Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nanjing

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanjing: $841 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,100 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Nanjing
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Nanjing Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Nanjing

🇨🇳 China

$841

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nanjing

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,852 in Melbourne versus $841 in Nanjing.

Melbourne $2,852
Nanjing $841

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,297 in Melbourne versus $1,339 in Nanjing.

Melbourne $4,297
Nanjing $1,339

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,742 in Melbourne versus $1,837 in Nanjing.

Melbourne $5,742
Nanjing $1,837

Living in Melbourne is roughly 239% more expensive than in Nanjing, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 113% above, Nanjing is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.40

$3.67 ¥24.54

383.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$121

$22.21 ¥148

281.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.40

$4.97 ¥33.22

144.67%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.62

$3.01 ¥20.12

30.56%

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

$3.14 A$4.49

$0.50 ¥3.31

528.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.47

$0.27 ¥1.81

800.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.17

$1.45 ¥9.66

582.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.86

$2.29 ¥15.28

262.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.21

$2.16 ¥14.46

-28.24%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.31

$2.07 ¥13.84

45.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.12

$0.91 ¥6.07

216.48%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.79

$1.35 ¥9.02

302.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.16

$10.64 ¥71.1

-0.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.76

$3.02 ¥20.20

218.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.46

$8.97 ¥59.9

67.11%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.94

$2.09 ¥13.95

98.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.37

$1.28 ¥8.58

138.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.72

$1.77 ¥11.86

86.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.81

$1.07 ¥7.17

344.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.34

$0.91 ¥6.08

234.07%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.65

$0.90 ¥6.05

183.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.55

$0.93 ¥6.24

166.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.52 ¥3.45

213.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.75 ¥25.05

1075.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.79

$13.34 ¥89.2

-6.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.63

$1.01 ¥6.72

427.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.38

$1.56 ¥10.45

230.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.50

$0.31 ¥2.08

1138.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$29.72 ¥199

376.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.29

$1.75 ¥11.71

151.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.41 ¥2.77

241.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.69

$8.91 ¥59.6

234.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.09

$1.37 ¥9.13

6.57%

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

$28.1K A$40.3K

$19.1K ¥127.8K

47.15%

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

$25.9K A$37.1K

$16.6K ¥110.6K

56.76%

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

$233 A$333

$53.6 ¥358

334.21%

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

$27.28 A$39.04

$7.59 ¥50.7

259.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$81.6

$7.28 ¥48.66

683.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.4

$28.49 ¥190

84.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.37

$33.70 ¥225

-32.88%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.48

$5.86 ¥39.15

191.81%

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

$2,373 A$3,397

$1,459 ¥9,753

62.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.6K

$22.5K ¥150.7K

35.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$43.40 ¥290

80.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.2

$33.88 ¥226

48.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$65.7 ¥439

83.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$86.9 ¥581

53.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,451

$529 ¥3,535

223.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,006

$295 ¥1,974

374.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,778

$1,115 ¥7,452

199.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,619

$557 ¥3,722

354.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.0K

$5,013 ¥33.5K

39.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,685

$3,140 ¥21.0K

115.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,051

$1,419 ¥9,485

197.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.42

72.51%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nanjing: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Nanjing

$295 35.1% 78.9% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Nanjing

$205 24.4% 46.7% $180

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Nanjing

$68 8.1% 78.4% $249

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Nanjing

$95 11.3% 69.7% $219

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Nanjing

$103 12.3% 39.9% $69

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Nanjing

$35 4.1% 79.3% $134

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Nanjing

$40 4.8% 53.7% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,713 in Melbourne and $529 in Nanjing. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 198% 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 Nanjing for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $385 vs $205 per month, with Nanjing cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Nanjing

🕒 Local time

19:22 7:22 PM

16:22 4:22 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

9,314,685

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Nanjing 8,230 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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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 Nanjing: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nanjing differ by about 239% in total monthly costs ($2,852 vs $841 including rent). Nanjing is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 198% 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: $1,713 in Melbourne versus $529 in Nanjing. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,373 in Melbourne versus $1,459 in Nanjing. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 88% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $841 in Nanjing versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Nanjing but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nanjing 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 Nanjing 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 Nanjing gentler on the wallet – expenses run 239% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.