Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Bacau

For one person, living is cheaper in Bacau: $916 a month against $1,222 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Bacau
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Bacau Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,222

/mo nomad

Bacau

🇷🇴 Romania

$916

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Bacau

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

A single person spends $1,222 per month in Shanghai vs $916 in Bacau, rent included.

Shanghai $1,222
Bacau $916

A couple spends around $1,971 per month in Shanghai vs $1,552 in Bacau, rent included.

Shanghai $1,971
Bacau $1,552

A family of three spends $2,720 per month in Shanghai vs $2,189 in Bacau, rent included.

Shanghai $2,720
Bacau $2,189

Shanghai costs about 33% more than Bacau, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Shanghai and Bacau are more affordable than the global median – Shanghai 10% lower, Bacau 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.53 ¥30.11

$14.19 RON 68.2

-68.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.16 ¥201

$84.6 RON 407

-64.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 ¥34.04

$7.24 RON 34.80

-29.42%

Cappuccino

$3.41 ¥22.70

$2.04 RON 9.81

67.16%

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

$0.58 ¥3.85

$2.01 RON 9.64

-71.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ¥2.36

$1.87 RON 8.98

-81.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 ¥8.22

$2.47 RON 11.88

-50.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 ¥15.37

$3.34 RON 16.03

-30.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 ¥12.52

$1.18 RON 5.68

59.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.94 ¥12.88

$0.70 RON 3.35

177.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ¥6.52

$1.69 RON 8.12

-42.01%

Eggs

$1.70 ¥11.31

$3.47 RON 16.67

-51.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.02 ¥113

$7.68 RON 36.91

121.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.22 ¥21.41

$5.33 RON 25.61

-39.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.93 ¥86.0

$8.30 RON 39.88

55.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 ¥14.31

$1.10 RON 5.27

95.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.48

$1.48 RON 7.12

16.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 ¥13.51

$1.49 RON 7.14

36.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.54

$1.83 RON 8.80

-5.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.51

$0.72 RON 3.48

15.28%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 ¥6.13

$0.68 RON 3.29

35.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.48

$0.75 RON 3.58

-10.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ¥3.92

$0.72 RON 3.45

-18.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.77 ¥25.10

$5.35 RON 25.71

-29.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.03 ¥73.4

$5.25 RON 25.24

110.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥6.00

$1.02 RON 4.90

-11.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.67

$1.17 RON 5.64

36.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 ¥3.81

$0.70 RON 3.35

-18.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.62 ¥197

$29.15 RON 140

1.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ¥14.25

$0.61 RON 2.94

250.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.10

$0.65 RON 3.12

-27.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.74 ¥58.2

$6.72 RON 32.31

30.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ¥8.93

$1.78 RON 8.55

-24.72%

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

$19.3K ¥128.1K

$28.9K RON 138.9K

-33.38%

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

$18.3K ¥121.7K

$24.8K RON 119.4K

-26.41%

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

$58.9 ¥392

$106 RON 509

-44.41%

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

$7.90 ¥52.5

$7.47 RON 35.90

5.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.60 ¥70.5

$4.63 RON 22.25

128.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.8 ¥431

$25.29 RON 122

156.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.47 ¥116

$15.98 RON 76.8

9.32%

Cinema Ticket

$9.06 ¥60.3

$6.09 RON 29.25

48.77%

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

$1,587 ¥10.6K

$589 RON 2,830

169.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K ¥187.9K

$4,986 RON 24.0K

466.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 ¥363

$85.0 RON 409

-35.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.21 ¥248

$31.98 RON 154

16.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.6 ¥496

$60.3 RON 290

23.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥707

$83.2 RON 400

27.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 ¥6,826

$416 RON 1,999

146.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$559 ¥3,722

$236 RON 1,135

136.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,618 ¥17.4K

$549 RON 2,636

377.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,191 ¥7,926

$405 RON 1,945

194.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K ¥89.0K

$1,805 RON 8,673

640.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,527 ¥43.4K

$1,229 RON 5,905

431.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 ¥11.4K

$936 RON 4,501

82.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

6.97

-51.79%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bacau: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$559 45.8%

Bacau

$236 25.8% 57.8% $323

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19.4%

Bacau

$177 19.3% 25.4% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$123 10%

Bacau

$117 12.8% 4.5% $5.5

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.8%

Bacau

$194 21.2% 81.5% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$83 6.8%

Bacau

$37 4.1% 54.8% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$77 6.3%

Bacau

$118 12.9% 52.6% $41

Getting Around

Shanghai

$36 3%

Bacau

$36 3.9% 1.6% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,026 in Shanghai versus $416 in Bacau. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 83% higher in Shanghai. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Shanghai versus $85 in Bacau. Groceries tell a different story – $237 in Shanghai vs $177 in Bacau – so Bacau wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇷🇴 Bacau

🕒 Local time

02:40 2:40 AM

20:40 8:40 PM

6 h behind Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

144,307

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Shanghai Bacau 7,870 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
Bacau

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 Bacau: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Shanghai is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,833 per month in Shanghai and $1,373 in Bacau. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bacau, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $416 there versus $1,026 in Shanghai.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,222 in Shanghai and $916 in Bacau. That’s a gap of about 33%.

Kindergarten costs $1,587 per month in Shanghai and $589 in Bacau. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Families tend to lean toward Bacau – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Bacau. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Shanghai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.