Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kawagoe and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Kawagoe: $1,084 a month against $1,244 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Shanghai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

53

Cost of Living Index in Kawagoe
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Kawagoe Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Kawagoe

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,084

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,084 in Kawagoe versus $1,244 in Shanghai.

Kawagoe $1,084
Shanghai $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,747 in Kawagoe versus $1,999 in Shanghai.

Kawagoe $1,747
Shanghai $1,999

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,409 in Kawagoe versus $2,755 in Shanghai.

Kawagoe $2,409
Shanghai $2,755

Living in Kawagoe costs roughly 13% less than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kawagoe 20% lower, Shanghai 8% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.38 ¥1,008

$4.56 ¥30.47

39.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.89 ¥6,460

$30.21 ¥202

35.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.02 ¥793

$5.25 ¥35.13

-4.38%

Cappuccino

$3.41 ¥539

$3.28 ¥21.94

3.96%

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

$0.93 ¥146

$0.57 ¥3.84

63.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ¥78.0

$0.36 ¥2.39

36.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.92 ¥304

$1.23 ¥8.23

56.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 ¥417

$2.27 ¥15.18

16.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 ¥183

$1.84 ¥12.30

-36.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 ¥203

$1.96 ¥13.08

-34.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.59 ¥566

$1.03 ¥6.87

248.54%

Eggs

$2.02 ¥320

$1.67 ¥11.16

20.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.14 ¥970

$16.96 ¥113

-63.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.24 ¥987

$3.19 ¥21.33

95.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.67 ¥2,318

$12.90 ¥86.3

13.72%

Apples (1kg)

$5.61 ¥887

$2.24 ¥15.00

150.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ¥364

$1.66 ¥11.13

38.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.81 ¥445

$2.02 ¥13.54

39.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.11 ¥492

$1.66 ¥11.08

87.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.55 ¥403

$0.77 ¥5.17

231.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 ¥296

$0.93 ¥6.21

101.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 ¥206

$0.63 ¥4.19

106.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥117

$0.60 ¥3.99

23.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.86 ¥609

$3.80 ¥25.44

1.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.87 ¥770

$10.87 ¥72.7

-55.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ¥275

$0.82 ¥5.51

112.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ¥320

$1.61 ¥10.76

26.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.98 ¥471

$0.61 ¥4.11

388.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.7 ¥8,488

$29.40 ¥197

82.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.19 ¥504

$2.11 ¥14.11

51.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.73 ¥431

$0.43 ¥2.87

534.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.42 ¥3,226

$9.06 ¥60.6

125.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ¥175

$1.33 ¥8.89

-16.54%

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

$15.7K ¥2.5M

$19.0K ¥127.2K

-17.32%

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

$12.9K ¥2.0M

$18.7K ¥125.1K

-31.22%

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

$131 ¥20.7K

$57.8 ¥387

126.41%

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

$22.38 ¥3,536

$8.09 ¥54.1

176.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.77 ¥5,020

$10.48 ¥70.0

203.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.88 ¥6,932

$65.7 ¥439

-33.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.08 ¥5,068

$17.82 ¥119

80.02%

Cinema Ticket

$11.12 ¥1,757

$8.95 ¥59.9

24.25%

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

$315 ¥49.8K

$1,414 ¥9,451

-77.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,305 ¥996.1K

$27.9K ¥186.2K

-77.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.87 ¥5,035

$54.0 ¥361

-40.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.30 ¥5,261

$37.09 ¥248

-10.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$43.84 ¥6,926

$74.3 ¥496

-40.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.3 ¥15.2K

$106 ¥706

-8.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$417 ¥65.8K

$1,055 ¥7,056

-60.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$273 ¥43.1K

$585 ¥3,910

-53.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$844 ¥133.4K

$2,485 ¥16.6K

-66.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$594 ¥93.8K

$1,232 ¥8,240

-51.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,561 ¥404.5K

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-81.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,760 ¥278.0K

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-71.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,614 ¥255.0K

$1,711 ¥11.4K

-5.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.6

3.36

-52.38%

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

Last update for Kawagoe: October 12, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kawagoe

$273 25.2%

Shanghai

$585 47% 114% $312

Groceries & Markets

Kawagoe

$257 23.7%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 8.7% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kawagoe

$185 17.1%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 58.7% $109

Eating Out

Kawagoe

$128 11.8%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 17% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Kawagoe

$92 8.5%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 32% $30

Getting Around

Kawagoe

$83 7.6%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 56.2% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Kawagoe

$66 6.1%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 26.4% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $417 in Kawagoe and $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shanghai pays 6% 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 Kawagoe vs $30.00 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $235 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Kawagoe

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

11:53 11:53 AM

10:53 10:53 AM

1 h behind Kawagoe

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

350,745

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

Kawagoe Shanghai 1,750 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Kawagoe
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

Kawagoe vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kawagoe and Shanghai differ by about 15% in total monthly costs ($1,084 vs $1,244 including rent). Kawagoe is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $417 in Kawagoe versus $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Kawagoe – 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.

All in, you'll spend $1,084 per month in Kawagoe versus $1,244 in Shanghai – a 15% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,084 in Kawagoe versus $1,244 in Shanghai, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kawagoe but tight or insufficient in Shanghai. The gap between the two cities makes Kawagoe 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, Kawagoe 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 Kawagoe gentler on the wallet – expenses run 15% less than in Shanghai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.