Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Xuzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Xuzhou: $596 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $26,700 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Xuzhou
Learn more

Xuzhou Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Xuzhou

🇨🇳 China

$596

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Xuzhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $596 in Xuzhou.

Melbourne $2,821
Xuzhou $596

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $971 in Xuzhou.

Melbourne $4,235
Xuzhou $971

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,346 in Xuzhou.

Melbourne $5,650
Xuzhou $1,346

Living in Melbourne is roughly 373% more expensive than in Xuzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Xuzhou is 56% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$24.86

$2.28 ¥15.21

664.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$121

$13.94 ¥93.2

506.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.77

$4.79 ¥31.97

160.13%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.86

$2.29 ¥15.31

79.48%

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

$3.06 A$4.36

$0.48 ¥3.24

537.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.59

$0.27 ¥1.82

833.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$13.98

$1.45 ¥9.70

575.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.23

$1.52 ¥10.13

463.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.12

$1.95 ¥13.01

-24.10%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.20

$2.15 ¥14.34

36.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.79

$0.58 ¥3.90

358.62%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.90

$1.17 ¥7.83

373.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.00

$10.43 ¥69.7

0.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.77

$1.47 ¥9.82

556.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.72

$8.01 ¥53.5

90.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.70

$1.89 ¥12.65

111.11%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.31

$1.08 ¥7.21

179.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.43

$0.93 ¥6.21

233.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.87

$0.95 ¥6.34

407.37%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.32

$0.54 ¥3.63

461.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.49

$0.70 ¥4.65

248.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.51

$0.64 ¥4.28

284.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.32

$0.44 ¥2.96

270.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$62.9

$3.03 ¥20.23

1354.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.12

$5.95 ¥39.73

113.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.90

$0.46 ¥3.07

1104.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.46

$0.92 ¥6.15

468.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.33

$0.29 ¥1.92

1189.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$196

$17.28 ¥115

695.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.44

$1.41 ¥9.40

219.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.94

$0.35 ¥2.37

288.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.44

$9.05 ¥60.5

236.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.10

$1.17 ¥7.83

25.64%

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

$29.0K A$41.4K

$18.1K ¥121.2K

59.94%

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

$26.5K A$37.8K

$15.1K ¥100.6K

75.76%

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

$234 A$333

$46.71 ¥312

400.28%

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

$27.93 A$39.84

$7.83 ¥52.3

256.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$79.5

$3.65 ¥24.39

1427.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$70.5

$41.24 ¥276

19.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.64

$14.39 ¥96.2

49.27%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.53

$5.28 ¥35.30

185.80%

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

$2,371 A$3,383

$415 ¥2,773

471.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.1K

$22.0K ¥147.2K

37.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$114

$29.70 ¥198

169.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$72.3

$22.15 ¥148

128.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$172

$45.25 ¥302

166.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$186

$53.3 ¥356

144.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,509

$222 ¥1,482

693.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$1,982

$161 ¥1,078

761.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$4,984

$455 ¥3,042

667.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,557

$378 ¥2,525

559.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,881

$2,171 ¥14.5K

219.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,194

$1,677 ¥11.2K

284.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,252

$937 ¥6,259

367.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.42

72.51%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Xuzhou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Xuzhou

$161 27.1% 88.4% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Xuzhou

$162 27.2% 57.8% $222

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Xuzhou

$58 9.8% 81.7% $259

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Xuzhou

$73 12.3% 76.7% $241

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Xuzhou

$68 11.4% 60.6% $104

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Xuzhou

$22 3.6% 86.8% $142

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Xuzhou

$52 8.7% 34.9% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $222 in Xuzhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 368% 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 $14.00 in Xuzhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $162 per month, with Xuzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Xuzhou

🕒 Local time

19:46 7:46 PM

16:46 4:46 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

9,083,790

💱 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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Between locations

Melbourne Xuzhou 8,510 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Xuzhou

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 Xuzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Xuzhou differ by about 373% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $596 including rent). Xuzhou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 368% 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 $222 in Xuzhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $415 in Xuzhou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 137% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $596 in Xuzhou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Xuzhou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Xuzhou 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 Xuzhou 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 Xuzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 373% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.