Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hangzhou and Shkoder

For one person, living costs are similar in Hangzhou and in Shkoder: $985 and $980 a month, rent and utilities included.

48

Cost of Living Index in Hangzhou
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Hangzhou Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Shkoder
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Shkoder Living Index

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Hangzhou

🇨🇳 China

$985

/mo nomad

Shkoder

🇦🇱 Albania

$980

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hangzhou and in Shkoder

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

A single person spends $985 per month in Hangzhou vs $980 in Shkoder, rent included.

Hangzhou $985
Shkoder $980

A couple spends around $1,533 per month in Hangzhou vs $1,474 in Shkoder, rent included.

Hangzhou $1,533
Shkoder $1,474

A family of three spends $2,080 per month in Hangzhou vs $1,969 in Shkoder, rent included.

Hangzhou $2,080
Shkoder $1,969

Hangzhou and Shkoder have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Hangzhou and Shkoder are more affordable than the global median – Hangzhou 28% lower, Shkoder 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.73 ¥24.85

$9.30 ALL 751

-59.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.03 ¥174

$38.93 ALL 3,144

-33.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.68 ¥31.20

$6.21 ALL 502

-24.64%

Cappuccino

$3.48 ¥23.22

$1.93 ALL 156

80.31%

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

$0.61 ¥4.06

$1.83 ALL 148

-66.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ¥2.21

$0.65 ALL 52.4

-49.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ¥8.10

$1.84 ALL 148

-33.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 ¥14.85

$3.18 ALL 257

-29.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 ¥12.24

$1.89 ALL 153

-2.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 ¥10.74

$0.97 ALL 78.7

65.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.10 ¥7.34

$2.01 ALL 163

-45.27%

Eggs

$2.11 ¥14.04

$2.60 ALL 210

-18.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.06 ¥127

$7.23 ALL 584

163.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.74 ¥24.94

$5.11 ALL 412

-26.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.29 ¥68.6

$10.81 ALL 873

-4.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ¥15.46

$1.65 ALL 134

40.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.34 ¥8.94

$2.35 ALL 190

-42.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 ¥10.13

$1.72 ALL 139

-11.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 ¥10.21

$1.45 ALL 117

5.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.24

$1.02 ALL 82.4

-7.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.28

$1.23 ALL 99.0

-23.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 ¥4.19

$1.14 ALL 92.0

-44.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.66

$0.77 ALL 62.3

-28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.02 ¥26.80

$4.23 ALL 341

-4.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.38 ¥89.2

$6.14 ALL 496

117.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ¥5.13

$1.51 ALL 122

-49.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 ¥11.00

$1.83 ALL 148

-9.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 ¥3.14

$0.49 ALL 39.69

-4.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.73 ¥118

$11.12 ALL 898

59.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.96 ¥13.07

$3.72 ALL 301

-47.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 ¥2.55

$3.85 ALL 311

-90.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.98 ¥46.55

$18.71 ALL 1,511

-62.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ¥8.77

$2.17 ALL 176

-39.17%

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

$19.7K ¥131.5K

$33.7K ALL 2.7M

-41.39%

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

$18.4K ¥122.5K

$24.7K ALL 2.0M

-25.55%

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

$48.04 ¥320

$61.7 ALL 4,981

-22.10%

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

$10.04 ¥66.9

$16.47 ALL 1,331

-39.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.02 ¥100

$17.10 ALL 1,381

-12.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ¥352

$42.68 ALL 3,448

23.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.00 ¥133

$12.53 ALL 1,012

59.62%

Cinema Ticket

$7.55 ¥50.3

$7.20 ALL 581

4.86%

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

$577 ¥3,843

$91.1 ALL 7,358

532.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.8K ¥238.6K

$1,835 ALL 148.2K

1850.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.2 ¥401

$49.16 ALL 3,970

22.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.24 ¥282

$12.34 ALL 997

242.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.0 ¥560

$74.0 ALL 5,975

13.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 ¥737

$147 ALL 11.8K

-24.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$552 ¥3,680

$489 ALL 39.5K

12.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$352 ¥2,345

$317 ALL 25.6K

10.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,117 ¥7,445

$484 ALL 39.1K

130.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ¥4,177

$412 ALL 33.3K

52.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,668 ¥51.1K

$1,866 ALL 150.7K

310.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,819 ¥25.5K

$1,232 ALL 99.5K

209.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,582 ¥10.5K

$567 ALL 45.8K

179.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.5

-30.00%

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

Last update for Hangzhou: October 25, 2026

Last update for Shkoder: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hangzhou

$352 35.7%

Shkoder

$317 32.4% 9.8% $34

Groceries & Markets

Hangzhou

$235 23.9%

Shkoder

$206 21% 12.4% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Hangzhou

$134 13.6%

Shkoder

$127 13% 5.1% $6.8

Eating Out

Hangzhou

$100 10.2%

Shkoder

$142 14.5% 41.7% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hangzhou

$73 7.4%

Shkoder

$95 9.7% 30.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Hangzhou

$68 6.9%

Shkoder

$57 5.8% 15.9% $11

Getting Around

Hangzhou

$23 2.4%

Shkoder

$36 3.7% 53.6% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $552 in Hangzhou versus $489 in Shkoder. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Hangzhou are about 2.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $26 in Hangzhou versus $39 in Shkoder. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Hangzhou vs $206 in Shkoder – so Shkoder wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Hangzhou

🇦🇱 Shkoder

🕒 Local time

18:04 6:04 PM

11:04 11:04 AM

7 h behind Hangzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,360,000

77,075

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 80.77 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.89 ALL (100 ALL = 1.11 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hangzhou Shkoder 8,600 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Hangzhou
Shkoder

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

Hangzhou vs Shkoder: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,477 per month in Hangzhou and $1,470 in Shkoder. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shkoder, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $489 there versus $552 in Hangzhou.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $26 in Hangzhou and $39 in Shkoder. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 37% less in Shkoder. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $985 in Hangzhou and $980 in Shkoder, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Shkoder – 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 Shkoder. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Hangzhou makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.