Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Yichang

For one person, living is cheaper in Yichang: $714 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,300 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Yichang
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Yichang Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Yichang

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Yichang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $714 in Yichang.

Melbourne $2,821
Yichang $714

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,132 in Yichang.

Melbourne $4,235
Yichang $1,132

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,551 in Yichang.

Melbourne $5,650
Yichang $1,551

Living in Melbourne is roughly 295% more expensive than in Yichang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Yichang is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$2.74 ¥18.33

536.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$21.74 ¥145

288.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$4.88 ¥32.63

155.33%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.96 ¥19.77

38.85%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.47 ¥3.11

551.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.27 ¥1.79

833.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$0.88 ¥5.91

1013.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.11 ¥14.12

306.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.86 ¥12.41

-20.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.60 ¥10.73

83.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.95 ¥6.34

180.00%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.53 ¥10.24

262.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$12.98 ¥86.8

-19.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.26 ¥21.81

196.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$10.11 ¥67.6

50.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$1.79 ¥11.94

122.91%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.21 ¥8.09

149.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.53 ¥10.25

102.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.15 ¥7.66

319.13%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.75 ¥5.00

304.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$0.94 ¥6.31

159.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.55 ¥3.70

347.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.55 ¥3.70

196.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.16 ¥21.10

1294.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$10.71 ¥71.6

18.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.76 ¥5.05

628.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.59 ¥10.63

228.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.27 ¥1.79

1285.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$16.48 ¥110

734.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$1.36 ¥9.09

231.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.35 ¥2.35

288.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$6.55 ¥43.81

364.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.12 ¥7.50

31.25%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$19.3K ¥128.8K

50.57%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$17.3K ¥115.4K

53.44%

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

$234 A$336

$45.21 ¥302

416.88%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$9.71 ¥64.9

187.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$11.62 ¥77.7

379.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$42.47 ¥284

16.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$13.74 ¥91.9

56.33%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.95 ¥39.81

153.61%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$329 ¥2,202

619.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$16.7K ¥111.8K

80.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$43.70 ¥292

83.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$30.05 ¥201

68.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$71.1 ¥476

69.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$70.8 ¥473

84.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$273 ¥1,825

544.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$192 ¥1,287

622.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$599 ¥4,006

483.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$361 ¥2,413

590.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,972 ¥19.9K

133.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$2,068 ¥13.8K

211.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.89

51.67%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Yichang: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Yichang

$192 26.9% 86.2% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Yichang

$200 27.9% 48% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Yichang

$67 9.3% 79% $251

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Yichang

$84 11.7% 73.4% $231

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Yichang

$97 13.6% 43.5% $75

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Yichang

$21 2.9% 87.4% $143

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Yichang

$54 7.6% 31.7% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $273 in Yichang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $22.00 in Yichang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $200 per month, with Yichang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Yichang

🕒 Local time

18:35 6:35 PM

15:35 3:35 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

4,059,686

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Yichang 8,380 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Yichang

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 Yichang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Yichang differ by about 295% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $714 including rent). Yichang 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 $1,071 in Yichang 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 $273 in Yichang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $329 in Yichang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 92% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $714 in Yichang versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Yichang but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Yichang 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 Yichang 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 Yichang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 295% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.