Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Pingdingshan

For one person, living is cheaper in Pingdingshan: $703 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,400 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Pingdingshan
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Pingdingshan Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Pingdingshan

🇨🇳 China

$703

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Pingdingshan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $703 in Pingdingshan.

Melbourne $2,821
Pingdingshan $703

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,104 in Pingdingshan.

Melbourne $4,235
Pingdingshan $1,104

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,506 in Pingdingshan.

Melbourne $5,650
Pingdingshan $1,506

Living in Melbourne is roughly 301% more expensive than in Pingdingshan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Pingdingshan is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$2.22 ¥14.86

685.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$16.71 ¥112

405.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$4.50 ¥30.12

176.89%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.39 ¥15.96

71.97%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.56 ¥3.76

446.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.26 ¥1.72

869.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$0.92 ¥6.17

965.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$1.60 ¥10.72

435.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.69 ¥11.27

-12.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.68 ¥11.21

75.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.93 ¥6.24

186.02%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.97 ¥6.50

471.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$8.15 ¥54.5

28.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.19 ¥21.35

202.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$10.35 ¥69.2

47.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$1.42 ¥9.51

180.99%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.03 ¥6.89

193.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.10 ¥7.37

181.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.17 ¥7.83

311.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.60 ¥4.01

405.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$0.72 ¥4.78

238.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.63 ¥4.21

290.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.79 ¥5.26

106.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.38 ¥22.59

1203.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$14.77 ¥98.8

-14.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.99 ¥6.62

459.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$2.10 ¥14.06

149.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.29 ¥1.92

1189.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$17.69 ¥118

677.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.72 ¥4.81

526.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.29 ¥1.91

368.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$3.68 ¥24.61

727.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.08 ¥7.22

36.11%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$12.1K ¥80.6K

140.46%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$17.1K ¥114.4K

54.79%

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

$234 A$336

$69.1 ¥462

238.32%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$7.22 ¥48.30

286.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$10.50 ¥70.2

430.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$42.31 ¥283

16.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$14.71 ¥98.3

46.02%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.94 ¥39.70

154.04%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$382 ¥2,556

520.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$30.2K ¥201.8K

0.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$42.96 ¥287

86.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$33.95 ¥227

49.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$74.5 ¥498

61.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$69.7 ¥466

87.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$296 ¥1,981

493.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$180 ¥1,206

670.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$632 ¥4,229

452.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$378 ¥2,528

559.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,444 ¥23.0K

101.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$1,977 ¥13.2K

225.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.29

79.33%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Pingdingshan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Pingdingshan

$180 25.7% 87% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Pingdingshan

$190 27% 50.5% $194

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Pingdingshan

$87 12.4% 72.7% $231

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Pingdingshan

$71 10.1% 77.4% $243

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Pingdingshan

$100 14.2% 42.1% $72

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Pingdingshan

$21 3% 87.2% $143

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Pingdingshan

$54 7.7% 31.9% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $296 in Pingdingshan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $17.00 in Pingdingshan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $190 per month, with Pingdingshan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Pingdingshan

🕒 Local time

20:00 8:00 PM

17:00 5:00 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

5,000,000

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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 Pingdingshan 8,600 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Pingdingshan

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 Pingdingshan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Pingdingshan differ by about 301% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $703 including rent). Pingdingshan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,231 in Melbourne and $1,054 in Pingdingshan to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $296 in Pingdingshan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $382 in Pingdingshan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 102% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $703 in Pingdingshan versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Pingdingshan but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Pingdingshan 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 Pingdingshan 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 Pingdingshan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 301% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.