Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Huizhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Huizhou: $774 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,600 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Huizhou
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Huizhou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Huizhou

🇨🇳 China

$774

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Huizhou

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

A single person spends $2,821 per month in Melbourne vs $774 in Huizhou, rent included.

Melbourne $2,821
Huizhou $774

A couple spends around $4,235 per month in Melbourne vs $1,197 in Huizhou, rent included.

Melbourne $4,235
Huizhou $1,197

A family of three spends $5,650 per month in Melbourne vs $1,620 in Huizhou, rent included.

Melbourne $5,650
Huizhou $1,620

Melbourne costs about 264% more than Huizhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Melbourne sits 109% above the global median, while Huizhou is 43% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.97

$2.29 ¥15.31

661.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$17.54 ¥117

382.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.85

$5.15 ¥34.46

141.94%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.88

$2.95 ¥19.74

39.32%

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

$3.06 A$4.38

$0.57 ¥3.84

436.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.61

$0.29 ¥1.91

768.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.04

$1.02 ¥6.82

860.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.28

$1.68 ¥11.22

410.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.86 ¥12.43

-20.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.22

$1.57 ¥10.53

87.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.80

$1.10 ¥7.34

141.82%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.94

$1.58 ¥10.57

250.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.06

$7.80 ¥52.2

34.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.82

$4.28 ¥28.62

125.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.81

$11.92 ¥79.7

27.68%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.72

$1.83 ¥12.25

118.03%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.32

$1.24 ¥8.30

143.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.44

$1.25 ¥8.38

148.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.90

$1.41 ¥9.43

241.84%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.34

$0.93 ¥6.22

225.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$1.19 ¥7.93

105.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.53

$0.67 ¥4.47

267.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.49 ¥3.26

232.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.05 ¥20.37

1344.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.20

$10.80 ¥72.2

17.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.93

$1.06 ¥7.10

422.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.49

$1.67 ¥11.14

213.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.36

$0.31 ¥2.08

1106.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$197

$18.02 ¥120

663.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.47

$1.03 ¥6.86

337.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.40 ¥2.70

240.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.62

$3.81 ¥25.46

699.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.18 ¥7.90

24.58%

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

$29.0K A$41.5K

$19.6K ¥130.8K

48.30%

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

$26.5K A$37.9K

$15.5K ¥103.5K

71.02%

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

$234 A$335

$50.6 ¥339

361.54%

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

$27.93 A$40.01

$11.45 ¥76.6

143.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.9

$9.80 ¥65.5

468.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.8

$40.90 ¥274

20.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.77

$15.01 ¥100

43.10%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.62

$6.70 ¥44.80

125.22%

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

$2,371 A$3,397

$418 ¥2,797

467.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.3K

$21.3K ¥142.3K

41.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$49.19 ¥329

62.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.6

$41.73 ¥279

21.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$83.5 ¥558

44.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$187

$70.5 ¥471

85.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,520

$212 ¥1,420

728.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,991

$237 ¥1,582

487.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,005

$392 ¥2,621

791.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,572

$419 ¥2,803

494.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,922

$2,269 ¥15.2K

205.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,233

$1,182 ¥7,907

445.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,279

$860 ¥5,750

409.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.38

74.56%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Huizhou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Huizhou

$237 30.5% 83% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Huizhou

$198 25.6% 48.4% $186

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Huizhou

$72 9.3% 77.3% $245

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Huizhou

$81 10.5% 74.2% $233

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Huizhou

$110 14.2% 35.8% $62

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Huizhou

$22 2.9% 86.4% $141

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Huizhou

$54 7% 31.8% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,759 in Melbourne versus $212 in Huizhou. 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 410% 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 $18.00 in Huizhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $384 vs $198 – making Huizhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Huizhou

🕒 Local time

16:45 4:45 PM

13:45 1:45 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

4,597,002

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 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 Huizhou 7,490 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Huizhou

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 Huizhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne, $774 in Huizhou – roughly 264% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,231 per month in Melbourne and $1,162 in Huizhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Huizhou, 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 $18.00 in Huizhou. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,821 in Melbourne and $774 in Huizhou. That's a gap of about 264%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Huizhou, where all-in costs run around $774, than in Melbourne at $2,821. In Huizhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Huizhou – 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 Huizhou. 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.