Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Taizhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Taizhou: $774 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,600 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Taizhou
Learn more

Taizhou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Taizhou

🇨🇳 China

$774

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Taizhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $774 in Taizhou.

Melbourne $2,821
Taizhou $774

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,257 in Taizhou.

Melbourne $4,235
Taizhou $1,257

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,740 in Taizhou.

Melbourne $5,650
Taizhou $1,740

Living in Melbourne is roughly 265% more expensive than in Taizhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Taizhou is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.97

$3.65 ¥24.42

377.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$25.57 ¥171

230.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.85

$4.51 ¥30.17

176.27%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.88

$3.47 ¥23.23

18.44%

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

$3.06 A$4.38

$0.54 ¥3.59

466.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.61

$0.29 ¥1.92

768.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.04

$1.23 ¥8.24

696.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.28

$2.21 ¥14.78

287.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.82 ¥12.18

-18.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.22

$1.62 ¥10.82

81.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.80

$0.54 ¥3.59

392.59%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.94

$1.23 ¥8.26

350.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.06

$19.41 ¥130

-45.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.82

$3.81 ¥25.50

153.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.81

$10.27 ¥68.7

48.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.72

$1.20 ¥8.00

232.50%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.32

$1.35 ¥9.03

123.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.44

$1.45 ¥9.73

113.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.90

$1.55 ¥10.37

210.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.34

$0.81 ¥5.40

274.07%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.50

$0.97 ¥6.51

151.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.53

$0.68 ¥4.52

261.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.55 ¥3.65

196.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$4.04 ¥27.00

990.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.20

$13.26 ¥88.7

-4.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.93

$0.44 ¥2.92

1159.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.49

$1.73 ¥11.60

202.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.36

$0.31 ¥2.08

1106.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$197

$19.77 ¥132

595.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.47

$1.18 ¥7.89

282.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.95

$0.36 ¥2.38

277.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.62

$7.35 ¥49.16

314.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.11

$1.27 ¥8.50

15.75%

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

$29.0K A$41.5K

$19.4K ¥129.9K

49.32%

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

$26.5K A$37.9K

$16.3K ¥108.7K

62.89%

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

$234 A$335

$48.17 ¥322

385.12%

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

$27.93 A$40.01

$8.88 ¥59.4

214.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.9

$11.36 ¥76.0

390.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.8

$42.64 ¥285

15.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.77

$16.36 ¥109

31.30%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.62

$7.57 ¥50.7

99.34%

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

$2,371 A$3,397

$574 ¥3,841

312.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.3K

$36.7K ¥245.3K

-17.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$32.68 ¥219

144.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.6

$41.93 ¥280

20.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$173

$86.0 ¥575

40.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$187

$109 ¥730

19.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,520

$297 ¥1,983

493.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,991

$181 ¥1,209

668.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,005

$699 ¥4,675

399.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,572

$377 ¥2,519

561.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,922

$3,544 ¥23.7K

95.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,233

$1,971 ¥13.2K

226.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,279

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 Taizhou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Taizhou

$181 23.4% 87% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Taizhou

$223 28.8% 41.9% $161

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Taizhou

$68 8.8% 78.4% $249

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Taizhou

$98 12.7% 68.7% $216

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Taizhou

$121 15.7% 29.3% $50

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Taizhou

$24 3.1% 85.4% $140

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Taizhou

$58 7.5% 27.4% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $297 in Taizhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $26.00 in Taizhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $223 per month, with Taizhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Taizhou

🕒 Local time

19:46 7:46 PM

16:46 4:46 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

615,000

💱 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 Taizhou 7,790 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Taizhou

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 Taizhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Taizhou differ by about 265% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $774 including rent). Taizhou 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 $1,161 in Taizhou 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 $297 in Taizhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $574 in Taizhou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 72% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $774 in Taizhou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Taizhou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Taizhou 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 Taizhou 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 Taizhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 265% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.