Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Cixi

For one person, living is cheaper in Cixi: $725 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,500 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Cixi
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Cixi Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Cixi

🇨🇳 China

$725

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Cixi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,852 in Melbourne versus $725 in Cixi.

Melbourne $2,852
Cixi $725

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,297 in Melbourne versus $1,145 in Cixi.

Melbourne $4,297
Cixi $1,145

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,742 in Melbourne versus $1,564 in Cixi.

Melbourne $5,742
Cixi $1,564

Living in Melbourne is roughly 293% more expensive than in Cixi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 113% above, Cixi is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.51

$2.86 ¥19.14

520.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$122

$21.88 ¥146

287.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.47

$4.73 ¥31.61

157.08%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.64

$2.96 ¥19.77

32.77%

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

$3.14 A$4.51

$0.47 ¥3.14

568.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.49

$0.29 ¥1.95

737.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.23

$0.94 ¥6.28

953.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.91

$2.04 ¥13.64

306.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.22

$1.85 ¥12.40

-16.22%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.32

$1.60 ¥10.68

88.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.14

$0.95 ¥6.37

203.16%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.82

$1.54 ¥10.28

253.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.23

$12.74 ¥85.1

-16.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.81

$3.16 ¥21.11

204.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.55

$10.37 ¥69.3

44.55%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.97

$1.86 ¥12.42

123.12%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.39

$1.25 ¥8.37

144.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.74

$1.48 ¥9.89

122.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.84

$1.11 ¥7.41

328.83%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.36

$0.74 ¥4.93

310.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.67

$0.90 ¥6.01

183.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.56

$0.56 ¥3.71

342.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.54 ¥3.63

201.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.3

$3.15 ¥21.04

1299.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.86

$10.77 ¥72.0

15.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.66

$0.78 ¥5.22

583.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.41

$1.65 ¥11.00

212.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.52

$0.29 ¥1.95

1224.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$16.62 ¥111

751.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.32

$1.42 ¥9.48

209.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.02

$0.36 ¥2.39

288.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.86

$6.71 ¥44.85

344.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.10

$1.13 ¥7.55

29.20%

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

$28.1K A$40.4K

$19.7K ¥132.0K

42.56%

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

$25.9K A$37.3K

$17.1K ¥114.4K

51.51%

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

$233 A$334

$44.63 ¥298

421.29%

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

$27.28 A$39.20

$9.55 ¥63.8

185.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$82.0

$11.71 ¥78.3

387.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.7

$42.36 ¥283

24.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.50

$14.18 ¥94.7

59.52%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.58

$6.06 ¥40.49

182.18%

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

$2,373 A$3,411

$333 ¥2,227

612.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.8K

$17.1K ¥114.4K

78.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$43.43 ¥290

80.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.5

$29.82 ¥199

69.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$72.8 ¥486

65.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$72.7 ¥486

83.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,461

$283 ¥1,894

504.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,015

$192 ¥1,281

631.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,798

$588 ¥3,929

467.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,634

$366 ¥2,448

590.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.1K

$3,000 ¥20.0K

133.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,725

$1,998 ¥13.4K

238.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,077

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.89

51.67%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cixi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Cixi

$192 26.8% 86.3% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Cixi

$199 27.9% 48.3% $186

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Cixi

$66 9.2% 79.2% $251

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Cixi

$84 11.8% 73.1% $230

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Cixi

$98 13.8% 42.8% $74

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Cixi

$21 2.9% 87.5% $147

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Cixi

$54 7.6% 37.3% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,713 in Melbourne and $283 in Cixi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $22.00 in Cixi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $385 vs $199 per month, with Cixi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Cixi

🕒 Local time

16:21 4:21 PM

13:21 1:21 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

1,829,488

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.696 USD

1 AUD = 0.621 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 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 13, 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 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Cixi 7,950 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Cixi

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 Cixi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cixi wins on cost – living expenses run 293% lower than in Melbourne. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cixi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,277 in Melbourne and $1,088 in Cixi to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,713 in Melbourne versus $283 in Cixi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,373 in Melbourne versus $333 in Cixi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $725 in Cixi versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cixi but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Cixi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cixi delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $725 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cixi hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Melbourne and Cixi 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 Cixi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 293% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.