Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Shantou

For one person, living is cheaper in Shantou: $692 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,500 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 Shantou
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Shantou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Shantou

🇨🇳 China

$692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Shantou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $692 in Shantou.

Melbourne $2,821
Shantou $692

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

Melbourne $4,235
Shantou $1,104

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,516 in Shantou.

Melbourne $5,650
Shantou $1,516

Living in Melbourne is roughly 307% more expensive than in Shantou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Shantou is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.97

$2.29 ¥15.35

661.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$23.70 ¥158

256.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.85

$5.17 ¥34.59

141.01%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.88

$3.38 ¥22.63

21.60%

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

$3.06 A$4.38

$0.47 ¥3.12

551.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.61

$0.31 ¥2.05

712.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.04

$0.88 ¥5.92

1013.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.28

$2.13 ¥14.28

302.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.60 ¥10.71

-7.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.22

$1.45 ¥9.73

102.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.80

$0.77 ¥5.18

245.45%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.94

$1.69 ¥11.33

227.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.06

$13.63 ¥91.1

-22.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.82

$3.43 ¥22.91

181.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.81

$13.16 ¥88.0

15.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.72

$1.95 ¥13.03

104.62%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.32

$1.50 ¥10.05

101.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.44

$1.81 ¥12.14

71.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.90

$1.30 ¥8.70

270.77%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.34

$0.82 ¥5.49

269.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$1.06 ¥7.11

130.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.53

$0.59 ¥3.96

316.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.43 ¥2.88

279.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.69 ¥24.71

1094.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.20

$12.00 ¥80.2

5.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.93

$0.83 ¥5.57

567.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.49

$1.79 ¥11.98

192.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.36

$0.36 ¥2.41

938.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$197

$24.27 ¥162

466.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.47

$1.53 ¥10.24

194.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.38 ¥2.56

257.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.62

$7.31 ¥48.86

316.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.23 ¥8.25

19.51%

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

$29.0K A$41.5K

$19.8K ¥132.4K

46.51%

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

$26.5K A$37.9K

$18.0K ¥120.5K

46.92%

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

$234 A$335

$56.7 ¥379

312.42%

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

$27.93 A$40.01

$8.89 ¥59.5

214.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.9

$13.86 ¥92.7

302.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.8

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.77

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.62

$7.54 ¥50.5

100.13%

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

$2,371 A$3,397

$540 ¥3,614

338.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.3K

$24.2K ¥162.1K

24.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$55.6 ¥372

43.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.6

$39.70 ¥265

27.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$73.1 ¥489

65.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$187

$91.4 ¥611

42.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,520

$298 ¥1,991

490.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,991

$151 ¥1,011

819.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,005

$602 ¥4,027

480.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,572

$294 ¥1,969

746.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,922

$2,278 ¥15.2K

204.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,233

$4,469 ¥29.9K

44.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,279

$1,062 ¥7,099

312.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.35

76.12%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Shantou: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Shantou

$151 21.8% 89.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Shantou

$214 31% 44.2% $170

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Shantou

$79 11.5% 75% $238

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Shantou

$86 12.5% 72.6% $228

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Shantou

$117 16.9% 31.9% $55

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Shantou

$29 4.2% 82.2% $135

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Shantou

$15 * 2.2% 81% $65

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $298 in Shantou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 313% 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 Shantou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $214 per month, with Shantou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Shantou

🕒 Local time

19:02 7:02 PM

16:02 4:02 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

5,389,328

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Shantou 7,420 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Shantou

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 Shantou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Shantou differ by about 307% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $692 including rent). Shantou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 313% 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 $298 in Shantou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $540 in Shantou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 79% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $692 in Shantou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shantou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Shantou 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 Shantou 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 Shantou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 307% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.