Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lebanon and China

Name: China
Address: CN

For one person, living is cheaper in China: $793 a month against $1,510 in Lebanon, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Lebanon
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Lebanon Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in China
Learn more

China Living Index

Jump to prices

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$1,510

/mo nomad

🇨🇳 China

$793

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lebanon and in China

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,510 in Lebanon versus $793 in China.

Lebanon $1,510
China $793

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,377 in Lebanon versus $1,261 in China.

Lebanon $2,377
China $1,261

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,243 in Lebanon versus $1,730 in China.

Lebanon $3,243
China $1,730

Living in Lebanon is roughly 91% more expensive than in China on average.

Lebanon (12% above) and China (41% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.11 LBP 1.1M

$2.96 ¥19.76

309.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.5 LBP 4.7M

$22.74 ¥152

130.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.03 LBP 897.6K

$5.34 ¥35.70

87.83%

Cappuccino

$4.16 LBP 372.4K

$3.04 ¥20.35

36.84%

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

$2.06 LBP 184.2K

$0.48 ¥3.22

329.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 LBP 82.4K

$0.28 ¥1.85

228.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.98 LBP 445.5K

$1.03 ¥6.92

383.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.67 LBP 417.5K

$2.27 ¥15.16

105.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 LBP 167.5K

$1.80 ¥12.02

3.89%

White Bread (500g)

$0.85 LBP 76.0K

$1.69 ¥11.28

-49.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.09 LBP 187.1K

$1.00 ¥6.69

109.00%

Eggs

$3.46 LBP 309.8K

$1.56 ¥10.42

121.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.54 LBP 943.4K

$13.44 ¥89.8

-21.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.77 LBP 874.5K

$3.48 ¥23.28

180.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.07 LBP 1.2M

$11.49 ¥76.8

13.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.60 LBP 232.8K

$1.79 ¥12.00

45.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 LBP 156.0K

$1.26 ¥8.41

38.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 LBP 134.5K

$1.48 ¥9.92

1.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.33 LBP 119.4K

$1.31 ¥8.76

1.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 LBP 103.8K

$0.72 ¥4.84

61.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.40 LBP 125.3K

$0.93 ¥6.24

50.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 LBP 93.4K

$0.61 ¥4.11

70.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 LBP 70.5K

$0.58 ¥3.89

36.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.98 LBP 266.9K

$3.84 ¥25.65

-22.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.93 LBP 889.0K

$11.87 ¥79.4

-16.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 LBP 116.5K

$0.86 ¥5.72

51.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 LBP 215.9K

$1.69 ¥11.33

42.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.95 LBP 175.0K

$0.31 ¥2.07

529.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 LBP 6.8M

$22.36 ¥150

241.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.15 LBP 460.5K

$1.47 ¥9.82

250.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.03 LBP 181.5K

$0.38 ¥2.53

434.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.77 LBP 2.0M

$7.03 ¥47.04

223.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 LBP 95.9K

$1.24 ¥8.32

-13.71%

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

$45.4K LBP 4.1B

$19.2K ¥128.5K

136.22%

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

$31.7K LBP 2.8B

$17.3K ¥115.6K

83.35%

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

$196 LBP 17.6M

$54.3 ¥363

261.82%

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

$21.04 LBP 1.9M

$8.34 ¥55.7

152.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.82 LBP 3.2M

$10.77 ¥72.0

232.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.5 LBP 5.9M

$40.39 ¥270

62.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.10 LBP 2.6M

$14.77 ¥98.8

97.02%

Cinema Ticket

$10.14 LBP 907.6K

$6.89 ¥46.08

47.17%

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

$585 LBP 52.3M

$457 ¥3,057

27.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,646 LBP 773.8M

$20.1K ¥134.2K

-56.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.3 LBP 6.6M

$45.10 ¥302

64.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.2 LBP 4.5M

$35.65 ¥238

40.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 LBP 12.5M

$77.9 ¥521

78.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 LBP 10.2M

$78.0 ¥522

45.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$793 LBP 70.9M

$391 ¥2,615

102.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$423 LBP 37.8M

$232 ¥1,549

82.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,765 LBP 157.9M

$816 ¥5,457

116.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$882 LBP 78.9M

$459 ¥3,070

92.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,105 LBP 277.9M

$4,585 ¥30.7K

-32.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,459 LBP 130.6M

$2,309 ¥15.4K

-36.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 LBP 61.1M

$1,084 ¥7,247

-37.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.88

3.46

214.45%

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

Last update for Lebanon: October 11, 2026

Last update for China: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lebanon

$423 28%

China

$232 29.2% 45.2% $191

Groceries & Markets

Lebanon

$256 17%

China

$211 26.6% 17.6% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lebanon

$253 16.8%

China

$73 9.3% 71% $180

Eating Out

Lebanon

$223 14.8%

China

$89 11.2% 60.1% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Lebanon

$170 11.3%

China

$107 13.4% 37.3% $63

Getting Around

Lebanon

$99 6.6%

China

$27 3.4% 72.9% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Lebanon

$86 5.7%

China

$54 6.8% 36.8% $32

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $195 in Lebanon, $298 in China. Capital cities: $944 in Beirut vs $940 in Beijing (Pekin).

National salary averages: $693 in Lebanon, $871 in China. Higher pay doesn't always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 53% higher in China.

Dining out costs 200% more in Lebanon.

Public transport is 325% more expensive in China.

Salaries are 26% higher in China, and purchasing power comes out stronger in China.

Good to know

🇱🇧 Lebanon

🇨🇳 China

🕒 Local time

19:05 7:05 PM

00:05 12:05 AM

5 h ahead of Lebanon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,100,075

1,442,965,000

💱 Currency

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to LBP – Lebanese Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇧 Lebanese Pound (ل.ل)

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,618 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 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 LBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lebanon China 6,970 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Lebanon
China

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

Lebanon vs China: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $793 per month in China and $1,510 in Lebanon, there's a 91% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Overall, China is the cheaper option, but not in every category: rent, groceries, transport, and eating out each follow their own pattern. Check the categories you spend the most on before deciding.

In China, $2,000 covers most cities easily; in Lebanon it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you'll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you're after: China wins on affordability; Lebanon may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.