Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Beijing (Pekin)

For one person, living is cheaper in Beijing (Pekin): $1,178 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $20,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Beijing (Pekin)
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Beijing (Pekin) Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Beijing (Pekin)

🇨🇳 China

$1,178

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Beijing (Pekin)

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

A single person spends $2,852 per month in Melbourne vs $1,178 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Melbourne $2,852
Beijing (Pekin) $1,178

A couple spends around $4,297 per month in Melbourne vs $1,895 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Melbourne $4,297
Beijing (Pekin) $1,895

A family of three spends $5,742 per month in Melbourne vs $2,612 in Beijing (Pekin), rent included.

Melbourne $5,742
Beijing (Pekin) $2,612

Melbourne costs about 142% more than Beijing (Pekin), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Melbourne sits 113% above the global median, while Beijing (Pekin) is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.49

$4.54 ¥30.39

290.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$122

$29.25 ¥196

190.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.46

$5.32 ¥35.59

128.57%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.64

$3.52 ¥23.57

11.65%

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

$3.14 A$4.51

$0.53 ¥3.56

492.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.49

$0.28 ¥1.88

767.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.22

$1.22 ¥8.18

711.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.91

$1.67 ¥11.15

396.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.22

$1.67 ¥11.16

-7.19%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.32

$1.77 ¥11.81

70.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.14

$1.29 ¥8.62

123.26%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.82

$2.04 ¥13.68

166.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.22

$14.52 ¥97.2

-27.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.81

$3.21 ¥21.46

199.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.54

$11.23 ¥75.2

33.48%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.96

$2.09 ¥13.96

98.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.38

$1.72 ¥11.52

77.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.74

$2.01 ¥13.44

64.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.83

$1.55 ¥10.38

207.10%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.36

$0.67 ¥4.52

353.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.66

$0.85 ¥5.70

200.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.56

$0.74 ¥4.96

235.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.62 ¥4.14

162.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.3

$4.42 ¥29.57

897.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.85

$13.84 ¥92.7

-10.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.65

$1.03 ¥6.88

417.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.41

$1.81 ¥12.11

185.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.52

$0.64 ¥4.31

500.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$34.88 ¥234

305.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.32

$1.98 ¥13.25

122.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.35 ¥2.35

300.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.84

$7.65 ¥51.2

289.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.09

$1.27 ¥8.51

14.96%

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

$28.1K A$40.4K

$19.6K ¥131.2K

43.66%

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

$25.9K A$37.3K

$18.1K ¥121.4K

43.10%

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

$233 A$334

$59.0 ¥395

294.32%

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

$27.28 A$39.19

$8.94 ¥59.9

205.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$81.9

$14.15 ¥94.7

303.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.7

$40.77 ¥273

29.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.49

$24.56 ¥164

-7.90%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.57

$7.38 ¥49.37

131.71%

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

$2,373 A$3,409

$650 ¥4,353

264.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.8K

$24.5K ¥163.8K

24.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$70.4 ¥471

11.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.5

$40.51 ¥271

24.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$87.6 ¥586

37.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$124 ¥830

7.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,460

$933 ¥6,246

83.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,014

$518 ¥3,469

170.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,796

$2,387 ¥16.0K

39.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,632

$1,143 ¥7,654

121.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.1K

$12.6K ¥84.1K

-44.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,721

$6,393 ¥42.8K

5.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,074

$1,710 ¥11.4K

147.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.21

83.80%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Beijing (Pekin): October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Beijing (Pekin)

$518 44% 63% $884

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Beijing (Pekin)

$228 19.4% 40.8% $157

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Beijing (Pekin)

$82 7% 74.1% $235

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Beijing (Pekin)

$107 9.1% 65.8% $207

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Beijing (Pekin)

$145 12.3% 15.7% $27

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Beijing (Pekin)

$41 3.5% 75.5% $127

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Beijing (Pekin)

$56 4.7% 36.1% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,713 in Melbourne versus $933 in Beijing (Pekin). 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 147% higher in Melbourne, 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 $85.0 in Melbourne versus $29.00 in Beijing (Pekin). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $385 vs $228 – making Beijing (Pekin) the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Beijing (Pekin)

🕒 Local time

13:46 1:46 PM

10:46 10:46 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

21,893,095 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.696 USD

1 AUD = 0.621 EUR

1 CNY = 0.149 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.696 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.621 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Beijing (Pekin) 9,120 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
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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

Melbourne vs Beijing (Pekin): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Melbourne is pricier by about 142%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,277 per month in Melbourne and $1,768 in Beijing (Pekin). That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Beijing (Pekin), 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 $85.0 in Melbourne and $29.00 in Beijing (Pekin). That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,852 in Melbourne and $1,178 in Beijing (Pekin). That's a gap of about 142%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Beijing (Pekin), where all-in costs run around $1,178, than in Melbourne at $2,852. In Beijing (Pekin) it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Beijing (Pekin) – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Beijing (Pekin). If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Melbourne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.