Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ningbo and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Ningbo: $682 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Ningbo
Learn more

Ningbo Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index

Jump to prices

Ningbo

🇨🇳 China

$682

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ningbo and in Melbourne

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Ningbo and in Melbourne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $682 in Ningbo versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

Ningbo $682
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,177 in Ningbo versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

Ningbo $1,177
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,672 in Ningbo versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

Ningbo $1,672
Melbourne $5,650

Living in Ningbo costs roughly 76% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ningbo is 49% below, Melbourne is 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.91 ¥19.46

$17.43 A$25.08

-83.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.60 ¥198

$84.6 A$122

-64.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.58 ¥30.62

$12.46 A$17.92

-63.24%

Cappuccino

$3.43 ¥22.93

$4.11 A$5.91

-16.55%

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

$0.47 ¥3.16

$3.06 A$4.40

-84.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$2.52 A$3.62

-88.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.04 ¥6.93

$9.80 A$14.10

-89.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 ¥23.04

$8.57 A$12.33

-59.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 ¥11.88

$1.48 A$2.14

20.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 ¥7.78

$2.94 A$4.23

-60.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.73 ¥4.86

$2.66 A$3.82

-72.56%

Eggs

$1.62 ¥10.86

$5.54 A$7.97

-70.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.79 ¥98.9

$10.51 A$15.13

40.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.81 ¥25.45

$9.65 A$13.89

-60.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.83 ¥59.1

$15.22 A$21.91

-41.98%

Apples (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.18

$3.99 A$5.75

-73.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 ¥10.16

$3.02 A$4.34

-49.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 ¥10.06

$3.10 A$4.46

-51.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.18 ¥7.88

$4.82 A$6.93

-75.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.63 ¥4.21

$3.03 A$4.36

-79.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.75 ¥4.99

$2.44 A$3.52

-69.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.64 ¥4.27

$2.46 A$3.54

-73.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ¥3.59

$1.63 A$2.34

-66.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.39 ¥29.33

$44.07 A$63.4

-90.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.00 ¥53.5

$12.70 A$18.28

-37.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ¥5.04

$5.54 A$7.97

-86.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 ¥9.51

$5.23 A$7.52

-72.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.93

$3.74 A$5.38

-92.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.16 ¥108

$138 A$198

-88.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.76 ¥11.78

$4.51 A$6.50

-60.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 ¥2.49

$1.36 A$1.96

-72.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.37 ¥49.29

$30.45 A$43.81

-75.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.54

$1.47 A$2.12

-12.93%

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

$19.6K ¥131.4K

$29.0K A$41.7K

-32.25%

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

$17.7K ¥118.0K

$26.5K A$38.1K

-33.32%

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

$51.9 ¥347

$234 A$336

-77.79%

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

$6.85 ¥45.78

$27.93 A$40.19

-75.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.93 ¥53.0

$55.7 A$80.2

-85.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.07 ¥168

$49.40 A$71.1

-49.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.69 ¥98.2

$21.48 A$30.91

-31.61%

Cinema Ticket

$7.71 ¥51.6

$15.09 A$21.72

-48.91%

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

$929 ¥6,209

$2,371 A$3,412

-60.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.8K ¥105.8K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-47.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.5 ¥418

$80.0 A$115

-21.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.09 ¥181

$50.7 A$73.0

-46.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.0 ¥414

$121 A$174

-48.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 ¥350

$130 A$188

-59.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$358 ¥2,392

$1,759 A$2,531

-79.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$179 ¥1,198

$1,390 A$2,000

-87.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$772 ¥5,162

$3,494 A$5,027

-77.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$482 ¥3,223

$2,493 A$3,588

-80.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,861 ¥25.8K

$6,926 A$9,967

-44.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,097 ¥14.0K

$6,445 A$9,274

-67.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,180 ¥7,892

$4,383 A$6,307

-73.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.18

5.9

-46.10%

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

Last update for Ningbo: October 13, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ningbo

$190 27.9%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 102% $194

Accommodation & Living

Ningbo

$179 26.3%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 676% $1.2K

Eating Out

Ningbo

$93 13.7%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 237% $221

Clothing & Footwear

Ningbo

$92 13.5%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 87.2% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ningbo

$67 9.8%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 376% $251

Sport & Entertainment

Ningbo

$41 5.9%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 96.5% $39

Getting Around

Ningbo

$21 3.1%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 683% $143

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $358 in Ningbo and $1,759 in Melbourne. 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: $30.00 in Ningbo vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $190 vs $384 per month, with Ningbo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Ningbo

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

17:59 5:59 PM

20:59 8:59 PM

3 h ahead of Ningbo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,605,689

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ningbo Melbourne 7,910 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ningbo
Melbourne

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

Ningbo vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ningbo and Melbourne differ by about 313% in total monthly costs ($682 vs $2,821 including rent). Ningbo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 271% lower in Melbourne. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $358 in Ningbo versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $929 in Ningbo versus $2,371 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 102% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $682 in Ningbo versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ningbo but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Ningbo 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, Ningbo and Melbourne 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 Ningbo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 313% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.