Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nanchang

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanchang: $648 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $26,100 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Nanchang
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Nanchang Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Nanchang

🇨🇳 China

$648

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nanchang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $648 in Nanchang.

Melbourne $2,821
Nanchang $648

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,058 in Nanchang.

Melbourne $4,235
Nanchang $1,058

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,467 in Nanchang.

Melbourne $5,650
Nanchang $1,467

Living in Melbourne is roughly 335% more expensive than in Nanchang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Nanchang is 52% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.97

$2.35 ¥15.71

641.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$18.21 ¥122

364.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.85

$4.81 ¥32.19

159.04%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.88

$2.59 ¥17.29

58.69%

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

$3.06 A$4.38

$0.44 ¥2.92

595.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.61

$0.27 ¥1.81

833.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.04

$1.31 ¥8.76

648.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.28

$1.89 ¥12.67

353.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$2.05 ¥13.71

-27.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.22

$2.40 ¥16.08

22.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.80

$0.84 ¥5.64

216.67%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.94

$1.67 ¥11.15

231.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.06

$13.25 ¥88.6

-20.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.82

$3.95 ¥26.45

144.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.81

$11.77 ¥78.7

29.31%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.72

$1.99 ¥13.29

100.50%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.32

$1.08 ¥7.22

179.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.44

$1.91 ¥12.74

62.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.90

$1.81 ¥12.13

166.30%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.34

$0.91 ¥6.11

232.97%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$1.13 ¥7.54

115.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.53

$0.61 ¥4.10

303.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.43 ¥2.90

279.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.07 ¥20.51

1335.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.20

$12.42 ¥83.1

2.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.93

$0.78 ¥5.20

610.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.49

$1.52 ¥10.19

244.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.36

$0.26 ¥1.75

1338.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$197

$14.93 ¥99.8

821.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.47

$1.24 ¥8.26

263.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.31 ¥2.08

338.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.62

$7.29 ¥48.76

317.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.25 ¥8.34

17.60%

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

$29.0K A$41.5K

$19.1K ¥127.7K

51.84%

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

$26.5K A$37.9K

$17.9K ¥119.4K

48.30%

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

$234 A$335

$34.93 ¥234

569.00%

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

$27.93 A$40.01

$9.27 ¥62.0

201.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.9

$13.34 ¥89.3

317.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.8

$42.85 ¥287

15.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.77

$19.61 ¥131

9.54%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.62

$6.42 ¥42.92

135.05%

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

$2,371 A$3,397

$326 ¥2,177

628.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.3K

$16.8K ¥112.2K

79.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$37.86 ¥253

111.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.6

$22.07 ¥148

129.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$87.6 ¥586

37.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$187

$60.7 ¥406

115.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,520

$223 ¥1,493

687.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,991

$118 ¥791

1074.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,005

$451 ¥3,014

675.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,572

$257 ¥1,719

870.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,922

$2,008 ¥13.4K

244.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,233

$1,624 ¥10.9K

296.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,279

$745 ¥4,985

487.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.46

70.52%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nanchang: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Nanchang

$118 18.3% 91.5% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Nanchang

$227 35% 40.9% $157

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Nanchang

$58 8.9% 81.9% $260

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Nanchang

$77 11.9% 75.4% $237

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Nanchang

$94 14.5% 45.5% $78

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Nanchang

$19 2.9% 88.5% $145

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Nanchang

$56 8.6% 30% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $223 in Nanchang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 488% 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 $18.00 in Nanchang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $227 per month, with Nanchang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Nanchang

🕒 Local time

19:51 7:51 PM

16:51 4:51 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

5,042,566

💱 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 Nanchang 7,990 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Nanchang

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 Nanchang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nanchang differ by about 335% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $648 including rent). Nanchang is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 488% 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 $223 in Nanchang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $326 in Nanchang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $648 in Nanchang versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nanchang but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nanchang 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 Nanchang 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 Nanchang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 335% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.