and Shanghai differ by about 60% in total monthly costs ($775 vs $1,244 including rent). Hamamatsu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 8% lower in Shanghai. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Shoppers in Shanghai pay roughly 19% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Hamamatsu – a meal for two runs $41.00 versus $30.00 in Shanghai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $775 in Hamamatsu versus $1,244 in Shanghai, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Hamamatsu but tight or insufficient in Shanghai. The gap between the two cities makes Hamamatsu 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, Hamamatsu 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 Hamamatsu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Shanghai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.