Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Zhoukou

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhoukou: $735 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,000 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Zhoukou
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Zhoukou Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Zhoukou

🇨🇳 China

$735

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Zhoukou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $735 in Zhoukou.

Melbourne $2,821
Zhoukou $735

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,182 in Zhoukou.

Melbourne $4,235
Zhoukou $1,182

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,628 in Zhoukou.

Melbourne $5,650
Zhoukou $1,628

Living in Melbourne is roughly 284% more expensive than in Zhoukou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Zhoukou is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.96 ¥26.45

340.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$22.25 ¥149

280.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$4.88 ¥32.61

155.33%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.24 ¥21.68

26.85%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.48 ¥3.22

537.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.39 ¥2.58

546.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$1.06 ¥7.11

824.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.22 ¥14.85

286.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.77 ¥11.85

-16.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.59 ¥10.63

84.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$1.10 ¥7.36

141.82%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.61 ¥10.77

244.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$13.10 ¥87.6

-19.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.44 ¥23.03

180.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$11.31 ¥75.6

34.57%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$1.90 ¥12.69

110.00%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.27 ¥8.49

137.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.56 ¥10.46

98.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.17 ¥7.83

311.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$0.77 ¥5.14

293.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$0.95 ¥6.38

156.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.58 ¥3.88

324.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.58 ¥3.89

181.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$3.98 ¥26.63

1007.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$11.61 ¥77.6

9.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.87 ¥5.83

536.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.35 ¥9.04

287.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.29 ¥1.91

1189.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$17.83 ¥119

671.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$1.55 ¥10.38

190.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.36 ¥2.38

277.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$6.14 ¥41.03

395.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.25 ¥8.39

17.60%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$17.7K ¥118.6K

63.55%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$15.5K ¥103.4K

71.14%

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

$234 A$336

$58.1 ¥389

302.06%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$7.42 ¥49.60

276.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$10.48 ¥70.1

431.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$36.81 ¥246

34.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$15.02 ¥100

43.01%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.95 ¥39.80

153.61%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$413 ¥2,765

473.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$16.0K ¥106.9K

88.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$39.61 ¥265

101.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$35.96 ¥240

40.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$75.1 ¥502

60.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$77.9 ¥521

67.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$300 ¥2,008

485.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$179 ¥1,197

676.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$585 ¥3,910

497.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$372 ¥2,489

569.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$3,774 ¥25.2K

83.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$2,035 ¥13.6K

216.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.36

75.60%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Zhoukou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Zhoukou

$179 24.3% 87.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Zhoukou

$208 28.3% 45.8% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Zhoukou

$76 10.3% 76% $241

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Zhoukou

$98 13.4% 68.7% $216

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Zhoukou

$103 14% 40.1% $69

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Zhoukou

$22 3% 86.4% $141

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Zhoukou

$49 6.6% 38.8% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $300 in Zhoukou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $22.00 in Zhoukou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $208 per month, with Zhoukou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇨🇳 Zhoukou

🕒 Local time

03:53 3:53 AM

00:53 12:53 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

8,953,172

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 →

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Melbourne Zhoukou 8,540 km ≈ 11 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 Zhoukou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Zhoukou differ by about 284% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $735 including rent). Zhoukou 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 $1,103 in Zhoukou 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 $300 in Zhoukou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $413 in Zhoukou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 85% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $735 in Zhoukou versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Zhoukou but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Zhoukou 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 Zhoukou 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 Zhoukou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 284% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.