Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Benxi

For one person, living is cheaper in Benxi: $710 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Benxi
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Benxi Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Benxi

🇨🇳 China

$710

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Benxi

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 Benxi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,821 per month in Melbourne vs $710 in Benxi, rent included.

Melbourne $2,821
Benxi $710

A couple spends around $4,235 per month in Melbourne vs $1,027 in Benxi, rent included.

Melbourne $4,235
Benxi $1,027

A family of three spends $5,650 per month in Melbourne vs $1,344 in Benxi, rent included.

Melbourne $5,650
Benxi $1,344

Melbourne costs about 297% more than Benxi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Melbourne sits 109% above the global median, while Benxi is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.06 ¥20.47

469.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$22.56 ¥151

274.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.36 ¥35.83

132.46%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.42 ¥16.19

69.83%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.47 ¥3.14

551.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.29 ¥1.94

768.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$0.77 ¥5.16

1172.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$1.75 ¥11.70

389.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.88 ¥12.58

-21.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.18 ¥7.91

149.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.86 ¥5.73

209.30%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.61 ¥10.73

244.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$9.96 ¥66.6

5.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$2.98 ¥19.92

223.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$8.87 ¥59.3

71.59%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$1.61 ¥10.74

147.83%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.40 ¥9.33

115.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.68 ¥11.23

84.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.37 ¥9.14

251.82%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.62 ¥4.15

388.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.84 ¥12.32

32.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.62 ¥4.11

296.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.70 ¥4.69

132.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$2.95 ¥19.73

1393.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$8.36 ¥55.9

51.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.63 ¥4.21

779.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.29 ¥8.61

305.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.31 ¥2.08

1106.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$12.18 ¥81.4

1029.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.93 ¥6.21

384.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.31 ¥2.09

338.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$3.03 ¥20.29

904.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.13 ¥7.55

30.09%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$19.1K ¥127.8K

51.74%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$17.6K ¥117.8K

50.21%

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

$234 A$336

$54.5 ¥364

329.16%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$6.90 ¥46.10

304.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$10.40 ¥69.6

435.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$67.7 ¥452

-26.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$8.23 ¥55.1

161.00%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.81 ¥38.82

159.72%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$440 ¥2,941

439.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$8,949 ¥59.8K

237.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$30.00 ¥201

166.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$83.4 ¥558

-39.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$59.8 ¥399

101.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$52.0 ¥348

150.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$134 ¥899

1208.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$181 ¥1,212

666.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$257 ¥1,718

1260.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$149 ¥995

1575.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,794 ¥25.4K

82.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,967 ¥13.2K

227.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$457 ¥3,055

859.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

47.50%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Benxi: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Benxi

$181 25.5% 87% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Benxi

$181 25.4% 52.9% $203

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Benxi

$72 10.1% 77.4% $246

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Benxi

$80 11.3% 74.6% $234

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Benxi

$101 14.3% 41% $70

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Benxi

$16 2.2% 90.3% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Benxi

$79 11.2% 0.4% $0.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,759 in Melbourne versus $134 in Benxi. 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 859% 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 $23.00 in Benxi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $384 vs $181 – making Benxi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Benxi

🕒 Local time

20:32 8:32 PM

17:32 5:32 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

809,655

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Between locations

Melbourne Benxi 9,060 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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Benxi

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 Benxi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne costs about 297% more than Benxi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,231 per month in Melbourne and $1,065 in Benxi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $2,371 per month in Melbourne and $440 in Benxi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 113% more in Melbourne, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Benxi, where all-in costs run around $710, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Benxi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Benxi – 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 Benxi. 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.