Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Nantong

For one person, living is cheaper in Nantong: $750 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 Nantong
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Nantong Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Nantong

🇨🇳 China

$750

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Nantong

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $750 in Nantong.

Melbourne $2,821
Nantong $750

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,237 in Nantong.

Melbourne $4,235
Nantong $1,237

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,725 in Nantong.

Melbourne $5,650
Nantong $1,725

Living in Melbourne is roughly 276% more expensive than in Nantong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Nantong is 44% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.01 ¥20.15

479.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$23.57 ¥158

258.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$4.43 ¥29.64

181.26%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.79 ¥18.69

47.31%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.63 ¥4.23

385.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.33 ¥2.23

663.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$0.72 ¥4.84

1261.11%

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

$1.61 ¥10.76

-8.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.52 ¥10.19

93.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.79 ¥5.26

236.71%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.73 ¥11.55

220.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$6.67 ¥44.59

57.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.69 ¥24.66

161.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$10.37 ¥69.3

46.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$2.30 ¥15.37

73.48%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.40 ¥9.34

115.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.52 ¥10.14

103.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.46 ¥9.78

230.14%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.67 ¥4.51

352.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$0.90 ¥6.04

171.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.67 ¥4.46

267.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.50 ¥3.37

226.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.44 ¥23.00

1181.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$9.14 ¥61.1

38.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.74 ¥4.97

648.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.65 ¥11.06

216.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.21 ¥1.40

1680.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$14.73 ¥98.5

833.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$1.93 ¥12.89

133.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.38 ¥2.55

257.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$7.00 ¥46.78

335.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.21 ¥8.07

21.49%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$19.6K ¥131.1K

47.88%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$18.8K ¥125.8K

40.70%

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

$234 A$336

$47.85 ¥320

388.36%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$7.48 ¥50.0

273.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$14.96 ¥100

272.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$114 ¥763

-56.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$11.96 ¥80.0

79.60%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$7.68 ¥51.3

96.48%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$203 ¥1,356

1069.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$12.0K ¥80.1K

152.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$58.0 ¥388

37.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$42.62 ¥285

18.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$66.3 ¥443

82.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$110 ¥736

18.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$213 ¥1,422

727.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$142 ¥946

881.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$696 ¥4,656

401.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$354 ¥2,367

604.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,720 ¥24.9K

86.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$2,249 ¥15.0K

186.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$1,289 ¥8,622

239.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.5

68.57%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nantong: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Nantong

$142 18.9% 89.8% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Nantong

$182 24.3% 52.6% $202

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Nantong

$70 9.4% 77.9% $247

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Nantong

$83 11% 73.7% $232

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Nantong

$125 16.6% 27.4% $47

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Nantong

$19 2.6% 88.2% $144

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Nantong

$130 17.3% 62.7% $50

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $213 in Nantong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 240% 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 $24.00 in Nantong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $182 per month, with Nantong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Nantong

🕒 Local time

08:05 8:05 AM

05:05 5:05 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

7,726,635

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 Nantong 8,150 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Nantong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Nantong differ by about 276% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $750 including rent). Nantong is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 240% 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 $213 in Nantong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $203 in Nantong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 111% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $750 in Nantong versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nantong but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Nantong 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 Nantong 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 Nantong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 276% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.