Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Australia

Name: Australia
Address: AU

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,250 a month against $2,537 in Australia, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Australia
Learn more

Australia Living Index

Jump to prices

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,250

/mo nomad

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,537

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Shanghai is 45.9% cheaper than Australia without rent, and 50.7% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Shanghai is 46.7% cheaper than Australia without rent, and 42.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.55 ¥30.40

$17.66 A$25.27

-74.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.52 ¥197

$82.8 A$118

-64.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.10 ¥34.08

$11.22 A$16.05

-54.55%

Cappuccino

$3.42 ¥22.88

$3.85 A$5.51

-11.17%

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

$0.61 ¥4.11

$2.85 A$4.08

-78.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.40

$2.37 A$3.39

-84.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ¥8.07

$7.85 A$11.23

-84.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.31

$8.49 A$12.16

-73.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 ¥12.46

$1.74 A$2.49

6.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 ¥13.45

$2.78 A$3.98

-27.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ¥6.83

$2.21 A$3.16

-53.85%

Eggs

$1.72 ¥11.46

$5.06 A$7.25

-66.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.19 ¥115

$9.87 A$14.12

74.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.35 ¥22.39

$8.95 A$12.80

-62.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 ¥85.5

$14.71 A$21.06

-12.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 ¥14.51

$3.76 A$5.39

-42.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 ¥11.65

$2.99 A$4.28

-41.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ¥12.96

$3.10 A$4.43

-37.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 ¥11.23

$4.62 A$6.61

-63.64%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.17

$2.82 A$4.03

-72.70%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$2.30 A$3.29

-59.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.16

$2.32 A$3.32

-73.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.88

$1.71 A$2.44

-66.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.83 ¥25.60

$38.17 A$54.6

-89.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 ¥73.1

$13.77 A$19.70

-20.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥5.59

$4.91 A$7.02

-82.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.71

$5.02 A$7.19

-68.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.59 ¥3.92

$2.84 A$4.07

-79.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.27 ¥202

$94.3 A$135

-67.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.06 ¥13.77

$3.44 A$4.92

-40.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.13

$1.59 A$2.28

-70.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 ¥58.8

$39.37 A$56.3

-77.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 ¥8.51

$1.31 A$1.88

-3.05%

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

$19.6K ¥131.0K

$27.7K A$39.7K

-29.34%

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

$18.6K ¥124.2K

$28.1K A$40.2K

-33.82%

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

$57.2 ¥382

$201 A$288

-71.55%

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

$8.06 ¥53.8

$28.45 A$40.72

-71.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ¥70.3

$57.4 A$82.2

-81.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.6 ¥432

$56.7 A$81.1

14.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.63 ¥118

$19.28 A$27.60

-8.56%

Cinema Ticket

$8.84 ¥59.1

$15.07 A$21.56

-41.34%

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

$1,437 ¥9,605

$2,116 A$3,028

-32.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.1K ¥187.5K

$18.3K A$26.1K

53.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 ¥365

$79.5 A$114

-31.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.43 ¥243

$54.9 A$78.5

-33.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.4 ¥504

$113 A$161

-33.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 ¥695

$122 A$175

-14.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,039 ¥6,945

$1,582 A$2,264

-34.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 ¥3,933

$1,225 A$1,753

-51.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,487 ¥16.6K

$2,409 A$3,447

3.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,237 ¥8,268

$1,911 A$2,734

-35.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.6K ¥90.8K

$7,995 A$11.4K

69.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,191 ¥41.4K

$5,968 A$8,541

3.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,715 ¥11.5K

$3,926 A$5,619

-56.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

5.92

-43.24%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 4, 2026

Last update for Australia: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$589 47.1%

Australia

$1.2K 48% 108% $636

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19%

Australia

$370 14.5% 56.2% $133

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$122 9.7%

Australia

$166 6.5% 36.4% $44

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.6%

Australia

$298 11.7% 178% $191

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$82 6.6%

Australia

$87 3.4% 5.4% $4.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$76 6.1%

Australia

$287 11.3% 279% $211

Getting Around

Shanghai

$37 3%

Australia

$117 4.6% 216% $80

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇦🇺 Australia

🕒 Local time

13:10 1:10 PM

16:10 4:10 PM

3 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

26,473,055

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

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).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shanghai Australia 7,940 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
Australia

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

Shanghai vs other spots: cost of living compared

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