Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Jinzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Jinzhou: $744 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,900 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Jinzhou
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Jinzhou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Jinzhou

🇨🇳 China

$744

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Jinzhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $744 in Jinzhou.

Melbourne $2,821
Jinzhou $744

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,182 in Jinzhou.

Melbourne $4,235
Jinzhou $1,182

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,620 in Jinzhou.

Melbourne $5,650
Jinzhou $1,620

Living in Melbourne is roughly 279% more expensive than in Jinzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Jinzhou is 45% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.97

$2.97 ¥19.85

486.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$22.15 ¥148

281.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.85

$5.11 ¥34.15

143.84%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.88

$2.81 ¥18.81

46.26%

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

$3.06 A$4.38

$0.47 ¥3.16

551.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.61

$0.31 ¥2.09

712.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.04

$1.09 ¥7.32

799.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.28

$2.06 ¥13.75

316.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.78 ¥11.88

-16.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.22

$1.60 ¥10.68

83.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.80

$1.02 ¥6.80

160.78%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.94

$1.67 ¥11.20

231.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.06

$13.84 ¥92.6

-24.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.82

$3.75 ¥25.09

157.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.81

$12.09 ¥80.9

25.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.72

$1.83 ¥12.25

118.03%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.32

$1.31 ¥8.78

130.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.44

$1.67 ¥11.17

85.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.90

$1.28 ¥8.58

276.56%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.34

$0.71 ¥4.72

326.76%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$0.95 ¥6.33

156.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.53

$0.60 ¥4.03

310.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.52 ¥3.47

213.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.35 ¥22.40

1215.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.20

$10.49 ¥70.2

21.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.93

$0.81 ¥5.43

583.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.49

$1.41 ¥9.44

270.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.36

$0.29 ¥1.93

1189.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$197

$17.28 ¥116

695.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.47

$1.47 ¥9.80

206.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.33 ¥2.18

312.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.62

$6.27 ¥41.94

385.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.26 ¥8.46

16.67%

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

$29.0K A$41.5K

$20.8K ¥139.2K

39.31%

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

$26.5K A$37.9K

$19.4K ¥129.9K

36.34%

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

$234 A$335

$61.6 ¥412

279.41%

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

$27.93 A$40.01

$9.25 ¥61.8

201.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.9

$10.62 ¥71.0

424.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.8

$37.37 ¥250

32.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.77

$13.38 ¥89.5

60.54%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.62

$5.58 ¥37.32

170.43%

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

$2,371 A$3,397

$425 ¥2,843

457.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.3K

$15.7K ¥105.0K

92.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$42.31 ¥283

89.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.6

$30.77 ¥206

64.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$80.1 ¥535

50.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$187

$64.9 ¥434

100.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,520

$266 ¥1,776

562.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,991

$198 ¥1,321

603.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,005

$642 ¥4,293

444.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,572

$387 ¥2,585

544.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,922

$3,375 ¥22.6K

105.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,233

$2,212 ¥14.8K

191.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,279

$448 ¥2,996

878.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.36

75.60%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Jinzhou: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Jinzhou

$198 26.5% 85.8% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Jinzhou

$212 28.4% 44.9% $172

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Jinzhou

$81 10.9% 74.3% $236

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Jinzhou

$86 11.5% 72.8% $229

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Jinzhou

$98 13.2% 42.9% $74

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Jinzhou

$22 2.9% 86.8% $142

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Jinzhou

$49 6.5% 39% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $266 in Jinzhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 878% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $22.00 in Jinzhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $212 per month, with Jinzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Jinzhou

🕒 Local time

19:51 7:51 PM

16:51 4:51 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

2,703,853

💱 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 →

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Between locations

Melbourne Jinzhou 9,100 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 Jinzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Jinzhou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 279% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 878% higher in Melbourne, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $266 in Jinzhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Jinzhou – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $85.0 in Melbourne. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,821 per month in Melbourne versus $744 in Jinzhou – a 279% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $744 in Jinzhou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Jinzhou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Jinzhou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Melbourne and Jinzhou 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 Jinzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 279% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.