Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Quzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Quzhou: $679 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,700 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 Quzhou
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Quzhou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Quzhou

🇨🇳 China

$679

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Quzhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $679 in Quzhou.

Melbourne $2,821
Quzhou $679

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,133 in Quzhou.

Melbourne $4,235
Quzhou $1,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,586 in Quzhou.

Melbourne $5,650
Quzhou $1,586

Living in Melbourne is roughly 315% more expensive than in Quzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Quzhou is 50% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.86

$2.88 ¥19.25

505.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$30.36 ¥203

178.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.77

$4.52 ¥30.19

175.66%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.86

$3.48 ¥23.25

18.10%

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

$3.06 A$4.36

$0.48 ¥3.21

537.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.59

$0.31 ¥2.07

712.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$13.98

$1.07 ¥7.17

815.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.23

$3.29 ¥21.97

160.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.12

$1.76 ¥11.78

-15.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.20

$1.12 ¥7.46

162.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.79

$0.68 ¥4.51

291.18%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.90

$1.63 ¥10.87

239.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.00

$15.17 ¥101

-30.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.77

$3.78 ¥25.24

155.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.72

$8.84 ¥59.1

72.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.70

$1.08 ¥7.21

269.44%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.31

$1.56 ¥10.45

93.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.43

$1.50 ¥10.01

106.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.87

$1.23 ¥8.25

291.87%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.32

$0.58 ¥3.89

422.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.49

$0.71 ¥4.73

243.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.51

$0.65 ¥4.34

278.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.32

$0.55 ¥3.65

196.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$62.9

$4.37 ¥29.19

908.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.12

$8.08 ¥54.0

57.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.90

$0.75 ¥5.00

638.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.46

$1.48 ¥9.87

253.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.33

$0.29 ¥1.94

1189.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$196

$16.07 ¥107

755.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.44

$1.77 ¥11.80

154.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.94

$0.37 ¥2.49

267.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.44

$7.15 ¥47.76

325.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.10

$1.27 ¥8.50

15.75%

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

$29.0K A$41.4K

$19.1K ¥127.3K

52.19%

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

$26.5K A$37.8K

$18.2K ¥121.7K

45.29%

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

$234 A$333

$52.0 ¥347

349.82%

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

$27.93 A$39.84

$6.82 ¥45.54

309.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.5

$8.09 ¥54.1

589.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.5

$37.80 ¥253

30.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.64

$13.94 ¥93.2

54.09%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.53

$7.74 ¥51.7

94.96%

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

$2,371 A$3,383

$418 ¥2,796

466.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.1K

$15.6K ¥104.4K

93.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$114

$62.2 ¥416

28.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.3

$27.26 ¥182

85.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$61.0 ¥408

97.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$186

$51.5 ¥344

153.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,509

$286 ¥1,914

514.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,982

$163 ¥1,086

754.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$4,984

$716 ¥4,783

388.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,557

$368 ¥2,456

578.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,881

$3,840 ¥25.7K

80.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,194

$1,738 ¥11.6K

270.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,252

$690 ¥4,611

535.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.18

85.53%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Quzhou: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Quzhou

$163 23.9% 88.3% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Quzhou

$191 28.1% 50.2% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Quzhou

$67 9.9% 78.9% $251

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Quzhou

$93 13.8% 70.3% $221

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Quzhou

$91 13.4% 47.1% $81

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Quzhou

$21 3.1% 87.3% $143

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Quzhou

$53 7.9% 33.1% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $286 in Quzhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 535% 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 $30.00 in Quzhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $191 per month, with Quzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Quzhou

🕒 Local time

19:47 7:47 PM

16:47 4:47 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

2,122,661

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.701 USD

1 AUD = 0.626 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 = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.626 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.48 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Quzhou 7,910 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 Quzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Quzhou differ by about 315% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $679 including rent). Quzhou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 535% 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 $286 in Quzhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $418 in Quzhou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 101% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $679 in Quzhou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Quzhou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Quzhou 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 Quzhou 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 Quzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 315% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.