Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maebashi and Shanghai

For one person, living costs are similar in Maebashi and in Shanghai: $1,216 and $1,244 a month, rent and utilities included.

59

Cost of Living Index in Maebashi
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Maebashi Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Maebashi

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,216

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,216 per month in Maebashi vs $1,244 in Shanghai, rent included.

Maebashi $1,216
Shanghai $1,244

A couple spends around $1,956 per month in Maebashi vs $1,999 in Shanghai, rent included.

Maebashi $1,956
Shanghai $1,999

A family of three spends $2,696 per month in Maebashi vs $2,755 in Shanghai, rent included.

Maebashi $2,696
Shanghai $2,755

Maebashi is about 2% cheaper than Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Maebashi and Shanghai are more affordable than the global median – Maebashi 10% lower, Shanghai 8% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ¥694

$4.56 ¥30.47

-3.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.47 ¥4,972

$30.21 ¥202

4.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.16 ¥815

$5.25 ¥35.13

-1.71%

Cappuccino

$2.48 ¥392

$3.28 ¥21.94

-24.39%

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

$0.77 ¥122

$0.57 ¥3.84

35.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 ¥96.7

$0.36 ¥2.39

69.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 ¥355

$1.23 ¥8.23

82.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 ¥510

$2.27 ¥15.18

42.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 ¥192

$1.84 ¥12.30

-33.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 ¥241

$1.96 ¥13.08

-21.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ¥213

$1.03 ¥6.87

31.07%

Eggs

$1.63 ¥258

$1.67 ¥11.16

-2.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.66 ¥2,473

$16.96 ¥113

-7.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.42 ¥698

$3.19 ¥21.33

38.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.95 ¥2,679

$12.90 ¥86.3

31.40%

Apples (1kg)

$8.15 ¥1,288

$2.24 ¥15.00

263.84%

Banana (1kg)

$3.03 ¥478

$1.66 ¥11.13

82.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.91 ¥776

$2.02 ¥13.54

143.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.65 ¥1,208

$1.66 ¥11.08

360.84%

Potato (1kg)

$3.96 ¥626

$0.77 ¥5.17

414.29%

Onion (1kg)

$4.75 ¥751

$0.93 ¥6.21

410.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 ¥184

$0.63 ¥4.19

85.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ¥77.8

$0.60 ¥3.99

-18.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.94 ¥623

$3.80 ¥25.44

3.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.35 ¥1,477

$10.87 ¥72.7

-13.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 ¥395

$0.82 ¥5.51

204.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ¥327

$1.61 ¥10.76

28.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.51 ¥238

$0.61 ¥4.11

147.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.8 ¥8,335

$29.40 ¥197

79.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.18 ¥502

$2.11 ¥14.11

50.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.83 ¥447

$0.43 ¥2.87

558.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.19 ¥4,927

$9.06 ¥60.6

244.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ¥169

$1.33 ¥8.89

-19.55%

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

$21.3K ¥3.4M

$19.0K ¥127.2K

12.08%

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

$15.3K ¥2.4M

$18.7K ¥125.1K

-18.03%

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

$118 ¥18.6K

$57.8 ¥387

103.70%

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

$23.00 ¥3,633

$8.09 ¥54.1

184.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.59 ¥4,992

$10.48 ¥70.0

201.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 ¥8,141

$65.7 ¥439

-21.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.51 ¥4,978

$17.82 ¥119

76.82%

Cinema Ticket

$11.16 ¥1,764

$8.95 ¥59.9

24.69%

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

$575 ¥90.8K

$1,414 ¥9,451

-59.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ¥2.3M

$27.9K ¥186.2K

-48.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.39 ¥7,803

$54.0 ¥361

-8.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.13 ¥5,550

$37.09 ¥248

-5.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.7 ¥9,586

$74.3 ¥496

-18.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.9 ¥15.6K

$106 ¥706

-6.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$529 ¥83.6K

$1,055 ¥7,056

-49.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$337 ¥53.3K

$585 ¥3,910

-42.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,091 ¥172.3K

$2,485 ¥16.6K

-56.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 ¥117.4K

$1,232 ¥8,240

-39.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,756 ¥593.4K

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-73.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,859 ¥293.6K

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-70.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,696 ¥267.9K

$1,711 ¥11.4K

-0.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

3.36

-39.88%

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

Last update for Maebashi: October 10, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maebashi

$343 28.2%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 31.6% $109

Accommodation & Living

Maebashi

$337 27.7%

Shanghai

$585 47% 73.4% $248

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maebashi

$172 14.2%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 55.7% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Maebashi

$110 9%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 11% $12

Eating Out

Maebashi

$104 8.5%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 2.3% $2.4

Getting Around

Maebashi

$76 6.3%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 52.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Maebashi

$74 6.1%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 13.2% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $529 in Maebashi versus $1,055 in Shanghai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1% higher in Shanghai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Maebashi versus $30.00 in Shanghai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $343 vs $235 – making Shanghai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Maebashi

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

18:59 6:59 PM

17:59 5:59 PM

1 h behind Maebashi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

324,644

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 →

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Between locations

Maebashi Shanghai 1,720 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Maebashi
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

Maebashi vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Shanghai is pricier by about 2%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,824 per month in Maebashi and $1,865 in Shanghai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Maebashi, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Maebashi and $30.00 in Shanghai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,216 in Maebashi and $1,244 in Shanghai. That's a gap of about 2%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Maebashi, where all-in costs run around $1,216, than in Shanghai at $1,244. In Maebashi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Shanghai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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