Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nanning

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanning: $730 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,100 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Nanning
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Nanning Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Nanning

🇨🇳 China

$730

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nanning

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $730 in Nanning.

Melbourne $2,821
Nanning $730

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,171 in Nanning.

Melbourne $4,235
Nanning $1,171

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,612 in Nanning.

Melbourne $5,650
Nanning $1,612

Living in Melbourne is roughly 286% more expensive than in Nanning, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Nanning is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.05 ¥20.41

471.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$20.18 ¥135

318.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$5.50 ¥36.78

126.55%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.37 ¥15.82

73.42%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.60 ¥4.00

410.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.29 ¥1.96

768.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$0.88 ¥5.86

1013.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.18 ¥14.56

293.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$2.18 ¥14.55

-32.11%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$2.30 ¥15.39

27.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$1.13 ¥7.53

135.40%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.00 ¥13.36

177.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$10.34 ¥69.1

1.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.97 ¥26.51

143.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$17.63 ¥118

-13.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$1.79 ¥12.00

122.91%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.27 ¥8.51

137.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.50 ¥10.05

106.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.68 ¥11.21

186.90%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.98 ¥6.55

209.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.19 ¥7.94

105.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.57 ¥3.83

331.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.60 ¥4.02

171.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$4.09 ¥27.37

977.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$14.76 ¥98.7

-13.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.91 ¥6.11

508.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.56 ¥10.43

235.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.54 ¥3.62

592.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$15.81 ¥106

769.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$1.32 ¥8.86

241.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.43 ¥2.90

216.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$7.49 ¥50.1

306.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.32 ¥8.79

11.36%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$23.0K ¥153.6K

26.24%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$13.2K ¥88.4K

100.31%

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

$234 A$336

$33.88 ¥227

589.73%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$14.13 ¥94.5

97.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$10.83 ¥72.4

414.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$73.8 ¥494

-33.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$7.66 ¥51.2

180.42%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$6.77 ¥45.24

122.90%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$303 ¥2,024

683.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$4,424 ¥29.6K

582.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$20.13 ¥135

297.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$30.01 ¥201

68.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$64.0 ¥428

88.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$74.4 ¥498

75.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$251 ¥1,681

599.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$152 ¥1,016

814.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$385 ¥2,572

808.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$298 ¥1,993

736.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,545 ¥23.7K

95.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,534 ¥10.3K

320.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$682 ¥4,562

542.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.63

62.53%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nanning: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Nanning

$152 20.8% 89.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Nanning

$244 33.4% 36.4% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Nanning

$59 8.1% 81.5% $259

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Nanning

$82 11.2% 74.1% $233

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Nanning

$85 11.6% 50.6% $87

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Nanning

$21 2.9% 86.9% $142

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Nanning

$87 12% 9.8% $7.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $251 in Nanning. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 542% 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 $20.00 in Nanning for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $244 per month, with Nanning cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Nanning

🕒 Local time

16:58 4:58 PM

13:58 1:58 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

8,741,584

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Nanning 7,750 km ≈ 10 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 Nanning: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nanning differ by about 286% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $730 including rent). Nanning is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 542% 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 $251 in Nanning. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $303 in Nanning. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 57% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $730 in Nanning versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nanning but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nanning 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 Nanning 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 Nanning gentler on the wallet – expenses run 286% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.