Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Japan and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,250 a month against $1,332 in Japan, rent and utilities included – about $980 less a year. The total is higher in Japan despite lower rent and utilities.

63

Cost of Living Index in Japan
Learn more

Japan Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
Learn more

Shanghai Living Index

Jump to prices

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,332

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,250

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Japan is 25.2% more expensive than Shanghai without rent, and 6.6% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Japan is 19.6% more expensive than Shanghai without rent, and 3.8% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.27 ¥993

$4.55 ¥30.40

37.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.23 ¥5,101

$29.52 ¥197

9.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.08 ¥805

$5.10 ¥34.08

-0.39%

Cappuccino

$3.11 ¥492

$3.42 ¥22.88

-9.06%

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

$1.12 ¥178

$0.61 ¥4.11

83.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥117

$0.36 ¥2.40

105.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 ¥515

$1.21 ¥8.07

168.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ¥590

$2.29 ¥15.31

62.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 ¥236

$1.86 ¥12.46

-19.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ¥229

$2.01 ¥13.45

-27.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.94 ¥782

$1.02 ¥6.83

384.31%

Eggs

$2.11 ¥333

$1.72 ¥11.46

22.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.44 ¥1,810

$17.19 ¥115

-33.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.32 ¥1,000

$3.35 ¥22.39

88.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.80 ¥2,817

$12.80 ¥85.5

39.06%

Apples (1kg)

$4.80 ¥760

$2.17 ¥14.51

121.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 ¥388

$1.74 ¥11.65

40.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.29 ¥680

$1.94 ¥12.96

121.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.52 ¥715

$1.68 ¥11.23

169.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.70 ¥428

$0.77 ¥5.17

250.65%

Onion (1kg)

$2.70 ¥427

$0.93 ¥6.21

190.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 ¥211

$0.62 ¥4.16

116.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ¥140

$0.58 ¥3.88

53.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.88 ¥614

$3.83 ¥25.60

1.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.49 ¥1,186

$10.94 ¥73.1

-31.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 ¥301

$0.84 ¥5.59

126.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 ¥415

$1.60 ¥10.71

63.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 ¥215

$0.59 ¥3.92

130.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.6 ¥9,122

$30.27 ¥202

90.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.66 ¥578

$2.06 ¥13.77

77.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.16 ¥499

$0.47 ¥3.13

572.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.05 ¥3,174

$8.80 ¥58.8

127.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ¥170

$1.27 ¥8.51

-15.75%

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

$21.7K ¥3.4M

$19.6K ¥131.0K

10.67%

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

$16.1K ¥2.5M

$18.6K ¥124.2K

-13.33%

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

$156 ¥24.7K

$57.2 ¥382

172.58%

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

$24.21 ¥3,831

$8.06 ¥53.8

200.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.72 ¥5,178

$10.52 ¥70.3

211.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.6 ¥8,326

$64.6 ¥432

-18.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.92 ¥2,836

$17.63 ¥118

1.64%

Cinema Ticket

$12.84 ¥2,032

$8.84 ¥59.1

45.25%

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

$544 ¥86.2K

$1,437 ¥9,605

-62.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K ¥1.9M

$28.1K ¥187.5K

-57.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.82 ¥7,409

$54.7 ¥365

-14.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.43 ¥4,657

$36.43 ¥243

-19.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.8 ¥9,774

$75.4 ¥504

-18.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 ¥12.4K

$104 ¥695

-24.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$569 ¥90.1K

$1,039 ¥6,945

-45.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$390 ¥61.7K

$589 ¥3,933

-33.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,310 ¥207.4K

$2,487 ¥16.6K

-47.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$770 ¥121.8K

$1,237 ¥8,268

-37.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,494 ¥869.3K

$13.6K ¥90.8K

-59.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,810 ¥444.6K

$6,191 ¥41.4K

-54.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,077 ¥328.7K

$1,715 ¥11.5K

21.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.13

3.36

-36.61%

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

Last update for Japan: October 5, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Japan

$390 29.8%

Shanghai

$589 47.1% 50.8% $198

Groceries & Markets

Japan

$315 24%

Shanghai

$237 19% 24.7% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Japan

$213 16.3%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 64.4% $137

Eating Out

Japan

$134 10.2%

Shanghai

$107 8.6% 19.9% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Japan

$97 7.4%

Shanghai

$122 9.7% 25.1% $24

Getting Around

Japan

$83 6.3%

Shanghai

$37 3% 55.1% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Japan

$78 6%

Shanghai

$82 6.6% 5.1% $4

Good to know

🇯🇵 Japan

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

15:28 3:28 PM

14:28 2:28 PM

1 h behind Japan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

125,440,000

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.32 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 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 JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Japan Shanghai 1,760 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Japan
Shanghai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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Cost of Living Comparison Between Japan and Shanghai

CNY, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Shanghai

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Shanghai

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