Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Xiamen

For one person, living is cheaper in Xiamen: $842 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Xiamen
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Xiamen Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Xiamen

🇨🇳 China

$842

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Xiamen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,852 in Melbourne versus $842 in Xiamen.

Melbourne $2,852
Xiamen $842

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,297 in Melbourne versus $1,338 in Xiamen.

Melbourne $4,297
Xiamen $1,338

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,742 in Melbourne versus $1,835 in Xiamen.

Melbourne $5,742
Xiamen $1,835

Living in Melbourne is roughly 239% more expensive than in Xiamen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 113% above, Xiamen is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.75 A$25.40

$3.01 ¥20.10

489.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.8 A$121

$23.67 ¥158

258.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 A$17.40

$5.36 ¥35.85

126.87%

Cappuccino

$3.93 A$5.62

$2.51 ¥16.78

56.57%

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

$3.14 A$4.49

$0.47 ¥3.14

568.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 A$3.47

$0.35 ¥2.37

594.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.90 A$14.17

$1.47 ¥9.86

573.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.29 A$11.86

$2.99 ¥19.97

177.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 A$2.21

$1.46 ¥9.78

6.16%

White Bread (500g)

$3.01 A$4.31

$2.27 ¥15.20

32.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.88 A$4.12

$0.98 ¥6.55

193.88%

Eggs

$5.44 A$7.79

$1.63 ¥10.92

233.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.59 A$15.16

$11.95 ¥79.9

-11.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 A$13.76

$2.52 ¥16.83

281.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 A$21.46

$11.73 ¥78.4

27.79%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 A$5.94

$2.55 ¥17.05

62.75%

Banana (1kg)

$3.05 A$4.37

$1.47 ¥9.85

107.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.72

$1.66 ¥11.09

98.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.76 A$6.81

$1.97 ¥13.19

141.62%

Potato (1kg)

$3.04 A$4.34

$1.03 ¥6.86

195.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.55 A$3.65

$1.82 ¥12.18

40.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 A$3.55

$0.91 ¥6.05

172.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.49 ¥3.31

232.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.1

$3.06 ¥20.47

1340.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.43 A$17.79

$11.22 ¥75.0

10.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.33 A$7.63

$0.81 ¥5.40

558.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.38

$1.70 ¥11.37

203.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.84 A$5.50

$0.16 ¥1.07

2300.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$142 A$203

$12.10 ¥80.9

1069.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.40 A$6.29

$1.47 ¥9.82

199.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.40 A$2.01

$0.29 ¥1.92

382.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.83 A$42.69

$7.34 ¥49.07

306.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 A$2.09

$1.31 ¥8.78

11.45%

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

$28.1K A$40.3K

$19.3K ¥128.8K

46.09%

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

$25.9K A$37.1K

$17.3K ¥115.4K

50.26%

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

$233 A$333

$44.42 ¥297

423.75%

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

$27.28 A$39.04

$8.81 ¥58.9

209.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.0 A$81.6

$10.23 ¥68.3

457.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 A$75.4

$48.22 ¥322

9.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.62 A$32.37

$10.59 ¥70.8

113.60%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 A$24.48

$10.22 ¥68.3

67.32%

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

$2,373 A$3,397

$488 ¥3,264

385.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.5K A$43.6K

$24.1K ¥161.3K

26.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.2 A$112

$38.84 ¥260

101.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 A$72.2

$28.49 ¥190

77.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$105 ¥703

14.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 A$191

$84.5 ¥565

57.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,713 A$2,451

$342 ¥2,283

401.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 A$2,006

$269 ¥1,798

421.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,339 A$4,778

$825 ¥5,511

304.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 A$3,619

$547 ¥3,655

362.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,018 A$10.0K

$8,597 ¥57.5K

-18.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,767 A$9,685

$4,684 ¥31.3K

44.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,228 A$6,051

$1,138 ¥7,607

271.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.46

70.52%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Last update for Xiamen: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Xiamen

$269 32.2% 80.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$385 13.5%

Xiamen

$216 25.8% 44% $170

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.1%

Xiamen

$63 7.6% 80% $254

Eating Out

Melbourne

$314 11%

Xiamen

$87 10.4% 72.3% $227

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Xiamen

$116 13.9% 32.8% $56

Getting Around

Melbourne

$168 5.9%

Xiamen

$16 1.9% 90.7% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$87 3.1%

Xiamen

$69 8.2% 21% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,713 in Melbourne and $342 in Xiamen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 271% 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 Xiamen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $385 vs $216 per month, with Xiamen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Xiamen

🕒 Local time

17:34 5:34 PM

14:34 2:34 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

3,531,000

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Melbourne Xiamen 7,470 km ≈ 10 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 Xiamen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Xiamen differ by about 239% in total monthly costs ($2,852 vs $842 including rent). Xiamen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 271% 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: $1,713 in Melbourne versus $342 in Xiamen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,373 in Melbourne versus $488 in Xiamen. 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 $842 in Xiamen versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Xiamen but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Xiamen 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 Xiamen 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 Xiamen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 239% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.